Hasta La Ideas

Ex ad man (hence the name), artist and author, King Adz, has just opened a show of street art at Gallery North in Batley (just south of Leeds), featuring work by the likes of Blek le Rat (above), Hush, Asbestos, James Dodd, Hugo Kaagman and more.

The exhibition runs for a month and ties in with King Adz’ recently published book, Street Knowledge (Collins, £20) which documents the author’s take on global street culture, taking in fashion, art and music from around the world…

“The idea behind the show is that I wanted to create something live you could walk round whilst looking at the [Street Knowledge] book,” says King Adz. “There are copies of the book at the entrance and I’m asking people to have a browse and read about the who / what / when / where / why as they check out the art on the walls. I love the work of Asbestos, James Dodd, Hush, Laser 3.14 and Hugo Kaagman and I have collected their work in the past and thought it would be good to get some of this work out in public, mixed with some of the pieces I’ve been creating myself over the last 20 years.”

by UK-based Hush

by Dutch artist Hugo Kaagman

by King Adz himself

by Wilma $ – a local artist who studied at the Batley School of Art & Design

The Street Knowledge exhibition runs until February 13 at Gallery North,  The Design Quarter, The Redbrick Mill, 218 Bradford Road, Batley, West Yorkshire, WF17 6JF.

King Adz’ book, Street Knowledge is a kind of A-Z of urban culture. The author explains: “I spent 25 years getting down on the streets of the world’s most killer cities looking for the perfect beat, the illest street art, the purest street style and much, much more. Street Knowledge is an encyclopedia of street culture for those who love Banksy or Irvine Welsh and want to know more about the cutting-edge talents, past and present, and who these people are that have shaped urban cool. Street Knowledge includes work and exclusive interviews from some of the world’s most famous artists and talents, such as Banksy, David LaChapelle, Oliviero Toscani, Quik, Tony Kaye, Tama Janowitz, The KLF, Shawn Stussy, Obey, Irvine Welsh, Martha Cooper, Hush and Benjamin Zephaniah, as well as lesser-known and up-coming talents who are literally coming up from the streets to a gallery, cinema, clothes shop or iPod near you. It also looks at the cities where all this is happening right now and gives the reader a mini city-guide to where the hottest spots are to be found and where to eat sleep shop drink and check out the freshest art, design and fashion.”

Street Knowledge is published by Collins, £20. More info at harpercollins.co.uk