Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
Unreal on how you defend what is obviously a racist symbol. Why don’t we put swaztikas on Nikes? That’s a cool artistic symbol too. I bet your friend could draw real cool shackles or a noose. When Mr. McGee puts his logo on a shoe, nobody gives two cents about his background and how respected he is in the underground. If he drew something racist, then the thing he drew is a racist symbol. What could possibly be a more racist symbol than a buck-toothed, bowl headed, pig nosed asian? What he did with his hand is a hate crime. Yes, it’s art. Racist art. I guess there’s such a thing.-Dennis Martinez Dennis Martinez, thanks for writing. Since you say it, let’s say there’s a Savastika, the Japanese buddhist symbol on a Nike. (It’s literally a reversed Swastika, and it’s been around for hundreds or perhaps 1000s of years). My guess is 95 or more Americans of 100 would confuse it for the Nazi symbol. But nonetheless, the exact Nazi symbol is different from a Ray Fong. (I’m sure you’re saying no it isn’t… but it is in this case. Think how one is about pure genocide, and one is a mocking image.) – you know, this is like a puzzle of a paragraph. I apologize. It’s about context. People won’t know the difference, unfortunately, but for those who do will know it’s fine. Those who don’t will never understand. That said, if there was an artist who did nothing but non-racist swastika art (if this is possible – see how it’s different?), and then he was asked to do a shoe, it would be part of his art. This is a farce, but if it’s art, it’s art. The Fong image solo, sure it can be seen as a racist image, but in context and how it’s used, isn’t a racist statement. Imagine African American artists use black-face type images as their art. It’s in tons of folk art from the south. Manuel Ocampo does have Swastikas in his art. Are these hate crimes or racist? Wait until you see his Keds! I’m sure there is a such thing as racist art, but this isn’t it. Thanks for writing, and sorry you’re offended. I doubt I’ll be able to convince you. At the same time, I’ve lost control of all this for myself. Time for it to sail away.
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Unreal on how you defend what is obviously a racist symbol. Why don't we put swaztikas on Nikes? That's a cool artistic symbol too. I bet your friend could draw real cool shackles or a noose. When Mr. McGee puts his logo on a shoe, nobody gives two cents about his background and how respected he is in the underground. If he drew something racist, then the thing he drew is a racist symbol. What...
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We’re working on the floor plans for the GRNY new gallery space. Right now, it’s pretty clean and cleared out, but it’s gonna fill in towards the back. Designing spaces seems like something we can all do. Put this here, put things there, etc etc. Sounds like taking a photograph. Anyone can do it. But not… We’re having some great help with creative designs, stuff we wouldn’t have ever thought of. That said, sometimes, it’s good to leave some design work to the designers.
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We're working on the floor plans for the GRNY new gallery space. Right now, it's pretty clean and cleared out, but it's gonna fill in towards the back. Designing spaces seems like something we can all do. Put this here, put things there, etc etc. Sounds like taking a photograph. Anyone can do it. But not... We're having some great help with creative designs, stuff we wouldn't have ever thought of....
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This is the adidas statement about the project that also addressing the Ray Fong shoe. Adicolor_Yellow Series_Y1 HUF Herzogenaurach, April 2006 – With the current introduction of the adicolor series, adidas brings back an iconic footwear concept that celebrates the touch points of self expression, customization and personalization. Comprised of over 40 unique footwear designs, the adicolor collection is divided in two major parts, the White Series and the innovative Color Series. Represented by six different colors- black, red, pink, green, blue and yellow- the latter series features a number of collaborations between adidas Originals and a diverse group of partners- all icons from the worlds of fashion and art. Among those is San Francisco-based store HUF, who hooked up with the much-respected West Coast artist Barry McGee, better known by his tag name, “Twist”. Working on and inspired by the streets of America’s cities since the 1980s, Chinese-American McGee and HUF chose to feature one of Twist’s favorite characters, fictional bondsman Ray Fong, on the footbed, lace jewel and tongue of their adicolor sneaker. McGee on his adicolor sneaker: “Ray Fong is a character I developed well-over four years ago for an art installation in New York. The image was made from a picture of me when I was around eight years old. When I look at the photo, I think- cute! The name Ray Fong came from my uncle Ray Fong who passed away over a decade ago. Keith and I never thought the image was “racist” and I am sorry to those people who perceive it that way. All I remember is having Stan Smith’s face on my adidas when I was young, and was elated to put a caricature of myself on a shoe when presented the opportunity this year.” The HUF/Twist sneaker represents the adicolor concept as it takes expression from the contemporary urban world. Part of the most limited-edition package of the adicolor series, these were produced for a one-time run with a limited distribution of only 1,000 pairs available exclusively at just twelve retail locations worldwide. There is no plan to market these sneakers in the future, and they are expected to completely sell out following this limited release. Please visit www.adidas.com/adicolor to see other models represented in the adicolor series. adidas is excited to have featured HUF and McGee as part of this project. We are committed to understanding, valuing and incorporating the diversity of our communities and various fields of activities among the global marketplace. adidas does and always has valued an open dialogue with its consumers. Therefore, we welcome the feedback we have received from the global community and will continue to do so. It is an unfortunate coincidence that the HUF/Twist sneaker and its inclusion as part of the “Yellow Series” is misinterpreted as purposely offensive. It is not our intention to offend any group or individual as adidas prides itself on being a multicultural organization. ***ends*** For more information please contact:www.press.adidas.com
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