Bass beats pound from outside the door. The faint smell of a nearby beer keg wafts through the air. With DJ Paradime mixing records while break dancers from Swoon Unit perform on the floor, the opening reception of LabourLove Gallery’s Bombed: Panels, Picks, and Kicks introduced a youthful and energetic art exhibition to the Durham community.
Bombed: Panels, Picks, and Kicks features the work of artists Franco, Greg Davis, Victor Knight III, Sean Kernick and Matt Scofield. Most of the artists presented tagged graffiti panels. In a deviation from the norm, Franco exhibited illustrative works that focus on issues of race and power, displacing the human figure with the image of multi-colored hair picks.
The reception did not only offer graffiti, beats and beer, however. Bombed: Panels, Picks, and Kicks is coupled with the charitable campaign of Shoes-4-Souls. Sneakers decorated by the artists hang from the gallery’s ceiling as a reminder to viewers to donate their own used shoes to the charity.
The interactive and multi-dimensional aspect of the exhibition reflects LabourLove’s mission to not simply function as a retail art gallery, but to create a welcoming arena for the young artistic community. In its art and its attitude, LabourLove’s newest offering is for the people and of the people.
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