Meeting of Styles/Can You Rock !?!

 

Recently we all heard about the cancelation of the annual Can You Rock graffiti jam here in Montreal. Every year invitations go out to select and respected writers, both local and afar, to participate in what has been considered by many to be one of the premier graffiti jams in the city. I personally look forward to events like this (and Under Pressure) that bring the crews and community together, even if loosely, for a weekend of painting, chilling, and all hours partying. I meet new writers from all over and get to catch up with some of the locals I don't get to see that often. Even more, in recent years I've made closer ties with the organizers of these events, I volunteer, take pics, and help out where it's needed or where I can. So when Can You Rock didn't get off the ground this year, I felt it on a more personal level than I expected to. It also made me think about the importance of events like this not only to the local scene and its members, but to the image that Montreal has maintained as a pillar of the North American scene in general. This last statement might be a lofty one, but it's one I stand by. This city is arguably one of the most soaked and active around, has some heavy hitters and draws the attention of writers the world over.

I decided to dig into the vault to put together a MOS/CYR retrospective to fill the void of not having the event take place this year. It's not a comprehensive post, rather just some shots I never put up, and a few re-posted deservedly. Hopefully next year things will be more manageable and the team not too bogged down in other responsibilities. Remember, this is a volunteer run event and the organizers take a lot of their personal time to put these types of events on. So big ups to the crews, volunteers, and organizers over the years for putting on some great events and here's looking forward to next year's Can You rock being bigger and meaner than ever.

 

More soon. Stay posted.

Here & There: June 2012

Summer is in full swing and the streets are on fire. Lot's of activity out there. I've been cooling my heels and taking time with some family in town lately so I haven't been able to go through most of my new stuff. Here are some recent pics I've put together from the streets, TA wall and factory, Stinkys, and and just about anywhere else I've been traveling. Still getting those rooftops as much as possible but some access points are getting a little heavy to negotiate. In any case enjoy this hodgepodge of pics from various spots.

 

The upper TA Wall was buffed entirely again. I'm still not sure what kind of strategy this is for the city, or the MTQ to manage the area. There has also been an increased police presence in the area and I have heard of several incidents where the police either stopped or arrested writers in the area over the last month or so. The bottom section of the wall has been untouched. The buff only goes till the junction box area by the far pylons before you descend to the lower wall area. I've even seen a MTQ truck cruise through as I was entering last Friday. Again, I'm not too sure what the city or the MTQ is trying to accomplish here considering the last time they tried this strategy was August of 2009 when the entire upper and lower wall area was buffed, and that was largely unsuccessful. The lower wall and factory remain active.

Solid productions by Otek and Apash, as well as Oser and Fleo as of recent at the TA Wall. I'm also digging a lot of the action in the factory as of late. Lots of bright colors and funky styles. And speaking of access issues, check out this shot I got from the back of Sex Cite. I was about to check the spot to get some rooftop action but was stopped by a stair cage wrapped in razor wire! I've seen enough of this stuff in New York City, but not a lot here, if ever for that matter. Needless to say I didn't get up on the rooftop and can imagine that as long as the razor wire is hanging about this area that I won't anytime soon. I'm not even sure if this is legal in Montreal and have had difficulty locating any information on the city websites on the issue. If anyone knows then message me some details.

More soon, stay posted.

Rooftop Edition: Vol 2

I got the chance to flick a few more rooftops at the beginning of the month. I wanted to lock down a couple of spots along St Caths, particularly above Sex Cite and Super Sex. I was able to get up above Super Sex, but the rooftop above Sex Cite required a little more foot work and the shitty boots, wind, and ice didn't make for the best combination for a rooftop escapade. In any case I think I got me some pretty solid shots of the area. The last time I went up was easily a few years ago so it was nice to get re-aquainted with that upper part of the city.

Again, these are shots only from a few select locations in and around St Caths and St Laurent. I know there are plenty of spots out there, and believe me, I'll get to them in time. And when I do I will most definitely be posting them up here. I tossed in a couple from TA too, for the RIPs to Mitch and Dylan. And some of these aren't really rooftops, but they are close enough, high up at the top of stairwells and such. Regardless, if it's high up there, it's gonna get represented.

Lots of nice stuff up there too, some of it going back easily a few years. There were some shots I wasn't able to fit into the last rooftop post so I threw them into the mix here  which is why some of these shots look from a few months back. These are some great spots with cool views of the city and streets too. Here are the rest of my most recent rooftop shots.

I got some juicy stuff from the streets and some goodies from the vault to let out so stay posted. I also attended the Monk-e exhibit at Sino Shop on Friday night so I'll be posting on that shortly.