“Beats and Rhymes” plunges us into the heart of JonOne's raw power and creative dynamism. We go back to his sources of inspiration, to the days when the New York subway was the canvas for his creations.
A pioneer in highlighting the first generation of New York graffiti artists, the Speerstra Gallery has played a decisive role in the evolution of the urban artistic movement. Since 1991, it has been a privileged partner of JonOne, collaborating closely with the artist to present his work and explore new territories of expression.
"Beats and Rhymes" plunges us into the heart of JonOne's raw power and creative dynamism. We go back to his sources of inspiration, to the days when the New York subway was the canvas for his creations. As if sections of a railcar had been extracted, the presented works are made on aluminum, finished with a car body varnish, and unfold like captivating fragments, immortalizing a pivotal moment in his work. The abundance of energy, the kaleidoscope of colors and the challenge to established norms reflect the boldness and insubordination inherent in the graffiti movement of the 80's.
These works are imbued with a fierce tenacity, an obsession and a palpable urgency: JonOne paints with the same ardor as he boxes and travels at the speed of light, bursting colors from a creative heart that beats with unbridled rapidity. The steel-smooth surface of the support invites the artist to let himself go, to make color adhere in the most authentic and raw way possible. And yet, JonOne erases, retraces, superimposes, sometimes even sanding, as if trying to capture the train of a whole life in motion. His work crystallizes in the immortalization of a moment, in the intuition of the present, of the past reclaiming its depth, of the future in the process of creation, of the future in the process of invention, continuing to explore the possibilities of the abstract. Like a flashback to the future, "Beats and Rhymes" is like a prequel to his film on an XXL soundtrack, an innovative retrospective of his artistic career.
"Beats and Rhymes" tells a story of determination and perseverance, a narrative that attests to the challenges he had to overcome. Every brushstroke marks his artistic journey, testifying to his tireless pursuit of a freestyle expression. The artist thus uses a variety of mediums to create: brushes, markers, different paints, producing several levels of texture and visual strata. Indeed, JonOne was one of the graffiti pioneers to introduce the use of brushes, even when painting on trains, unsettling those who expected to see only aerosols. JonOne’s art dances to the rhythm of beats and rhymes, playing with color and shapes, probing the emotional depths of the abstract, which transcends the senses. This exhibition is a visual explosion that grips the viewer head-on, creating an artistic experience as unique as it is personal.
© Sandra Dubrulle / © Speerstra Gallery
