Q&A with Bishop203 from Brooklyn

Where did you grow up/currently live? How’s the art/graff scene there?

I grew up in Bridgeport/Fairfield CT. about an hour outside of the NY. There was a decent amount of writers around and you could see a lot of good burners and stompers riding the Metro lines. We also had Fame City but once we found an abandoned 4 story factory that we called the Art Room that was the fun spot. Damn that was a fun spot!
I spent 8 years down south and am now living in Brooklyn, NY. What can I say about the scene here, IT’S BROOKLYN!!!

What mediums do you work with?

When it comes to canvas I mostly use Acrylic (Luquitex.) Sometimes I will throw some aerosol in the mix. Lately I have been loving putting KRINK into the back round. I have been working with plywood for a street art project which has been a lot of fun.

How did you get into the graffiti game?

In 7th or 8th grade a kid moved to our school from LA. He did graffiti and was showing my friend ERB and I the ropes. He ended up passing away not too long after we became friends. So we kept at it in memory of him. R.I.P. FEAR1. Not knowing what else to do, I would bite off everyone and everything I saw; ENVY, JECK, PSOUP, GAZE. Pretty much any old school CT cat was my teacher whether they liked it or not. Oh, and lets not forget Source back in the day with the 2 page spreads. (What ever happened to those?) Oh, and who didn’t grow up on some Video Graff?!

How did you hook up with Methods NYC? You ever see someone on the street wearing a shirt you did the graphics for?

My life long friend Bisc1 connected me with them while I was still living down south in VA. When I moved up here we connected in person and kept that train rolling. They are all just a bunch of really good peoples. Though they make me feel old because they party like no ones business!
I catch people rocking my designs actually a good bit in the city which is really fun to see. One time Methods decided to throw a booth up at PRATT and they ran out of my shirts in guy sizes so I was told that the guys were buying the girl tees. 2 days later I was at 5 Pointz and saw a guy walking around wearing a girls shirt with my design on it…………

Do you regularly show your work in exhibitions? If you do what’s your history and how has that been going for you?

I love to show my works. That is what I look forward to doing more and more, though I am very lazy about getting shows. I have had a few shows down south and a few here in NY. I have done both solo and group shows and honestly enjoy group shows more. I seem work better feeding off of someone else’s energy rather than depending on my focus. (Plus i really can’t hang anything straight.)
I also find that showing my stuff in small cities is better on the wallet than the big ones for me. They seem to be a bit more hungry for urban art.

Do you work with other artists on pieces/shows?

I haven’t really done any collaborations with other artists yet, though I think it would be a cool idea to experiment with. Actually my friend Joe Knight and I were talking about that the other day.

Do you go out bombing? what’s your history with the illegal side of graff?

I was never a huge bomber. My true love has been freights. There is no better canvas in the world than a rusty old box on wheels. When I lived down south I had a wonderful spot 8 tracks across that I still miss every day. As far as now, I am moving more toward the street art side of things. Putting up my Bangels (Bishops’ angels) on abandoned buildings, construction sites or any place that I feel my little plywood characters want to call home.

What are your plans for the future?

Shows, art and shows! I want to just keep on pumping out art, and putting it out there for everyone to either enjoy or giggle at. My dream is to one day be an old man, living somewhere in the mid west and painting freights. Hopefully still being able to hang with the boys a couple times a year. (203 and TD4 crew)

Piece,
Bishop203
JAT1- 203/TD4

http://bishop203.com/