Carlos Mare139 Rodriguez
Encyclopedia
Carlos Rodriguez is a New York based artist born in 1965 in Spanish Harlem, New York City. He was best known as the subway graffiti writer Mare 139, and has since adapted the graffiti lettering styles to metal sculpture in the fine art context, and is recognized as a media artist for his creation of graffiti-art-related websites.
tutelage along with his interest in modernizing the art form lead his interests to contemporary art as a vehicle to re-interpret the concepts and aesthetic of style writing.
As a sculptor, Carlos Mare139 Rodriguez's breakthrough was with the metal "K" sculpture in 1985. This led to a series of large-scale sculptures that were true to graffiti lettering format, but peeled and folded into space. By 1986, the sculptures departed from the common vernacular of writing to the more complex study Constructivist
, Cubist and Futurist ideas, but yet retained its initial feel of graffiti-style writing.
His sculptures have been exhibited internationally.
Rodriguez also designed and created the award for the annual BET/Black Entertainment Awards show, which is given to entertainers, athletes and actors. Recipients include Denzel Washington
, Halle Berry
,
Jay Z, Snoop Dog, Beyonce, Kobe Bryant
, Usher
, Serena Williams
and many more.
Other award projects included the 2005 and 2007 Red Bull Beat Battle Award and more recently the SPY Award for the 30th Anniversary of the Rock Steady Crew as well as a G-Unit Award expressly for 50 Cent
given to him by fashion designer Marc Ecko
.
In 2008, he completed a residency project titled "FreeStyle Archityper" at Brighton University in England
, where he created an indoor sculpture installation using a process devoid of models and drawings. The on-site exhibition included other works in both metal print and large-scale sculpture. The Freestyle Archityper installation was a breakthrough work in which his interest in re-skinning architecture continued to take form. In 2009, Rodriguez will re-skin his first building using his unique sculptural talents.
Works of Rodriguez (as "Mare 139") were included in the 2010 "Art in the Streets" exhibition of graffiti and street art at MOCA in Los Angeles.
Rodriquez also lectures and writes about the evolution and history of urban art in New York City
, where he lives.
on the film The Good Shepherd
as a documenter for the making of the movie and as member of De Niro's editing team.
The writing of Rodriguez has been published in Martha Coopers photo book Street Play that documents the imaginative ʻplayʼ of children in the streets of New York in the late 1970s. His writings capture the creative play and dangers of his youth in the South Bronx.
Work
As a member of the golden age of subway graffiti (1975–1985), he painted under the moniker "Mare" which was short for "Nightmare". He wrote alongside many of the style masters of his generation among them Kel First, Dondi White, Crash, Kase2, Noc167 and others. Thistutelage along with his interest in modernizing the art form lead his interests to contemporary art as a vehicle to re-interpret the concepts and aesthetic of style writing.
As a sculptor, Carlos Mare139 Rodriguez's breakthrough was with the metal "K" sculpture in 1985. This led to a series of large-scale sculptures that were true to graffiti lettering format, but peeled and folded into space. By 1986, the sculptures departed from the common vernacular of writing to the more complex study Constructivist
Constructivism (art)
Constructivism was an artistic and architectural philosophy that originated in Russia beginning in 1919, which was a rejection of the idea of autonomous art. The movement was in favour of art as a practice for social purposes. Constructivism had a great effect on modern art movements of the 20th...
, Cubist and Futurist ideas, but yet retained its initial feel of graffiti-style writing.
His sculptures have been exhibited internationally.
Rodriguez also designed and created the award for the annual BET/Black Entertainment Awards show, which is given to entertainers, athletes and actors. Recipients include Denzel Washington
Denzel Washington
Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
, Halle Berry
Halle Berry
Halle Berry is an American actress and a former fashion model. Berry received an Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG, and an NAACP Image Award for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge and won an Academy Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2001 for her performance in Monster's Ball, becoming...
,
Jay Z, Snoop Dog, Beyonce, Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
, Serena Williams
Serena Williams
Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and a former world no. 1. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked her world no. 1 in singles on five separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on July 8, 2002 and regained this ranking for the fifth time on...
and many more.
Other award projects included the 2005 and 2007 Red Bull Beat Battle Award and more recently the SPY Award for the 30th Anniversary of the Rock Steady Crew as well as a G-Unit Award expressly for 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
given to him by fashion designer Marc Ecko
Marc Ecko
Marc Eckō is an American fashion designer, entrepreneur, investor, artist, and philanthropist. He is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of Marc Eckō Enterprises, a billion-dollar global fashion and lifestyle company...
.
In 2008, he completed a residency project titled "FreeStyle Archityper" at Brighton University in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where he created an indoor sculpture installation using a process devoid of models and drawings. The on-site exhibition included other works in both metal print and large-scale sculpture. The Freestyle Archityper installation was a breakthrough work in which his interest in re-skinning architecture continued to take form. In 2009, Rodriguez will re-skin his first building using his unique sculptural talents.
Works of Rodriguez (as "Mare 139") were included in the 2010 "Art in the Streets" exhibition of graffiti and street art at MOCA in Los Angeles.
Rodriquez also lectures and writes about the evolution and history of urban art in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he lives.
Awards
Aside from his fine arts accomplishments, he earned the prestigious 2006 Webby Award for his launch of the Hip Hop documentary Style Wars website. Style Wars has also garnered the COMMARTS/Communication Arts Award, Horizon Interactive Award, as well as SXSW/South by Southwest Interactive for its uniques design, narrative and interactivity.Recent work
In 2006 and 2007, Rodriguez worked with actor Robert De NiroRobert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
on the film The Good Shepherd
The Good Shepherd (film)
The Good Shepherd is a 2006 spy film directed by Robert De Niro and starring Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie, with an extensive supporting cast. Although it is a fictional film loosely based on real events, it is advertised as telling the untold story of the birth of counter-intelligence in the...
as a documenter for the making of the movie and as member of De Niro's editing team.
The writing of Rodriguez has been published in Martha Coopers photo book Street Play that documents the imaginative ʻplayʼ of children in the streets of New York in the late 1970s. His writings capture the creative play and dangers of his youth in the South Bronx.
External links
- http://illicitexhibitions.blogspot.com/search/label/Mare139
- http://slamxhype.com/art-design/carlos-mare-139-rodriguez-bet-award-sculptor-interview/
- http://www.coolhunting.com/archives/2009/05/mare139_bline_b.php
- http://www.mare139.com
- http://www.m139design.com
- http://www.stylewars.com
- http://outsides.de/artist/Mare-139.html
- http://www.m139design.com -Limited Editions Site
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/mare139_lecture/
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/installation_day_6_top_to_bottom_and_ side_to_side/
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/installation_day_6_illumination1/
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/installation_unveiling_finally/
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/installation_fly_thru_hold_tight/
- http://www.12ozprophet.com/index.php/mare_139/entry/video_mare139_full_install_at_brighton _university/
- http://www.youtube.com/subject71