All the walls belong to us
Arseny, Moscow street artist, better known as Pokras Lampas turns homely urban spaces into art pads, and they rapidly become local attractions.
Recently Pokras Lampas visited Penza to give a master-class. The NG reporter interviewed him about the specialized education, work in Europe and many other things.
Tell us, when did you first start to draw?
I began to draw graffiti about 7 years ago. I do not have an art education. It seems to me that the more you learn from someone, the more he affects you and your style, but I always tried to escape this. I was looking for something different, worked with fonts, gradually becoming a dab hand.
How did you come to calligraphy and find your own style?
At some point, I got hooked with the Niels «Shoe» Meulman works. He was the first to invent the term «Calligraffiti», i.e. calligraphy on a large scale. Roughly speaking, he could take a mop and write with it on the walls, for example. Having become acquainted with his work, I realized that I do not want to limit myself with graffiti only and so, I started calligraphy. My style is the result of daily experimentations with tools and everything, actually.
Which tools do you use?
Firstly, I use markers: they are compact and easy to fill. Secondly, it is a Pilot Parallel Pen (this is an automated pen). Another tool I have is an old brush, «brush» (an automated brush), ruler, and drawing-pen. Actually, you can draw with anything. I even wrote something with a business card once.
Tell us about your most exciting project.
I think it was a project I did in Ekaterinburg. The work represents an ultraviolet wall, covered with calligraphic tags and a glowing inscription in English «All the walls belong to us» on it. It is enormous. That is a real project; it is not on the Internet. People look at it; you influence them, popularize it.
Where do you usually draw inspiration from?
I cannot give you a definite answer on that. Sometimes I hear a phrase, watch a film and that is how ideas come up. But it can happen anywhere and anytime. Sometimes, I even draw on pasta in ketchup.
What inspired you to make the Calligraphy On Girls project? How is it going now?
It happened spontaneously. Basically, it all started with graffiti, when drawing on girls’ bodies was associated with a certain success and popularity. I had a desire to serve it all with a whole new flavor. Especially in the winter season, when there are not many opportunities to draw on the streets.
Have you ever thought of moving abroad, where this street culture is better developed?
Due to the fact that this culture is not well developed here, it makes it more interesting to work here; you have to deal with more ambitious projects. There is only one good reason for me to work in Europe: there is a huge amount of amazingly talented people and the only way to collaborate with them is to go there. Therefore, I will gladly do this in the nearest future. But honestly, this culture has to be developed everywhere.
All the walls belong to usSource: ng58.ru