1AM Gallery is pleased to present, “Catch Me if You Can” with French brother duo street artists, Arthur Maslard A.K.A. Ratur and Oscar Maslard A.K.A. Sckaro. The exhibition opens Thursday, November 5th, 6:30-9:30pm, free and open to the public. Artists will be in attendance. RATUR and SCKARO have painted side by side their entire lives constantly pushing the envelope with their developed fraternal pursuit. Inspired by not only graffiti art culture but also by traditional European and Flemish paintings, the brothers respond to each other’s work producing ever more extensive polished pieces; consequently creating a kind of back and forth battle. They so eloquently named this battle, “Catch Me if You Can.”
From the artists — “Hands are the fastest way to achieve something, which is why it is always present in our works. Hands are often the first link between the object and the human, between the painter and his work. They transmit on canvas what the painter imagines. The character is important in our compositions but the identity is not , that is why the faces are rarely represented and hands are often more expressive than faces, they are enough to give the expression of the character. We prefer to suggest a situation rather than represent it directly. This situation is often represented by characters in motion (running, levitating…).” Each painting of “Catch Me if You Can” is based off a computer-edited photo, usually of the artists themselves. They use the photo as a guide to manipulate depth of field, carefully rendering the foreground while allowing the mid and background to slip away into less contrasted illustrations. As a result, each painting contains in itself a sense of unreality; a dreaminess that seems to push forward out of the painting. The hands of their figures in particular seem to reach out of the canvas. Allying digital work and technical virtuosity, the series questions the painter’s place in our overwhelmingly digital society and challenges the relationship between street art and a more classical, academic current.
RATUR and SCKARO took after their father who was a graphic designer and photographer. After high school and studying visual communication they quickly gravitated toward graffiti after a chance meeting with a graffiti artist from the nearby town Rouen, Madkow. They later formed the MV3 crew touring France to paint at various festivals and alongside other prominent graffiti crews.
RATUR and SCKARO took after their father who was a graphic designer and photographer. After high school and studying visual communication they quickly gravitated toward graffiti after a chance meeting with a graffiti artist from the nearby town Rouen, Madkow. They later formed the MV3 crew touring France to paint at various festivals and alongside other prominent graffiti crews.
