WK Interact 2.5: Language of New York Street Life

WK has proved himself to be one of the truly original and innovative street artists in his ability to marry the movement of the street to the dynamism imbued in his work. “WK’s public art cannot stand still or keep quiet for the simple reason that the world around it is no more capable of playing dead either.” –Carlo McCormick. Drago’s 36 chambers series lifts off with the action packed, motion-blurred work of New York based street artist, WK Interact. Complimented by yellow bursts of juxtaposition, his unique monochrome iconography draws the viewer into a new and distinctive perspective of the streets.Alex Grant, an architect, designer and long-term mentor of WK describes the encapsulating pieces featured in this book as “...a series of rippling stretched images across undulating planes, dancing and leaping across the surfaces. Protruding foregrounds from industrial graveyards and sidewalk garbage night finds assist or hinder the subjects’ path depending on their puppet master’s intention, a conceptual texture reminiscent of New York’s crime and grime days”

WK Interact (born in 1969) was raised in France before moving to New York in the early 90's, where he started producing artistic interventions in Soho. His interest in representing the human body in movement influenced his approach, pushing him to develop the technique of turning a drawing or photo on a photocopier while it runs. As the suffix "Interact" indicates, according to the artist, each urban intervention is produced only after careful scouting of the location. Each of his images is planned out, created specifically for the wall in question. 2.5 New York Street Life is the third book from the artist, after Act 1 (Tokyo: Little More Books, 2001) and Exterior-Interior Act 2 (Berlin: Gestalten, 2005). In 2013, the Jonathan Levine Gallery released his fourth book, WK 360, to mark an exhibition celebrating his 25 years long career. 2.5 New York Street Life observes the three-color principle imposed by publishing house Drago in its 36 Chambers collection. Images and photos printed in black, white, and yellow form a faithful portrait of the artist's path and his key role in the history of New York's street art.