Willem Kerseboom
Modern & Contemporary Art
Mear One | Kofie | Retna | El Mac
MEAR ONE
Mear One, born 1971 as Kalen
Ockerman in Santa Cruz, CA, is
a Los Angeles-based fine artist,
famously known for his oftenpolitical
street graffiti art. Commonly
referred to as the ‘Michelangelo’
of Graffiti, Mear One is often
associated with CBS (Can’t Be
Stopped — City Bomb Squad) and
WCA (West Coast Artist) crews.
As a graphic designer, Mear One
has designed apparel for Conart,
Kaotic, as well as his own Reform
brand. Mear One has done album
covers for artists like Freestyle
Fellowship, Alien Nation, Limp
Bizkit, Busdriver and Daddy Kev.
In 2004, Mear One joined
artists Shepard Fairey and
Robbie Conal to create a series of
“anti-war, anti-Bush” posters for a
street art campaign called “Be the
Revolution” for the art collective
Post Gen.
As a famed L.A. street artist and
prolific graffiti writer for over 20
years his partners have included
Kofie, Skate One, Az Rock, Tren,
Item, Anger, Yem, and Cisco.
KOFIE
Augustine Kofie is a long-time
Los Angeles street artist, graphic
designer, clothing designer and fine
artist recognized for his unique
architectural, geometric, mixedmedia
style that he refers to as
“Vintage Futurism.” This brand of
artwork has appeared throughout
the streets of LA as well as on fine
furniture, CDs, and clothing. Kofie
has exhibited widely and has
been involved with the TPS Crew,
UTI Crew, RF Crew, VT Crew and
WCA Crew in Los Angeles. His
work reflects a patient artist
interested in the subtleties of
line color and composition while
carrying forward elements of recent
art history and contemporary
urban aesthetics.
RETNA
Marquis Lewis.
Born in Los Angeles / Lives and works in Los Angeles.
2010 “VOX HUMANA,” L.A. Art Machine, L.A. Art Show, Los Angeles, CA
2010 “Street Legal,” Rivera & Rivera Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2010 “Art For All” Malaga, Spain (mural/exhibit)
2009 "Primary Flight" Miami Fl. Margulies Warehouse (mural)
2009 "Vagos Y Reinas". Robert Berman Gallery Los Angeles
2009 "Follow the Line". The Don Gallery Milan Italy
2008 "Primary Flight". Miami FL (mural)
2007 "Letters First '07" Bread & Butter, Barcelona, Spain
2007 “Primary Flight” Art Basel-Miami, FL (mural)
2006 "Sexta Feria del Libro en el Zócalo" Mexico City, Mexico (mural)
2005 "Wall Street Journals". White Walls Gallery San Francisco
2005 "Superiority Complex". Scion Installation Gallery Culver City
2005 "Read the writing on our walls" - Greystone Pacific Design Center
2005 "Identity and Inspiration" Millard Sheets Gallery Pamona
2005 "Urban Edge Show". Milan, Italy
2004 "Application". Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts. Australia
2003 "The Seventh Letter" E.S.P. Tokyo, Japan.
2003 "Street Dreams" Ghetto Gloss Gallery. Los Angeles
2000 "Graffiti Art Auction". Guernseys New York
2000 "Contemporary Corruption II" Zero One Gallery. Los Angeles.
2000 "Sarcastic". Tokyo, Japan. installation.
1999 "East Meets West" Martinez Gallery. New York
1999 "Contemporary Corruption" Zero One Gallery. Los Angeles
1997 "DADA". Los Angeles - Installation.
VOLTA6
At the Dreispitzhalle : VOLTA UNCOVERED ,LAAM presents a live art happening called VOX HUMANA involving legendary Los Angeles street artists, Mear One, Kofie, Retna and El Mac. Street artists work on the fly and in the open to create works of art that change the way we see, feel, and interact with our urban environments. The VOX HUMANA event will provide an opportunity for Volta patrons to witness how street artists work and watch the live unfolding of “pieces” within the context of an international fine art fair. For the five-day run of the fair, these four artists will create large-scale (up to 3.5 meters x 7 meters) pieces in their signature styles using acrylic and aerosol paints to be completed — or near completion — by the end of the fair. This project is of unique art-historical value, as it represents a major shift in not only contemporary aesthetics, but in the public perception of street art generally. These artists, who grew up on the streets of one of the toughest cities in the world, carved a name for themselves as artists through dangerous illegal activity. Over 25 years, however, they have gone from being criminalized by their community to being celebrated for creating one of the most challenging and sophisticated contemporary art forms.
Mear One | Kofie | Retna | El Mac
MEAR ONE
Mear One, born 1971 as Kalen
Ockerman in Santa Cruz, CA, is
a Los Angeles-based fine artist,
famously known for his oftenpolitical
street graffiti art. Commonly
referred to as the ‘Michelangelo’
of Graffiti, Mear One is often
associated with CBS (Can’t Be
Stopped — City Bomb Squad) and
WCA (West Coast Artist) crews.
As a graphic designer, Mear One
has designed apparel for Conart,
Kaotic, as well as his own Reform
brand. Mear One has done album
covers for artists like Freestyle
Fellowship, Alien Nation, Limp
Bizkit, Busdriver and Daddy Kev.
In 2004, Mear One joined
artists Shepard Fairey and
Robbie Conal to create a series of
“anti-war, anti-Bush” posters for a
street art campaign called “Be the
Revolution” for the art collective
Post Gen.
As a famed L.A. street artist and
prolific graffiti writer for over 20
years his partners have included
Kofie, Skate One, Az Rock, Tren,
Item, Anger, Yem, and Cisco.
KOFIE
Augustine Kofie is a long-time
Los Angeles street artist, graphic
designer, clothing designer and fine
artist recognized for his unique
architectural, geometric, mixedmedia
style that he refers to as
“Vintage Futurism.” This brand of
artwork has appeared throughout
the streets of LA as well as on fine
furniture, CDs, and clothing. Kofie
has exhibited widely and has
been involved with the TPS Crew,
UTI Crew, RF Crew, VT Crew and
WCA Crew in Los Angeles. His
work reflects a patient artist
interested in the subtleties of
line color and composition while
carrying forward elements of recent
art history and contemporary
urban aesthetics.
RETNA
Marquis Lewis.
Born in Los Angeles / Lives and works in Los Angeles.
2010 “VOX HUMANA,” L.A. Art Machine, L.A. Art Show, Los Angeles, CA
2010 “Street Legal,” Rivera & Rivera Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2010 “Art For All” Malaga, Spain (mural/exhibit)
2009 "Primary Flight" Miami Fl. Margulies Warehouse (mural)
2009 "Vagos Y Reinas". Robert Berman Gallery Los Angeles
2009 "Follow the Line". The Don Gallery Milan Italy
2008 "Primary Flight". Miami FL (mural)
2007 "Letters First '07" Bread & Butter, Barcelona, Spain
2007 “Primary Flight” Art Basel-Miami, FL (mural)
2006 "Sexta Feria del Libro en el Zócalo" Mexico City, Mexico (mural)
2005 "Wall Street Journals". White Walls Gallery San Francisco
2005 "Superiority Complex". Scion Installation Gallery Culver City
2005 "Read the writing on our walls" - Greystone Pacific Design Center
2005 "Identity and Inspiration" Millard Sheets Gallery Pamona
2005 "Urban Edge Show". Milan, Italy
2004 "Application". Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts. Australia
2003 "The Seventh Letter" E.S.P. Tokyo, Japan.
2003 "Street Dreams" Ghetto Gloss Gallery. Los Angeles
2000 "Graffiti Art Auction". Guernseys New York
2000 "Contemporary Corruption II" Zero One Gallery. Los Angeles.
2000 "Sarcastic". Tokyo, Japan. installation.
1999 "East Meets West" Martinez Gallery. New York
1999 "Contemporary Corruption" Zero One Gallery. Los Angeles
1997 "DADA". Los Angeles - Installation.
VOLTA6
At the Dreispitzhalle : VOLTA UNCOVERED ,LAAM presents a live art happening called VOX HUMANA involving legendary Los Angeles street artists, Mear One, Kofie, Retna and El Mac. Street artists work on the fly and in the open to create works of art that change the way we see, feel, and interact with our urban environments. The VOX HUMANA event will provide an opportunity for Volta patrons to witness how street artists work and watch the live unfolding of “pieces” within the context of an international fine art fair. For the five-day run of the fair, these four artists will create large-scale (up to 3.5 meters x 7 meters) pieces in their signature styles using acrylic and aerosol paints to be completed — or near completion — by the end of the fair. This project is of unique art-historical value, as it represents a major shift in not only contemporary aesthetics, but in the public perception of street art generally. These artists, who grew up on the streets of one of the toughest cities in the world, carved a name for themselves as artists through dangerous illegal activity. Over 25 years, however, they have gone from being criminalized by their community to being celebrated for creating one of the most challenging and sophisticated contemporary art forms.