Stuttgart / São Paulo - Following the Brazilian launch of the two-seater car in April of this year, smart provides local artists with an unconventional platform: the smart Urban Stage will take place in São Paulo from 27 August to 10 September 2009. The pop-up platform combines a gallery, shopping, showroom and events relating to the themes of urban mobility, creativity and ecological sustainability – core aspects of the smart brand. The smart Urban Stage will be initiated by the project ROJO® Out by smart. Eight international streetart artists will be invited to give free rein to their creativity in public areas, giving lasting colour to a city that is dominated by outsize concrete buildings.
São Paulo is one of the largest conurbations on the planet and, as a magnet for people of all nationalities, is very multicultural by nature. For some time, the metropolis has also been home to a pulsating creative scene. One of the most vital scenes is streetart, an art form in which Brazilian artists are internationally acknowledged as driving forces.
Marc Langenbrinck, Director of Brand Management, Sales & Marketing at smart says "smart is an urban brand that questions the status quo in a confident and unconventional way. With the Urban Stage, we are establishing a creative platform which will be lent a unique atmosphere by the streetart artists of São Paulo. In this way, we are also raising awareness for questions relating to mobility and sustainable lifestyle in one of the largest cities in the world."
To begin with, the gallery located at "Rua Oscar Freire 512" at the heart of the vibrant shopping and nightlife district, Jardins Paulista, is just a plain white room. In the course of two weeks Tony de Marco and Apo Fousek (Brazil), Eltono (France), MWM (USA) and Ovni and Nuria Mora (Holland/Spain), curated by the creative network ROJO®, will transform the smart Urban Stage into a collective work of art. This will also include a smart fortwo that will be turned into an artcar during the first days of the event as a joint work of art by Ovni and MWM.
The colette and smart collection is available in the shop: fashion and accessories created for smart by five international design labels. The products – all limited editions of 150 – are curated by Parisian concept store colette. The Livraria Pop art gallery in São Paulo sells streetart books and collector’s items. The smart Urban Stage will also attract visitors with its series of events consisting of exhibitions, presentations and workshops on mobility, creativity and sustainability.
Two weeks before the smart Urban Stage, the "ROJO® OUT by smart" project initiated together with ROJO® will be launched in cooperation with the São Paulo local authorities. The six smart Urban Stage artists plus Superblast from Germany and Tofer from the USA will live out their creativity in public areas. Over a period of around three weeks, they will cover eleven concrete buildings in prominent areas of the city with outsize murals – the highest one with 12 meters. A total area of 400 square metres will change from grey to brightly coloured. ROJO® OUT by smart zones in on a distinctive feature of São Paulo. Advertising in public spaces has been prohibited by law since 2007, meaning that the unused spaces leave plenty of room for creative and non-commercial projects – a form of interaction that benefits both the art scene and the city, as well as enhancing São Paulo’s reputation throughout the world.
The artists
Tony de Marco from São Paulo has designed more than 50 typefaces as a typographer. As a photographer, among other things he has become famous for his report "São Paulo No Logo" about São Paulo following the advertising ban. Tony de Marco also publishes the magazine Tupigrafia.
Nuria Mora lives in Madrid and her art aims to promote dialogue between urban architecture and the city's inhabitants. In 2008 she was invited by the Tate Gallery, London to take part in the festival "Street Art at Tate Modern". Nuria Mora belongs to the Spanish artists' collective "Equipo Plástico".
Superblast, also known as Manuel Osterholt, works as a graphic artist in Berlin. He has been active as a graffiti artist since 1989. He gets his inspiration from the skateboard, hip hop and punk rock scenes. Superblast prefers to work in a consortium with other artists.
Eltono originally comes from Paris and started working with graffiti in 1989, including the spraying of suburban trains. He studied Fine Arts at the University of Saint Denis, Paris and has lived in Madrid since 1999. His works are exhibited worldwide in galleries and at art festivals.
Ovni's work is characterised by the interplay between static and movement. The Spanish artist makes movement visible with shapes and in this way creates her own landscapes. Ovni comes from Barcelona and is represented across Europe in individual and group exhibitions and happenings.
Tofer Chin from Los Angeles exhibits his works internationally, for example at the White Box gallery in New York and the Reina Sofia National Museum Art Centre in Madrid. Publications such as Flaunt, Nylon, Trace, Big, Theme, and Idn publish his works. He was recently commissioned by the interior designer Kelly Wearstler to create a painting for the Viceroy Hotel in Miami.
Apo Fousek has been active in the surfer and skateboard scene for more than 20 years. He looks at the subjects of nature, animals and everyday situations in his art with the aim of encouraging self-reflection in the viewer. He lives in São Paulo and California and is currently developing his own fashion collection made of organic materials.
