So, there I was (pre-pandemic) just casually minding my own business in the queue at the art shop when BOOM! – an impulse purchase incident – and before I know it I’ve got a little Sunogrpahy ‘solar powered photography’ kit clutched firmly in my hand. Fast forward to about a week ago when I find the kit in a pile on my desk. It’s sunny outside. The game is afoot.
A quick search reveals a transparency with a printed design from another project and we’re good to go. After 15 minutes on each side I had a surprisingly clean image using just the power of the sun. How very wholesome. Now I’ve got my proof of concept I just need something suitable for the other four sheets and then to find out where I can I lay my hands on some larger A2 size sheets before the next bright and shiny idea comes along to steal all my attention…
Sunbathing has a bit of a bad rap these days. Nowadays people are more likely to use fake tan than actually sunbathe. This could probably be put down to the scientific evidence that prolonged exposure to UV rays and sunshine can cause skin cancer which absolutely no one wants at all. Tamara here however was never one to worry about such things and revels in the sun’s glorious rays.
‘Scorching’ is painted on a found table top that I came home with after wombling my way back from the pub late one night. Given the weight of it I’m still not sure how I managed it back home with it all by myself but somehow I clearly did. After painting the portrait I felt it needed a little more so after a quick ferret around in the miscellaneous art supplies box I came up with a chisel of sorts and some lighter fluid. A little hard work and some flambe action and the burned lettering was done. Then it was onto the question of how to stick some real sand to it…
Picture this. You’re id-iom and the sun is shining. You find a stencil which had been been sat there ready to spray but had somehow been forgotten. What do you do next? Well, you set about rectifying the problem just as quickly as you can. After identifying a likely looking door made of corrugated plastic you round up some paint and get to work. That door is ugly and needs an id-iom style makeover. As there’s 2 of you the next sequence is somewhat schizophrenic as you talk to yourself in order to get things done.
After only a short while you reach another hurdle in that you’d applied too much masonry paint and now have to sit there and watch paint dry. Being a resourceful pair of chaps you then decide there is a better use of your time so head to the nearest pub for some liquid refreshment. On your return you fear there will be no chance for a decent photo but to your surprise the photography gods are with and give you a nice backlit effect. Win. You go to bed that night thinking if you have to be id-iom for one more second you’ll probably go mad.
We’ve all got busy work schedules but mythological sisters Selene and Eos cover 24 hours of the day between them. All day, every day since time immemorial so no wonder they look a little worn out. They probably need a good holiday but hopefully they’re not going to get one. They’re sisters to Greek sun god Helios but had important jobs of their own to take care. Selene was the goddess of the moon and brought the moonlight that allows a little illumination in the darkness of night while her sister Eos was the goddess of dawn and personified the light of day. This picture then is from their small handover period just before dawn breaks. So there you have it.
Cheers
id-iom
Title: Selene & Eos
Materials: Paint pen, acrylic, spray paint and charcoal
Size: A2
You have to wonder why this young chap is looking so down. We’ve all heard the phrase ‘red sky at night shepherd’s delight, red sky in the morning shepherds warning’ and from the title of the piece you can probably guess what time of day the image is depicting. He’d had a good day shepherding, lost no sheep and his mother had packed him a truly amazing pasty for lunch. What more could a lad ask? I’m not sure what his problem was as I tried my best to get him to break out a smile out for me but he just sat there with this sullen little look draped over his face. Anyway, before I could release my full comic potential, which would surely get a smile out of him the sun started to set and this was the best I got. Sometimes I wonder why I bother…
Cheers
id-iom
Title: The Setting Sun
Materials: Paint pen, acrylic, gold leaf and charcoal
Size: A4
Sooo, we managed to ruffle some feathers with the original version of this which we did at Sun, Sea and Spray in Blackpool last year. It originally had the text ‘Taking the cure’ which refers to the Victorian pastime of ‘taking the cure’ – being to bathe in the sea for healing/medicinal purposes, which Blackpool used to be famous for. It’s even mentioned on their Wikipedia entry but the Man didn’’t see it that way. Apparently we were making a drugs reference and we needed to adapt it to something less contentious or have the whole thing buffed. Which is where our man on the spot, Chris Fenn and his trusty assistant Hannah Nickson came to our aid and very kindly agreed to modify it for us. So, above is our newly refinished piece complete with entirely inoffensive text. We definitely owe you both a pint or two. And here’s the much maligned original…
So I had to pop over to the East End for some paint for a big piece currently being painted at the Electric Social in Brixton and I thought to myself ‘What a perfect opportunity to do a little street drop!’ So before setting off from Brixton I packed a bag full of goodies to leave on the street for our ‘Back to the Future‘ mixtape & art project. Foolishly I only got one slate out as I somehow forgot to do the rest whilst I was enjoying the sun in a beer garden. That said one is better than none. Oh, what a C unit i am! Just wait til the other half of idiom finds out…
Anyway, the mix on the back of this piece of slate is by a good friend of id-iom’s who dj’s under the name of Rogue Fader. Even if you don’t have the chance to find the slate you can still enjoy the C Unit mix here. It should be enough to keep you amused on a Friday morning (or indeed afternoon or evening).
So, it’s been a while since we’ve put one of our ‘Back to the Future‘ art & mixtape combo’s out. But that’s not entirely our fault. The weather has only recently begun to play ball again after a brief stint a couple of weeks ago. Anyway this one features the likeness of one half on id-iom just moments before he uncovers his eyes to witness the unbroken sunshine we’ve been having this week. Although by the time he’s blinked it’ll probably be back to winter conditions…
The musical accompaniment taped to the back of the slate cover art is a frothy little summertime mix guaranteed to get you in the mood to party. I can only hope whoever finds it appreciates it. We’ve got a few more of these in the barrel and ready to go so watch this space.
I came to the festival for love slate. Now loose on the street.
I came to the festival for love slate (front)
I came to the festival for love slate (back)
Here we have the third installment of our Back to the Future mixtape project which sees us combine two of our loves – music and street art.
Our plan is simple. Get some new mixes together, burn them on CD and then put them out on the street with some exclusive slate cover art to see what happened. The piece is the size of a standard roofing slate (about 40 x 28 cm) and has the CD securely taped to the back so she should last a reasonable amount of time out in the open. It has been completed using the magic of paint pens, spraypaint and stencils. They are signed on reverse with our trademark id-iom stencil and logo.
With sunshine the prevailing weather condition for once we can finally get round to the idea that summer – and the always amusing festival season – is on the way. I’ve been to Glastonbury every available year since 1999 and thoroughly enjoyed myself every time – come rain or shine. I’m sure this year will be no exception. The poor lady in this piece however is not having such a great time as she’s gone to a festival and someone has callously broken her heart. My best advice to her would be to head to the bar…
We are also now open to submissions – so if you dj at all and fancy taking part just get in touch and if we like your mix then you’re in! You can find more information on our facebook page here.
Here comes the sun… (Mixtape with slate cover art)
Here comes the sun… (Mixtape with slate cover art – front)
Here comes the sun… (Mixtape with slate cover art – back)
Back to the Future – Exclusive id-iom mix tape with original slate cover art! All for the grand price of nothing! You’ve just got to find it…
It’s 2013 and we’re going back to the future with our street art take on the classic mix tape. It’s a combination of that old school hop with that new school hip! Although we have had to move with the times so we’ve gone and burned it on CD.
Both members of id-iom have been djing for more years than we care to remember and rather than go the inevitable route of uploading our mixes to Soundcloud and have no-one listen to it we’ve gone all experimental and attempted to fuse our street art activities and proclivity for making mix tapes. We’ve completed the hour long mix and then done the slate cover art to compliment the tunes. From there it’s just a matter of putting it on the street and seeing what happens.
Only a very small number of copies exist and ideally we’re hoping that we’ll get a reply/critique/abuse via email from whoever found it and then hopefully they’ll upload it to the web and share it around for further praise/ridicule. Really we’re just too lazy to upload it ourselves and are hoping that someone else will do it for us. It looks better that way. So, if you see one of these suckers on the street feel free to take it home and then lambast us via email on our shoddy skills and poor tune selection.
It’s the size of a standard roofing slate and has the CD securely taped to the back so she should last a reasonable amount of time out in the open. It has been completed using the magic of paint pens, spraypaint and stencils. They are signed on reverse with our trademark id-iom stencil and logo.
We are also now open to submissions – so if you dj at all and fancy taking part just get in touch and we’ll see what we can do. You can find more information on our facebook page here.
Happy hunting!
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