Interview with BD White & Sold Magazine! Issue 2 Release Party NYC

Did you ever wonder walking around NYC who the artists is who paints the bases of all the lamp posts? Or did you pick up the first issue of Sold Magazine! and wonder who the brains were behind the free paper? Well the answer to both is Brooklyn based street artist BD White. With the release of issue 2 of Sold Magazine! this Friday April 29th I caught up with the busy artist to discuss his work, the magazine, and being punked by COST.

BD, tell the readers a little bit about your self, your art, and how Sold Magazine came about?

I started doing street art when I first moved to NYC 6 years ago. I was always aware of graffiti but it wasn’t until moving here that I realized people were putting actual paintings out on the street. I got really excited about this because for the first time in my experience art could be appreciated without knowing who the artist was. I finally had an avenue for an instant conversations and connection to the public, so I took it. I began painting the bases of street light poles all over the city. My work always has some sort of political or social commentary to it, so it was great to be able to search on Instagram to see the response the public had.

Sold Magazine came about late last year. JPO and Greg Frederick were hanging out at my studio and JP began telling us about this idea he had for a free magazine that highlights the unknown or unsung artists of New York City, focusing mostly on the street art world but not exclusively. Greg then revealed that he had over 10 years of experience working in the publishing world and that we could definitely make this idea of JP’s a reality. We got to work launching a Kickstarter and two months later the first issue, “Queens of Art”, came out.

So what’s the premise of the newest issue?

This issue is all about wheat paste and the artists who utilize that medium to help beautify the city. We got UR New York for the cover. They blended wheat paste and graffiti, where they actually would wheat paste up there fill-ins. We thought that was pretty unique!

Who else is in the issue? Is there anybody in particular wheat pasting right now influencing you?

We’ve got CB23 and Foxxface showing us how to make wheat paste in a step by step process. We talked to Appleton about his campaign to raise diabetic awareness through his wheat pastes of insulin vials on the street. And we followed Adam Dare one night as he took us around the East Village pasting up his iconic bunnies. Not to mention the travel section where Che Anderson and Bri Turner took us to POW WOW Hawaii!

There are so many wheatpasters out there killing it! To just name a few that are putting out really great work would be Dain, Stikki Peaches and Anna D. Williams. But there are so many more! Just way too many to list off here.

So what is next for you & Sold Mag? Any upcoming shows?

We’ve got the launch of Issue 2 on Friday, April 29th at Studio Kraut in Manhattan. We’re sponsored by Effen Vodka so it’s going to be a great time! We’re doing a Launch Party/Art Show for each issue when they come out, showcasing the works of the artists that appear in the issue. And the third issue will be out in late July. We’ve also just opened our online gallery so people who were not able to attend the show will still have a chance to be able to buy an original piece of art or an exclusive print.

For myself, I plan on putting on another solo show in October. But details will come later for that.

Lastly, any funny or interesting stories you can tell about painting or pasting in the streets of NYC?

Let’s see… One night I was out painting some new walls in the street and this black SUV pulls up. I quickly stopped what I was doing and pretended to be on my phone as I waited for it to leave. This big undercover cop looking guy steps out from the car and begins to leisurely hang around. After a few minutes he asked what I was doing. I thought it was a cop and I was busted but it turns out it was COST! He knew he looked like a cop and got a kick out of screwing with me.

All Photo’s & Text © Matthew A. Eller 2016

Artist interview BD White Brooklyn COST Halsey JPO NYC Sold Magazine! Stencil

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