Print Temple

Ian Francis is my hero, he just does exactly what I want, the eerie thing is, he does it before I know I want it. I have no idea how he does it, but time after time he comes up with the goods, the first time I saw his work was at the old Lazarides Gallery on Charring Cross Road – it was a group show with all the “Outsider” artists Mr Lazarides had assembled as a group under that moniker – all the names were there, Banksy, Insect, Micallef, Mode2, Faile etc, these guys are all superstars in the world of modern (street scented) art. But, somehow Ian Francis managed to stand out, he wasn’t as (pointedly) obvious as Banksy, or (brilliantly) deliberate as Paul Insect and certainly not as (expertly) immersed in a particular genre as the Faile guys. The only other artist that almost didn’t belong was Antony Micallef, the two painters have very different influences at times, but both are on an crucial artistic journey, but, alas, Micallef’s work is like a fine aged rum and should never to

Ok, you know when you see something around and go “cool” but didn’t take the time to really check it out? Maybe it’s a tune you hear, or something in a shop window, and you forget to go back and check it? Well Usugrow has unknowingly fallen in to that category too many times for me to ignore. I have seen his work on limited edition vans shoes and shirts – plus on skateboards by Consolidated. So when the more observant people at the Stolen Space put on a solo show for Usugrow, the time has come to sit up, take notes and pay attention! Usugrow has a darkside, well, perhaps not dark in a sinister sense, but you know those places where we lose ourselves in thought late night? Imagine that drifting feeling allowing the rise to a productive, creative, alter ego, in this case, it has a name, Hasadhu. This spirit could best be described as the manifestation of Usogrows influences forcing their way out, evident in his work is a disciplined love of calligraphy, japan, travelling, cholo tat