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Joe and Lefty, Spray Can Artists
When someone thinks of a masterpiece in art, one usually thinks of something created by Picasso or Van Gogh, not paint sprayed out of cans. Nevertheless, masterpieces were being fashioned at NMJC on April 23 from just that. Joe and Lefty (Joseph and Lindsay Watson) hail from Florida and travel around the country performing for various organizations and dazzling audiences with their incredible work. Joe started doing this on May 31, 1998 as part of his rehabilitation process after being struck by lightning on his apartment’s rooftop. He refined this craft by watching another phenomenal artist, Reggie Reep. The art form itself was started in the 1960’s out of Mexico City. Several names have been given to this art including: Scratch Art, Spray Art and Scratchitti to name a few. Joe said he used the slogan, “anything that passes by,” when creating art in New York’s Central Park. What he means is that he uses plastic bags, bottle-caps, cans, peanut butter jar lids and scrap paper. Virtually anything that has a texture or shape is usable to him. In early 1999, Joe decided to move to Orlando, Florida to pursue his career. That turned out to be a wise move for both Joe and his profession. In addition to touring around the country performing his art, he is a resident artist at Café Tu Tu in Orlando, where he has sold approximately 1200 of his works. Joe also found a partner, not only in his work, but his life. His wife, Lindsay is quite adept with a spray can as well. “He taught me how to paint like this in about six-months which was great, because it got me away from bartending,” she said with a playful smile. Joe says he loves what he does now, because “I get to see the country and show people you can use spray paint for something other than a destructive force.” Joe also says he likes to create works for college students, because he enjoys doing it and “It makes me feel good creating something they can keep.” Sports News Tim Perry, Director of College Communications tperry@nmjc.edu Keith Hurley, PR/Marketing Writer/Editor khurley@nmjc.edu Kathy Mahan, Desktop Designer kmahan@nmjc.edu Rudy Rascon, PR/Marketing Assistant rrascon@nmjc.edu Kiril Farkov, Webmaster webmaster@nmjc.edu New Mexico Junior College, 5317 Lovington Hwy, Hobbs, NM 88240 Phone: 505.392.4510, 1.800.657.6260 © 1996-2004 New Mexico Junior College * All Rights Reserved
29/09: Tech campus beautified by graffiti - La Vida Category: US graffiti Posted by: neilzinho Add comment "It takes Joe Watson and his partner Lindsay Watson, or "Lefty" as she is known by fans, about three minutes to turn a postcard-sized piece of cardboard into a hazy, starry night over the open water. Onlookers Thursday afternoon had to stay behind an orange-coned perimeter outside the Student Union Building as Watson and Lefty used spray paint to create their mini-works of art. "I once saw a guy doing it in Times Square and I thought, 'God, I wish I could do that,'" Watson said. It's been a little less than 10 years since he joined up with his partner and wife, Lefty, and began touring universities providing free art for anyone walking by. Thursday, the two sat behind a table outside the Student Union as they worked to the beats of their own soundtrack, which featured everything from traditional Spanish guitar songs to tracks from popular rap artists of today. Robert Shouse, a freshman electrical engineering and computer sciences major from Houston, said he'd stood watching Watson and Lefty work for three and a half hours. "It's a skill I've never seen before," he said. "It's all free-form." Watson and Lefty used tools such as knives and crumbled pieces of typing paper to perfect their art. "They don't use professional supplies, but it's professional results," Shouse said. "You don't see something like this often." After three and a half hours of watching the pair work, Watson said the young man should know how to do it himself by now. Watson, who does not have any kind of background in art, said he taught himself after seeing someone doing it on a street corner. A few days after he saw the man in Times Square creating the art for the passing pedestrians, Watson said he had a near-death experience that made him re-evaluate his life as a breakfast servant. "About five days after that, I went to the park and sat down and made my first piece," he said. He still owns that piece. Watson's second piece sold, and once he began making $40 an hour doing spray paint art, he quit his job serving breakfast. Since then, he and Lefty have been traveling the country doing exhibitions in spray paint art for universities and other random events. "I think it's a fascinating art form," Watson said. It's that fascination that drew Watson to the art. He said it took him a while to learn how to create a picture from only spray paint, but after he practiced every day, the process soon became natural. Watson had enough time to paint after he was struck by lightning on the rooftop of his apartment, according to his Web site, http://www.joeandlefty.com. He first started his profession in Central Park and Times Square, and after a period of drawing in only a modest crowd, he soon found himself surrounded by a mob every day, according to the site. "A lot of our techniques we had to learn the hard way," Watson said. "It's like learning how to write your name." The techniques of the spray paint art form are skills that took Watson and Lefty years to master, but Watson said he does not think everyone should wait that long. The two are now working on a how-to video that they will sell through their Web site. Tom Clark, a junior accounting major from Odessa, said he'd lost track of the amount of time he'd spent watching Watson and Lefty work Thursday afternoon, but he said it had to be more than an hour. "It's pretty crazy," he said. "I wish I could do that." Clark said he was impressed that Watson and Lefty were doing their art for free for anyone who passed by to enjoy. As the time whittled down in the afternoon, Watson and Lefty had to pass out their last few postcards to a cluster of outstretched arms. Whoever did not get a picture Thursday can order prints from the couple's Web site, Watson said." Tech campus beautified by graffiti - La Vida
Graffiti artists spray out pieces Andy Rhodes Issue date: 4/13/06 Section: Campus News * Print * Email * Page 1 of 1 Students waited in line behind the cones, smelling the fumes, as they waited for their turn to receive a masterpiece. The artists sat at the tables with masks on, while music played in the background. These were no ordinary artists. Both of these people were spray can artists. Ordinary spray paint was their media. Program Council brought the two artists to campus on Tuesday and painted in the Mall area from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Onaome Makoro, a Program Council Chair, said that the idea to bring spray can artists to campus came from the Program Council's national conference, the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA). "We saw spray can artists in New Orleans and San Antonio and wanted to bring them to campus," said Program Council Chair Laurie Orlando. The two artists, Joe and Lindsay Watson, who also go by Joe and Lefty, are from Florida. They have painted about 24,000 paintings in two years. According to their Web site, spray can art started in Mexico City during the 1970's. This form of art is known by different names such as scratch graffiti and Spray Can Art. Each painting is done on Bristle board with spray paint. The artist uses plastic bags, paper, lids, tops or caps and a putty knife to manipulate the paint. Each piece takes from one to 15 minutes depending on size and difficulty. Visit www.joeandlefty.com for information on Joe and Lefty and find links to other spray can artists, examples of paintings and booking information.
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