Al Carrer Guest Artist Tavu - James Brown Deck

Tavu interview:

Hey Tavu what’s up? Any news about the new J. Brown board?

Yeah i have worked on that, let me show you, i got a concept a lil bit different than the previous board.

Tell me more !

When you told me about a James Brown project, i was totally hyped, i start to search some specific stories about him but what was the most obvious was the connection with the Georgia state.

Macon where is was born but the family moved shortly after to Augusta, where he grow up and camed back living in 1969 and Atlanta where he spend lots of time and died at the hospital on the 25th of December 2006.

I had a good Georgia map in my archives and i buyed another one in a shop here in Paris but, i don’t know, nothing was working out for a board design, the sizes and the shapes of those maps didn’t fit whith the rectangle of a board design, i couldn’t find anything good to work on.

Damn, so you find another way ?

Yep, as you can see i draw a black portrait on white paper that i scanned and i recreate a georgia map with Augusta, Macon and Atlanta locations in the background, still the same idea, the connection between the map and the portrait but a lil bit different, less transparency as usual between the two elements.

In my work in general, using the original paper map to draw is a way to express an idea, that everybody don’t see the world as it is but how they are, so the map become their own way, with specific codes and colors, to see their surroundings.

I draw mostly artists because they express their own perceptions of things throught their own créations.

But for that project you recreate the map ?

Yes, so i was interesting in changing it a lil bit, i kept the three citys locations but all the rest i wanted to put some James Brown creations, some musics.

To make like a playlists along with the board ?

Yeah that was my first intentions but as i was listening lots of amazing tracks of him (and fred wesley/the JB's ;) it made me think of an old 1994 thing, that i watched a lot back in a days, the Pepe Martinez part in the « fine artists » vidéo, with the sample of "Blind Man Can See It" used in the Lord Finesse track "Funky Technician".

So that idea of tracks took an another dimension, wich makes sense for a skateboard graffic, i made a selection of 9 tracks that are the sound of some skate videos parts.

• 1995 Etnies, high 5, Intro (get on the good foot)
• 1995 Element, Fine Artists, Pepe Martinez (blind man can see it)
• 1996 Girl, Mouse, Sheffey part (doin’ it to death)
• 1997 Emerica, Yellow, Satva Leung (soul power)
• 1999 The Chocolate Tour, keenan (down n out in NY city)
• 2001 FTC 3, Danny Gonzales (the chicken)
• 2002 Western Edition, Did It, Jason Wussler (sex machine)
• 2003 Girl, Yeah Right, P Rod (the boss)
• 2008 Baker has a Deathwish, Antwuan Dixon (it’s a man’s man’s man’s world)

Some are some samples right ?

True, Lord Finesse, Rakim and Nas, i really like that idea, it’s a part of my artwork too, the connections and influences between artists throught collaborations or sampling etc.

To connect one drawing with another one and creating an ensemble that grow little by little.

Dope, thank you Tavu

Thanks to you and all the Al Carrer family, PRESERVA LA CULTURA.