PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE MONTH: Ricky Powell

Last week, I had a chance to meet photographer Ricky Powell and start plotting a photo & painting collabo.

"Ricky Powell is one of the best photographers of our time."--Run of Run-D.M.C.

"Ricky is one of the best photographers I've ever worked with-- and I've worked with a lot."--LL Cool J

"Whether it was the birth of the Beastie Boys or Run-D.M.C. or Public Enemy, Ricky was there...I could go on and on, but in short, Ricky's the bomb!" reminisced Fab 5 Freddy who called Ricky the “The Weegee of hip hop.”

Well, they said it and it is true... Ricky aka the Rickster is the OG of street photography. A native-New Yorker, he is responsible for capturing the essence of what makes the city the cultural capitol of the world. His photos of Run-DMC, Public Enemy, Eric B. and Rakim, Slick Rick, LL Cool J, Fab 5 Freddy, Steven Tyler, Dondi, Doze, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Nina Hagen, John Lee Hooker, Paloma Picasso, Calvin Klein, Barbara Walters, Grace Jones, Francis Ford Coppola, Sofia Coppola, or Cindy Crawford have now become iconic mementos of some of the most influential artists that shaped the cultural landscapes of the 80s and 90s. Check out more of his photos on his website and give him some love on myspace.

His work has been exhibited at the Eyejammie Fine Arts Gallery, New York and Upper Playground, San Francisco and was featured in "500 of the Greatest Rock and Roll Photos," presented by Kodak. Powell is the author of Frozade Moments: Classic NYC Street Photography (Eyejammie, 2004), The Rickford Files: Classic New York Photographs (St. Martin's, 1999), and Oh Snap!: The Rap Photography of Ricky Powell (St. Martin's, 1998). Public Access are Powell's never-before-published collaborations with top artists, graffiti writers, and photographers including Ron Galella, Ron English, Phil Frost, Lee Quinones, Sam Flores, David Choe, Dalek, DR. REVOLT, ZEPHYR, QUIK, TEAM, DAZE, SEEN, KAWS, JEST, BIGFOOT, SSUR, and HAZE, among others.

will post development about our collabo project

You can get the whole Rickster experience if you are in New York, Fri. 5/8/09 SOUTPAW
Friday Night Fever
Sankofa / Sweetie / The Antidote
Ricky Powell (The Lazy Hustler) doin' "the World Famous Ricky Powell Slideshow"
$12 8 pm doors
downsouth, the brooklyn premier of the movie "Captured", & art exhibition starring Livingroom Johnston, Dave Chino & Sacha Jenkins (Piecebook)
>> buy tickets