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JR

Window or Aisle?

Window or Aisle: Adi Khavous

August 1, 2012

Tel Aviv, Israel, Sivan Askayo, Travel, Window or Aisle

…So here is the story of how I met Adi….

I took this random shot (above) while visiting Tel Aviv on September 2011. It was also when JR, the French artist, visited  Tel Aviv, during the social demonstrations and ran the Time is Now project in Israel. I was taking part in this project and had my picture taken, as well as documenting others…When I uploaded the above image on my facebook page, some of my friends recognized Adi (third from left) and tagged him on my photo. I got quite curious to know who was that guy that everyone is talking about, so I sent him a message.

The next week we met somewhere in Tel Aviv and we went shooting together. I see Adi as a magician with everything that has to do with Art and photography.

He is not afraid of experimenting different techniques, colors and angles. His bold, creative and limitless personality reflects very well in the images he produces. (I think you will sense his personality through the answers below). For this interview, I chose a series of images Adi took while he was visiting Tel Aviv last year. I was drawn to the way he captures the night scene and to the way he masters the balance between light and darkness, mostly because I don’t do it quite often.

Adi is currently working on an Art installation project called ‘My faded memoirs and the power of one‘ and constantly busy with his photography and music.

So sit back and relax because you are about to discover who Adi is. And it sometimes seems as few people in the body of one, Adida Fallen Angel 

Thanks Adi!

Where are you from? I was born in Tel-Aviv, Israel on a rainy chilled day at the end of October 1975.

Where did you study graphic design and photography? I studied Multimedia Production at the SAE (Sound Audio Engineering & Multimedia) college in Rotterdam from 2000 – 2002, the studio was mainly into graphic design and 3D animation with touches of video productions, illustrations and web deign and programming, I picked up still photography more seriously when I left the Netherlands at 2008.

What made you want to learn it? I tried many things in my life but two things never left my heart and that was music and arts, I wanted to study something that will help me express myself better and also earn a living. I found out that I am not so good with numbers and words but when it comes to shapes and colors I felt at home, so I picked out the best field for me.

If you weren’t a graphic designer/photographer what would you do? I would be a musician, o wait…I AM ONE!!! win win for me.

Where do you get your inspiration from? O god, good question, basically everything I see when my eyes are closed and what I hear when I am in total silence. If we want specifics then I would pinpoint 3 things, The internet, documentaries and music, specially music.

What do you mostly love shooting? Ummm.. I don’t think I have a favorite genre but I do know I really don’t like to shoot events, like weddings or rock shows or anything with tons of people and even more photographers than air particles. I used to be really afraid shooting people but lately I am falling in love with the humans, I’m also getting really into massive productions where I can really control everything and get a shot that will be as close as possible to the image in my mind. 

How do you usually approach a new project? With a smile and a bucket of skills and imagination!

If it’s for me I will spend endless hours until I get exactly what I want (the curse and beauty of being a perfectionist!), If it’s for a client I will spend hours before figuring out how to make the project shine like the sun then I will come with exactly the opposite and let everything happen on the spot, I am a big fan of the magic of the moment and always aim to reach truth within the shot itself, it also demand to have fun while shooting, otherwise it’s just work and I HATE WORK!

What are you working on right now? I just finished a massive art installation in a big streetart gallery in Montreal called Fresh Paint, it is by far my biggest and most complex art piece to date, it took a whole Month to build and sucked tons of energy out of me, it’s pretty amazing if you ask me, beside that I have another exhibition coming up next month where I will show new paintings and drawings, I am also very close to finish my band’s (Spoonlicker) first album which we are working on for a couple of years, very excited about that. Got shoots and little art project in the air and hopefully figure out how to pay my rent this end of the month because sadly I am not the greatest business man! I need a manger, hint hint!!!

Window or Aisle? Window, I insist!!!

Anything to add? Yes, I want to thank you for reading and taking the time to embrace my art/heart, inspiration is very important to me and I feel I need to share as much as I take in, being a part of a cycle that moves around sounds and sights is why we are all here, got to keep the wheel spinning, so thank you.

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Tel Aviv, window or aisle, travel, Adi Khavous

Urban Art

Fred Le Chevalier; A Summary of Events and Emotions in Paris

June 21, 2012

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

I’ve always wanted to follow a Street Artist. I mean, I follow quite a lot of them with my camera. Or when they come to New York, I do my best to follow them or even meet them, as it happened to me with Mr. Brainwash, JR, Shepard Fairey and Mr. Andre only recently. I’ve always wanted to follow a Street Artist in REAL time, when he sprays, pastes, colors or glues his Art on the walls.

I’ve been following Fred Le Chevalier for a few months now. I took a random picture of one of his characters in a previous visit to Paris and since then I got hooked. I started following him on his facebook page, just to realize how active he is and how the characters which he pastes on the walls of Paris (and recently Berlin) are cute and quirky at the same time. So I was very happy when Fred has agreed that I join him in one of his walks in Paris one afternoon of early June.

Here are a few facts about Fred Le Chevalier that you didn’t know:

* Le Chevalier is not his real name. It is just a nick name which means ‘The Knight’ in French

* He has a completely different day job than what people might expect of a Street Artist

* He adds poetry to his characters and glues it as a signature with his name

* He pastes his characters during day time

* He started drawing six years ago but he has been sticking and pasting the characters on the walls, only for the last three years

* He started drawing bigger characters in September 2011 and since then more people are noticing and discovering him (before that he was drawing smaller characters)

* His first exhibit was in March 2012 in a cafe in Paris where he invited most of his friends

* He claims to have two different lives

* He draws new characters every day but pastes them on walls only three times a week or when he has time

* He sees a wall and decides on the spot if he likes it or not

* He has a few favorite walls to put his Art on: Namely in Montmartre, and in Rue Saint Merri around Centre Pompidou

* Some characters he draws are based on people he knows (I’m still waiting to see a character with a camera)

* He sometimes tries to paste the character close to where his friends live, as a personal present

Thanks Fred for having me around!

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier

Paris, France, Urban Art, Street Art, Fred Le Chevalier