Friday, May 31, 2013

Morley- wise words on the street

Are you familiar with Morley? You HAVE to be... If you live in LA, you will recognize these black and white words of wisdom from all over town. My opinion? HE IS A GENIUS! And a nice guy to boot!
I moved out to LA in the summer of 2009, immediately I fell in love with the plethora of amazing street art. There are a handful of artists that have really pushed the envelope and molded the art form into something much bigger then ever seen before. Morley is one of them. I have lost count of how many I have run into since then, dozens- DOZENS I say- and I am always looking for more. His work brings such happiness to my day, there really is no way to explain the little jolt of happy I get when I run across a new Morley. 
So when I'm having a bad day, or just need a pick me up- those are my days to hunt! I get on instagram and facebook and his website and start tracking new sightings. Recently Morley was out of the country spreading the love to a new audience, but when LA postings started to pop up last week though I knew that he was home and back at it! Oh happy day.
After a couple of hours of research, I was able to nail down five spots with a possible two others. Notes & locations in hand, I set out for a couple of hours to knock out the hunt. I came home with the five I set out for. Not a bad haul! After some more research and hints from fellow hunters- I am on to the other two... now to just set aside the time to get out again! It's hit or miss with these guys, some ride for weeks/months and others won't last a day. I always get a sense of urgency when there are new ones around. I NEED to get them before the buff man comes.

Fingers crossed, I'll keep finding my happy when I need it.


From his website- 
Morley is a Los Angeles-based street artist that specializes in bold, typographic posters which he wheat pastes within the urban landscape. Blending humor, hope and his unique perspective on life, Morley's aim is to act as a friendly voice amongst the cacophony of billboarded messages and corporate slogans. This voice was given a face when he began including an image of himself in each of his pieces, looking to create a more intimate relationship between the artist and the audience than many of his anonymous contemporaries could allow.

Friday, May 24, 2013

Pillow Fight!

If you haven't heard, there is a national pillow fight day. And in some places it's quite an event!
This past April 6th, I decided to check out the hooplah at the closest one to me, downtown LA. Right around 3pm (ish) small clusters of pillow and costume clad fighters started to appear in and around Pershing Square. It wasn't very organized at all... I decided it was gonna be up to me to get the ball rolling. So I went up to a group of 4 brightly colored participants who were looking around for something or someone and said "pppsss hey- you should start a countdown, you look like you can yell pretty loud" And wouldn't you know it, by the time he got to 7- people started coming closer and closer until he got to 1.
Then- BOOM! Let the flinging begin.
It took some time for people to really let go and give some good swings but after about 30 minutes- the first pillow popped. Feathers brought out the competition in these people! Now we had a party going. As little as the event was, the fighters were all in top shape and spirits and made the best of the day.
I know in previous years and at different locations, the crowds have been incredibly larger. This year was sort of difficult to really know if it was happening and where. The event had been canceled in 2012 and the information online was pretty spotty. People interested had to really keep their nose to the ground and research all the way up until the morning of. It was hit or miss. Hopefully though this is a sign of an upswing and next year there will be much more advanced notice allowing for better planning and larger crowds.  
Noone was exempt from having a ball. Pillow Pup included! Costumes were fun, there was a unicorn and some rainbow girl and various superheros too. The whole thing went on for about 2 hours. In the California sun, that is some tiring work. These guys were troopers.
I'm glad it actually happened this year and I hope the city of Los Angeles doesn't hate us.
Here's to a better turnout next year!

You can stay in the know about International Pillow Fight Day here. If you are in another large city, odds are there is one happening near you.

Full set of photos over here