A friend recently forwarded Mike Mitchells work to me. Mike Mitchell who studied Illustration at the American Academy of Arts in Chicago, is a very skilled artist and illustrator who infuses his pieces with humor and satire. He describes his work as “cute and creepy, pop culture influenced and thought provoking”

His own rendition of the Super Nintendo Super Mario World character shows exactly that. Mike, who has always hated the Yoshi design, but appreciated him as a gameplay element, decided to make his own version of the characters. Mario became a more gritty character. Yoshi became more intimidating and has some cool new Nike kicks to boot.

There is still more behind his concepts. The lighting on his characters bring them into the realm of reality. His backgrounds are often rich textures or intricate patterns. You can see more of mike’s work at his website www.sirmikeofmitchell.com or by clicking here.Also, Mike sells prints and t shirts of his work on his etsy shop here.

It is refreshing to see an artist whose work is not the result of years of art instruction by dull art school teachers. While I think that art school has certainly created many artists, there are some whose work is the way it is because of a mere curiosity and drive to experiment.

One particular artist that this rings true for is Paper Monster. At first a scientist and reseracher, Paper Monster began paper cutout stencils primarily as a hobby. A way to cure boredom while concurrently releasing creative energy that he had stored in his day job. Paper Monster draws stencils of women. Whether they have a piercing stare or wondrous awe, their faces are always expressive. While his name might not suggest the beauty that is left behind, the name Paper Monster actually refers to the chaos of the artistic process. A name that is paradoxical in nature because the results are elegant and refined.

He uses bold colors sprayed on top of layers of old japanese comics, currency or other found objects. His goal is to “add greater depth to [his] stencil art pieces so that the audience can have a stronger interaction with the painting.”

While Paper Monster has only been creating stencils for the past four years, his work can already be found in several publications and art galleries. Including a recent show at Art Whino and Dirty Pilot. Keep an eye on Paper Monster’s blog at www.papermonster.org Also check back right here on Curbs and Stoops for an interview with Paper Monster coming soon and a possible print release (Maybe you should reply to this blog post if you love the man so that he will be encouraged!)

When one thinks “graffiti writer” Apex might not be the first thing that comes to mind. His letters are so beautifully crafted and styled that it is tough to see it as only a form of graffiti. They transcend into being architecture, that is, their impact on the built environment sets boundaries and creates fields of colors which impact their surrounding as much as any building might. They transcend into being typographic – his works are careful explorations of abstract letter forms. And to be more philosophical, they transcend into being emotions expressed on a wall.

Apex is a young San Francisco based artist that has already made a big name for himself. His name doesn’t come from a ton of careless throw ups or quickly sprayed tags, instead, Apex has coined the term Super Burner. Huge productions that have several layers, patterns and a gamut of colors that put Crayola to shame. Apex’s work really has two scale. The macro scale where you can read the layering, composition and patterns and a micro scale where you get a feel for textures, color overlaps and other idiosyncratic moments.

And because we couldn’t rob you from seeing this one large: click here

Also, check out a recent video on Apex’s art on Vimby here

More of his work can be found on his flickr page here

I have become more and more fascinated with Brazilian street art, particularly in the city of Sao Paulo. The city has a very active and even explosive street art scene that is both fascinating and inspiring. Sao Paulo youth grow up seeing street art all around their city. It is used as a transformative force that makes the city rich in culture.

It is within this context that we find Dante Horoiwa’s work. A 21 year old street artist from Sao Paulo, Horoiwa, has been able to share his work not only with his city, but also with the world. Horoiwa is now travelling in Australia to be a part of the street art scene there. This is particularly interesting because it shows that his work excels at a much greater scope and in an area where street art is regarded differently.

Horoiwa’s work is an amalgamation of vivid colors, intruiging patterns, and interesting characters that are cartoonish but have a very lifelike quality about them. Their emotion and the level of detail that Horoiwa puts in the light and shadow makes them step into a realm of reality that is very intruiging.