This Saturday, February 22nd, at a graffiti coated bodega in the Lower East Side an event is planned to take place that is somehow simultaneously completely unique and universally appealing. Pop-Up Art Event has touched on something with The Art of Hair which will feature hair-centric art from numerous artists in several mediums while the Nomad Barber performs cuts on site all to benefit Project Art.
If you haven’t heard, the Nomad Barber is a young man and award winning barber on a mission to find all there is to know about barber culture. Since June of last year he and a cameraman have been travelling the world visiting barbershops and stopping to perform impromptu roadside haircuts along the way (Check out some amazing photos from his trip below).
Then there are the artists. From Lucien Shapiro, who creates masks and other sculptures with found objects, to Jessica Pettiway, the young art student and photographer, to Angelina Avallone, a Yale graduate and Broadway make-up designer to celebrity hair stylist Michelle Johnson the list of artists includes a broad scope of styles and personalities. Plus the students of Project Art created incredible original works, on location, which will be featured as well.
The unsung heroes in all of this however are the people working long hours to make it happen. Led by the tireless Juliet Silva Yee, professional make-up artist and founder of Pop-Up Art Event, the group is just amazing. All artists of some type, all volunteering their time and with a smile on their faces. There was the poet Mensen, spray painting a mural on the front of the building when I arrived, set designers Christabelle and Chris setting up the barber station, Juliet’s mother Carla masterfully decorating the bathroom with magazine clippings and fake hair along with an array of others stopping in to contribute. Nobody, other than Juliet, was there patting them on the back. Everybody was there for the idea, the movement. There was not a selfish motive to be found. They were doing it because it needed to be done.
It is easy to see why all of these talented individuals have gotten involved. Stories don’t get much better than this. It is a pop-up art show with all the work exhibited being original for the show, centered around a barber with a passion that’s contagious, created by volunteers and all benefiting an organization that gives free art lessons to children in the city. Unlike most things in life, there is no down side. Even I caught myself holding a drill and gluing a mustache to a wall by the end of the night. The idea and motives are so great it just pulls people in.
Even the few sponsors involved are perfect. They have LUSH cosmetics who is starting a new line of men’s barber and shaving products. As if that wasn’t fitting enough LUSH also donated there fun playdough-esque soap which was used to create some of the sculptures featured in the show; which smells great by the way. Traveler beer is another ideal sponsor on-board as they touch on the nomadic aspect and use facial hair as a motif for their labels.
All in all this is set to be a spectacular event that will be a first for everyone attending. It is art the way its supposed to be. So come out Saturday, have a beer, enjoy the art and watch some master barber’s at work, I can guarantee you don’t have anything more interesting to do. RSVP’s are required as space is limited, use this link to get on the list, further show details can be found below.
SHOW DETAILS
- The Art of Hair featuring the Nomad Barber and presented by Pop-Up Art Event
- Date: Saturday February 22nd, 2014
- Location: Specials on C – 195 Ave. C
- Time: 2pm – 9pm
[thethe-image-slider name=”Slider8″]
