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Transit cams to train eyes on paint punks

Posted in article, writing by whatyouwrite on the April 29, 2008
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Tuesday, April 29th 2008, 4:00 AM

Smile, graffiti punks - you’re on transit camera.

NYC Transit plans to test surveillance cameras on two trains with hopes of finding the right technology - and funding - for widespread use across the system, President Howard Roberts said.

“Somebody with an acid pen and 15 minutes can destroy about $8,000 worth of glass,” Roberts said.

Speaking after a series of Metropolitan Transportation Authority committee meetings, Roberts indicated that the two-train pilot would start sometime next year.

Cameras that record images inside buses have helped catch vandals marking up NYC Transit’s big rigs, Roberts said, adding he’s eager to have a pilot program on the rails “as soon as wecan.”

Onboard cameras will give authorities the “ability to see what’s going on inside a subway car, whether it’s graffiti, scratchiti or some more serious stuff.”

An NYC Transit spokesman said it costs approximately $1.4million a year just to remove ink and paint graffiti from inside subway trains. He couldn’t immediately quantify the cost associated with damaged windows.

Nicole Clark, 54, a health insurance worker waiting for a C train in midtown yesterday, said she would welcome the installation of surveillance equipment in trains.

“I think it would deter vandalism,” Clark, of Brooklyn, said. “If there were cameras, I don’t think people [would] attempt to do any of that.”

Other riders, however, thought the transit officials should spend scarce resources elsewhere.

“The payoff isn’t worth the expenditure,” said Amram Migdal, 24, a security consultant from Brooklyn. “You want the subways cleaned up but it doesn’t ruin your ride.”

Transit officials didn’t provide a cost estimate for rigging up trains with cameras, but a pilot program to install surveillance equipment on 400 buses was pegged at $5.2 million by NYC Transit two years ago.

With Lindsay Greene

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2008/04/29/2008-04-29_transit_cams_to_train_eyes_on_paint_punk.html

$10K Reward for Giant Flying Graffiti Pig

Posted in Artist, event, writing by whatyouwrite on the April 29, 2008
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Although the headline above might read like it’s straight out of the Onion, it’s not and proves that there’s still some good to come out of corporate fuck-fest Coachella. The flying “Dark Side of the Pig” float was bombed by LA graffiti writer SLICK and La Coka Nostra’s Danny Boy and featured anti-war slogans and a huge vote for Obama on the underbelly. According to Supertouch—who’s been very wrong about previous PR stunts involving their “friends”—claims that the pig got untethered and floated away. More importantly though, Coachella head honcho Bill Fold is offering a $10,000 reward for the return of the swine. |Supertouch|

coachella8.jpg

http://animalnewyork.com/news/2008/04/10k-reward-for-giant-flying-gr.php

the world screaming nov

Posted in Artist, writing by whatyouwrite on the April 29, 2008
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http://www.slamxhype.com/images/posts/Nov_front_a-600.jpg
Alife LA will be the location for an exhibition of new works by Eric Haze enititled Nov York City, based on Dumar Brown’s novel The World Screaming Nov and featuring the limited-edition collaborative set The World Screaming Nov. A notable figure in the design and fashion community over the last few decades, New York artist Haze was commissioned by Alife to create an installation specifically for their Los Angeles space. The show will consist of eight archival silkscreen works on canvas. Nov York City represents Haze’s continued return to the fine art world, including recent exhibitions and installations at select galleries worldwide. This will be a rare opportunity to view and purchase the artist’s work in Los Angeles. The exhibition marks a first-time collaboration between Haze, Brown and Alife: The World Screaming Nov limited-edition set. The set includes a signed copy of Brown’s novel and a custom Alife t-shirt designed by Eric Haze. Limited to 192 pieces, the set will be available at all Alife flagship locations in Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver and Tokyo and is priced at $75. Nov York City is the first in a series of art exhibitions to be held at Alife’s Los Angeles space in the Fairfax District. Open to the public, the reception for Nov York City will take place on Saturday, May 17 from 7 to 10pm.

Known for his iconic graphics that have transformed the streets of New York City as well as defined the visual language of hip hop bands such as the Beastie Boys, Public Enemy and LL Cool J, Haze communicates with his audience through a variety of mediums. For Haze, the exhibition continues to balance the elements of his work as a graphic designer and fine artist. The site-specific installation represents “a continuation of the type-based, freestyle lettering work that I have been developing recently, playing on words, also using scale and repetition within the application of the written word.” His custom graphic for the limited-edition Nov York City t-shirt is a one-off newly created handletter design that relates to the collaborative project as a whole.

The concept for Nov York City was inspired by Dumar Brown’s third title, The World Screaming Nov, which will be released by Brown’s publishing company Newkirk Éditeur. Having featured the Nov series in its New York location for several years, Alife partnered with Brown on his upcoming release and commissioned Haze to illustrate select quotes from the book. The three creative entities teamed up to produce the Nov York City exhibition and limited-edition set, which symbolizes a unique first-time collaboration for all.

http://www.slamxhype.com/images/posts/NOVYORKCITY_T.Shirt-Art-600.jpg