People I have Tattooed: Franko B

I met Franko B through fellow friend Suzie Krueger of Fist and Hardon clubs.  Years ago he asked me if I would barter for art and I would tattoo him.  I jumped at the chance and said yes.  Going to his studio I knew he did loads of blood paintings and I was more into his found objects and sculptures.  Franko was orphaned and raised by the Red Cross in Italy.  The Red Corss is something that features prominently in his early works.  I tattooed the forehead tattoo of the winged skull and the beloved across his lower back.

Upon arriving I was overwhelmed by all the works some finished and others not but i had my mark on one item.  A beaten rusted old black cab taxi door with a red heart on it.  i was refused and he opted for these two instead.  I have had them and are still in my collection.  I love them very much and made a sound investment of my time.  I do enjoy when fellow artists ask me for a trade.

BLOG IT LONG BLOG IT CLEAN

BLOG IT GOOD LIKE AFRO SHEEN.  Things are in flux I have to go to court again and this time I am suing someone for being a fucking dip shit and try and get back the money I had paid them in good faith.  As my art career is taking a turn in the right direction.  I am prepping for my next project which will be a HUGE undertaking.  As I enter the forum of the high art world I am aware that there is a protocol and etiquette to how to present yourself and your work.

Over the weekend was the Frieze Art Fair, virtually London's answer to London Fashion Week where galleries sprawling the nations capitol looking for the next big thing or art superstar.  I attended to events over the course of the week.  I went to Fred Mann's grand opening of his new Soho gallery. The second even was the Plus Arts Project at The Mayors Parlour deep in the bitt crack of the east end.

Downing copious amounts of alcohol I was armed with cards and my network know how.  Yet I will worn you.  If you hand me a glass of battery acid with an umbrella and a pineapple wedge I would drink it.  However London Frieze is not that different that London Fashion Week.  Yes there are the parties, yes there are the groupies and those whom have talent.  And There is a lot of overpriced shit that I just don't get.  Making contacts was a plus and and saw some work that I liked.  But I do not go these things looking for inspiration.

Seing some familiar faces was nice and met a YBA who didn't disappoint me in the least. However they did a fellow artist at the show who built the kismet meeting up in their dream, only to be met by a drunk sloppy cunt with cheap jeans and a crooked smile.

Bruja

I have a fascination with witches. Brujas. Mystical beings that were both revered and loathed to some degrees. My family has a history of bruja's in their family tree. In fact my dad used to call my grandmother a Bruja. His labeling was more libelous than anything. I have been busy working on different piece and this is just one of them. I hope you like it. Prints will be available to the general public in limited numbers so be sure to pop in the shop and grab one before the sell out.

Tattooed Artist

Banks Violette is someone whose work is quit serene and impressive in the volumes it can speak when you look at it. Sidebar, I'm knda feeling him as well in the hot sense. He works in a load of different mediums such as salt which to me was very impressive, casting everything from motorcycles to musical instaments and their amps and acoustic boards.

Shop Till You Drop

Ink Whore (Front) Cotton Heather Grey and Navy Eco Friendly Inks comes in White T w/black ink


I have been hell a fucking busy here at Henry Hate Headquarters. Tattooing here, drawing there, firing people here and making merch there. Yes, Henry pie hands. As I swore to myself that I would start working on building the brand and taking it to the next level of my scheme. Sometimes I think I really should sit myself down and ply myself with some sort of mood stablizer that will allow me to relax. Any hoo boo for me, yay for you right? As there is alot of offer now at the Henry Hate Online Shop.


First Stage of Amy Portrait that I put on my twitter account.


Think of it as the universe telling you not to buy just more crap but beautiful crap! The t-shirts ave been doing well and I have already sold a few tote bags and prints. are you tired of the sily rock band shirt that makes you look like everyone else? Does you Walk Of Shame bag make you look a little to slutty or in dire need of a new haul? Is your house or flat begging to be adorned with new works of art that would make great conversation pieces at any cocktail party?

Fear not Henry Hate Onlie is here to help remove any of those pesky weighty questions with a new addition to your hoarding ways,

Stripped Away

I was going to blog about finally going to see Kevin Smith at the Prince Charles Cinema film one his shows for a dvd he was making. Sidebare, I took a dum in the Kevin smith Toilet. But I lost my 12(th) iphone and my 1st new Iphone 4s that had the pictures of the night on it. But I was busy with work and projects that are tucked firmly in my in box. I went alone to the Private view of Stripped at Orbital Comics alone as my part was and is still fighting this raving illness and didn't feel right dragging him to a show while he stood around and watch me get drunk. The work was impressive and it's always nice to catch up with a few friendly and familiar faces.

Talking to artist Mark Wigan who's pen and inks were quite impressive and he's taste on a certain collective sparked my interest.
It was a hodge podge of Gliterratti and Trash-ah-ratti (my favourote kind) were on hand for the opening. Artist Grande Dame art really pops and her colour pallete is someting that would look great in anyones living room. All releshing the art all based on the love of comics and the iconography, set the tone for the night. A huge thaks to Jason Atomic whom was the brain child of this event and it is showing til April 1. you can purchase a postcard for a paltry £20. Thats just pennies a day for a lovely piece of art

Ink Whore!

Copy Of Teen Angels Old issues are highly collectable and still have many of them that my dad gave me.


Slurs are dirty words and sometimes they tend to be embraced by the very people that they are supposed to target. I used the phrase of a ink whore to encompass many definitions across the board. I would use it to describe my ex-boyfriend Adam's boner for getting tattoo, which would lead to me being cut off from sex for at least a few hours. I would use it to describe girls witht he standard center split pin curls and the ever present red rose whom act like tattoo artists are just like designers, regardless if they were well known or not. The dude that just wants his full body done in a hurry. Or the Groupie whom fucks tattoo artists to get free work. I've met them all and I love the word.

So my new t-shirt design is being made as we speak and the cool dudes at Photo Fit whom do a few of my friends stuff do quality work. Long lasting durable and virtually have done all my stuff since I came to London in 1998. I am particular about t-shirts as I wear them till my pits are eaten away. and I love them even more. T-shirts are the new calling card for most people and it also gives people a small view into the fathoms of a person, simply by the shirt they wear. Not to mention it is great and free promotion.

So I did a Chicana peering through a keyhole inked and the slur Whore. This was done on the slight verge of Prison Peña Art. This is based on the chicano style of my uncles and cousins who've spent shit loads of time locked up and the art i grew up looking at. As my uncle Gilbert is locked away on the three strikes your out scheme.
He was always sending my dad stuff he drew and then there were the Teen Angels, to which I still own. There is a front design and there is a back design too. Stay tuned for the finished item. Bags will be done as well and will be purchased through the shop and or the digital online store. Keep an eye out.


Above is are standard linen handkerchiefs with bic biro pens that are sold sometimes in craft gatherings. Prisoners would make crafts in order to get money on their books in order to buy personal items from the prison canteen.

Stripped

Every now and then I get asked to get involved with a group prokect and If it is up my alley I will jump at the chance. And recently
Jason Atomic kindly asked if I would be interested in joining in on the fun. Of course I accepted. Stripped is a group show that Jason is putting together at Orbital Comics in the West End. As I am gearing up for new stuff to present to both Art Republic and Pure Evil this would be a great chance to get a preview of works that are coming.

The Stripped Opening reception is on March 1st and is sure to gain a huge crowd and there will be a artist postcard lucky dip. conact Orbital Comics & Galllery for more info or drop Jason a lin on his blog.

Orbital is loacted at:
Orbital Comics
8 Great Newport Street
London WC2H 7JA

Must You Suffer For Art?

Tracey Emin's Those Who Suffer for Love.



London is filled with Art Galleries some of the best in the world and I love that most are free. London encourages culture and believes that art should be viewed by most people to get them thinking and expose them to ideas through a visual. After all art galleries are the last vestige of salons where people talk about cultural ideas via works presented before them. I myself used to believe in the idea of the 'tortured artist' yet not so any more. I believe that utilising a visceral language to convey a idea or message does not take a rocket scientist, but to use it to great effect to get people thinking and stir up thoughts is a great thing. My professor in college said, "artists make the world a beautiful place. You are given a gift to make wonder." I do believe him be it in the creative forum covering books, music and crafted sculpture to art, and design.


That being said some artists are more apt and skilful than others. Yet with a new exhibition at the Hayward Gallery on the South Bank I am left asking a question must we suffer for our art and if we do is it actually art? Is it easier to just label someone as a ill judged shit magnet. Yes Tracey Emin I am looking in your direction. Mrs. Emin was part of the burgoin Young British Artists of the mid 90's whom with the help of Charles Saatchi made media headlines with her behaviour and her labelling inadament objects art. This is a woman who has refered to her own rape as being 'Broken In", stated that she has had numerous abortions and doomed relationships with men and rumoured woman, etc etc. The there is the drinking and her typical sloppy drunk demeanoor served her ever present crooked smile. I do believe one she is an artist who has some good ideas but her life and her art have merged into one making her a tragic caricature of her own doing. I am left to ask does she seek this as a means to really create art or is it just a broken record stuck on the same track?

If I use Gilbert & George for instance, they remind me of the Pet Shop Boys, a few paintings look cool but then like the PSB the shit starts to sound the same. Tracey Emin's song is one of victim, tragedy and supposed superfulious self centeredness. Sterile, epmty and a body of work that really doesnt speak to me in volumes, but a self involved voice that is gin soaked and based on emotional stuntedness. Yeah I know I sound like a snob here but I am just basing my opinion on her work. I mean come on how and the fuck are you to respond to a woman putting a neon sign on a wall with the phrase " My Cunt Is Wet With Fear"? Now If I was in a satanic Texas whore house, sure i would have grounds for thought. My Neon Sign maker does Tracey's Neon signs as well, but I do not call my shop sign art.


When I first saw Emin's bed I thought eewe you rank bitch dirty chonies tren from left to right and she is this supposed world famous artist and she drinks absolute and chain smokes. Her life is been something of a marketing tool to which I say bravo as it has served her well, yet I do not find her work moving nor ground breaking. If her work evolved or truned a direction in which she conveyed growth I would take notice but that is still to be seen as she is continually askiing us for the answers as if she doesn;t know herself.


If you go to the 2;59 mark you can see a parody of Tracey in Beautiful People, which is very funny. Enjoy.

Michael Clark Rocks Hard!

I have been a fab of The Michael Clark Company for a few years and never thought I would enjoy the art form of modern dance. Mr Clark has chosen some serious tunes to work with. His previous work Come Gone Been utilising Bowie, Velvet Underground and Iggy Pop was music to my ears. Yet his latest preview of new work at the Tate Modern was something I could not miss. Front row centre I was there with the dance troupe gyrating to Bowie, Pulp and a moving and lovely piece provided by Funkadelic's 'Maggot Brain'. His troupe use all aspects of dance from ballet to simple mime stop motion. His basic approach is effective and once again the show stopper to Bowie's Jean Genie gets me every time. As this last show is a transitional piece I can not wait to see the finished work in its entirety.

Portrait

Recently I was contacted by designer Simon Preen to do a portrait of his boyfriend as a birthday gift. i posted phase one on my twitter account and somebody forwarded him the image and we hit a snag as I tapped into my artistic temperment when explaining my position. In fairness I appologoze to him as he got the fucking horns and theThe whip and the fire breathing dragon. I was on a drawing streak and nearing burn out when he along with a certain custome's friend decided to play art critic to unfinished work that they themselves were even having. Yet the end result was soemthing that his boyfriend loved and that was what I was aiming for. I am happy to say that the artwork is now hanging in their hall proudly.

I haven't drawn with a bic biro in ages since virtually a tennager as I was broke and thought I would give it ago. Your looking at Gouache. Biro and pencil on 11x15 450g watercolor paper. I may do more. and yep the cheque cleared. cha ching. If anyone is interested in having a portrait done please contact me through my website.
or email me at henry@henryhate.com for proces and details.

Capturing Old Hollywood!

It's been years since I have lived in Hollywood. 13 years in fact. Yet it's dead to me, Malls are up in it's place and there is a mega conglomerate effect that has taken the old sheen of Hollywood off and glazed it with something that is not Hollywood anymore. Coming across a photo of some old friends when I lived in Hollywood took me to a place that I remembered. The scuzzy bars, the doomed relationships and the hope of one day becoming a star or loosing your shine and fading away. It all seemed so romantic back them. Music was good, drugs were cleanier, rent control was in effect and people were alot less suspicious of each other. Los Angeles is a great city with plenty to do yet it is not home to me anymore. I left and kept the memory with me of my wild and crazy youth. Although I still have friends who love there I touch base with them from time to time.



But Geoff Cordner is a photographer whose capture some of that old Hollywood in his photos and they take me back to a wild and recklessness without that bullshit Taylor Momsen trying to shock us with her silly sunday school exploits. His photos are primarily black and white and show people as they were in the moment. They remind me of some of my favorite photographers Mary Ellen Mark and Dianne Arbus. If you get a chance swing by his website and have a look at soome of his other work. It is pretty special. I remeber Geoff being friends with my boyfriend at the time and he asked my to pose for him. Frank is now a designer and he's the crazy german comatose on dope in the photos below. I said sure, why the hell not and the photo ended up in a spanish fashion magazine. Me scratching my balls. All photos are copyrighted to Geoff Cordner. I thought that Concrete Blonde's Still In Hollywood was appropriate for this as it takes me back to a time and place. To Hollywood I still love you, but to love you again would mean to have my heart broken all over again. Our time in Eden was fun, enjoy

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2010 is GONE

The Last uear that past has shown me alot. It was a bumpy ride some good and some bad and a huge eye opener for me. I am thankful that I learned alot about myself and that this year is new and so far so good. Here are a few of the things I learned in 2010.
1.) I truly love my partner and would try to do anything for him and my dog. Joleene. They are my family.
2.) I learned the value of my name Henry Hate. Nissan wanted my name and I learned what the price was for use of it. I learned that I am worth a alot more than that and that I should have the value to not just my name but to myslef aswell across the board.
3.) I have to be honest with myself and TAKE A DEEP FUCKING BREATH. The trick is to keep breathing and be still before any rash moves.
4.) Be Grateful for what I have. I pretty much have everything I need and want and want for nothing, and that is a nice feeling.
5.) That I am a pretty good business man and that I have plans that still need to be carried and can not rest to achieve what i need to do.
6.) Take better care of myself. Being a diabetic doesn't suck so bad. But I would kill for a chili cheese dog. Actaully, Joleene would kill for a chili cheese dog too.
7.) I need to be more open to Bren and Myself more than anything myself. I have chosen not to continue with my therapy and just delve into a creative process and work out my demons that way.
8.) Life is not all doom and gloom

Marks And Stenclis Part Deux!

As well as traipsing around London in the Blistering cold We made our way to the Marks & Stencil Show and I entered the art contest with this little post card where artist Dran will pick the winning picture and give the winner a free print. What was nice was that even Joleene is a fan of art and she took especially to some of Dran's card board that he was intending to work on as part of the installation. We didn't purchase any art as I wasn;t bowled over by the current work on display but it is not to say that I didn;t like it. I just didn't see anything i wanted to buy, as we did discuss the possibility of buying Art Of Shiva as it was on display nextstore to Bren's shop on Portobello, but that was just a fleeting fantasy.

My entry was a boy drawing one of my chica fuck dolls with the caption, "all bad boys draw on walls". Wish me luck. The show is still on till the 22nd of December.