Solo show Zurich
NASTY
07.12.2020 – 12.12.2020
DIAMONDS AND PEARLS
With the title Diamonds and Pearls, Nasty presents a refined version of his iconic compressed spray cans. Five pieces of the latest project called Inclusions will be presented at Kolly Gallery from the 7th to the 12th of December 2020.
From early on Nasty recognized the high potential of the spray can as the ideal object for re- and up-cycling, but at the same time he knew how to turn the presumed leftover of graffiti into a nostalgic cultural asset and piece of history. Who knew that spray cans would develop into iconic symbols and insignia representing the graffiti art movement? Since entering the universe of graffiti Nasty always had this passionate fascination for the collection of spray cans, their designs, the name of the colors and the brands.
It was in the mid 90s when Nasty started to paint and sign empty spray cans and give them to friends or collectors he met along his artistic path as a souvenir. As the images demonstrate, that the working process leading to these refined pieces was lengthy and started around the year 2000. When the cans were emptied after a day of spraying, Nasty decorated his first cans with splashes, drips of spray paint or sometimes with his tag and began to frame them between two plexiglass panes. That is how he first created a transparent frame around the spray can, which could be viewed from all sides. The embellishments in the beginning were simple but effective due to the graphic designs of the cans.