The other night my FB batline rang and on the other end was Body Poet Omeed Simantob asking if I could join the crew to shoot a short video for a contest KIA is holding. I was in and we kicked out as much as we could in a few hours. Like always, it’s fun to shoot dancers doing their thing and these guys do not cut corners. They looked sharp and they did their thing. Take a minute to peep the video, check out their FB Page and give them some love by LIKING their page.

The Body Poets

I wish Team Orozco, Espinoza Boxing (his manager), and The House of Boxing a ton of luck in tonights bout! Be safe and God Bless!

San Diego, we need to get behind our hometown boy and support him as he becomes the next CHAMP! Please take a minute to visit the links below to learn more about Team Orozco and his organization.

ESPINOZA BOXING

HOUSE OF BOXING

GOLDEN BOY PROMOTIONS

Saturday was an afternoon of Chicano Community. It had been a while since I’d been out to Chicano Park for the annual Chicano Park Day. On this day, thousands of Chicanos, Latinos, Mexicano-Americanos, and San Diegans converged on Chicano Park to celebrate the rich history that the park and Barrio Logan have maintained in Chicano and San Diegan history.

There were tons of booths selling Calaveras, Hats, Arte, and a really cool blitz of t-shirts with images of Bolts, Padres, Zapata, Cholos, Ché, Mexican Flags, and Aztecas. Let’s not forget the elotes, tacos, churros, and pan dulce to dig into to raise that Chicano Power. With all of this fantastic mix, I was focused on the cars. Low Riders! It was a great opportunity to document a day in the history of a culture that takes me back to my young days in the 1970′s when I looked forward to the monthly issues of Lowrider Magazine. Being around all of these classic masterpieces also reminded me of Lowrider Super Shows, riding my lowrider Schwin (that I never had the chance to finish), and of balancing myself on my banana seat to creep over the fence of the Fresno Fairgrounds to watch the hydraulic hop contest. It also oddly brought back advertisements of  Hammer y Lewis Pachucos, Orlies Hydraulics, and a mean spread on the legendary Gypsy Rose…the famous lowrider that we would be on the lookout for weekly on the opening credits of Chico and the Man. Anyhow, the afternoon took me back to a place that I love and memories that I was able to share with my lovely sister and cool brother. They brought me into my “Chicano Being” before I had any idea what Chicano meant.

I took some shots of car, lots of cars. Sorry but I love cars! We were also able to trek into other parts of the neighborhood to check out some of the local galleries. Big Ups to The Roots Factory, Voz Alta, and The Spot for keeping the tight knit community TIGHT! We walked into the Roots Factory and everybody and anybody in the SD art world were just hanging out enjoy some art and music. On this day, I must say…it was a good day.

Enjoy and feel free to drop some comments on what you like and what you dislike. Also, please take a second to check out the links below to support these local artists and organizations. Peace!

Chicano Park

The Roots Factory

Voz Alta

The Spot

Maxx Moses

After taking care of some business, I was back in PH and met up with Hector as we enjoyed an afternoon of amatuer boxing. It was my pleasure to meet the driving force behind this positive hub of incredible athleticism on all levels…Carlos Barragan. I had a nice quick chat with him as he was MCing the event so I didn’t want to take all of his time. I forsee a lot of big things coming to this area.

Anyhow, on this afternoon I had no clue that I would be shooting video of my favorite sport. I couldn’t resist. I have posted a two round highlight video of one of the top matches of the afternoon.  I didn’t catch the names of these two boxers, but I do remember that the fighter in black was from CYAC and the other fighter was not affiliated. Big Ups to both fighters for putting on one hell of a match. I must say, this amatuer fight had more action than most fights you see on HBO these days. Big shout out to the Barragan Family and their great gym in a great neighborhood. Enjoy it and please click the link below to visit HOB’s website.

HOUSE OF BOXING TRAINING CENTER

Last week Wednesday, I was asked to come out and shoot some footage for the Body Poets at Goorin Bros. in DTSD. That day was hectic…work all day, Tour di San Diego house hunting for the new Quad, back north to Del Mar, Quad Meeting, and I concluded my day with this quick shoot. Thank God Body Poet Omeed Simantob knew exactly what he wanted, because we were under the gun due to automatic lights shutoff. With an hour and a half to shoot four scenes with a few takes on each shot, we got what we needed and got out. Here is the final cut of video one of three. Big Ups to the Body Poets…visit them by clicking the link below. Peace!

THE BODY POETS

As soon as we arrived, we were taken backstage to try to catch some of the prep action just before the start of the Octavio Carlin show. The creative energy backstage was off the hook as make up artists from Gleam  and hairstylists from the Vocé team styled models for Furne One’s show. The models strutted down the runway showcasing masterful gowns of lace adorned with a multitude of gems and topped with an industrial touch of unorthodoxed materials such as LED lights, metal clips, and robotic neck braces. Growing up a HUGE fan of Kraftwerk (since the ripe age of 15), this seemed like a fabulous reality of Das Modell vs. Die Mensch Maschine and for some reason I was felt like Wolfgang Flür was going to appear from behind the curtain all laced up in lights. It never happened but nonetheless, the statuesque creations that Furne One, Kaz Amor, and Gleam put together we over-the-top. No, this wasn’t New York, Paris, or Milan…this was LA and  fashion was ALIVE on this night!

Huge THANK YOU to Amber for having me out. I really enjoyed snapping some shots and taking video, though we only had the chance to catch a quick minute behind the scenes with Vocé before we were shuffled out by security. I have pics and a short video below…check them and take a minute to click to Vocé’s site to get the latest in premium haircare products.

LINKS:
Vocé Haircare
Furne One

Style Fashion Week LA 2012 from Friends vs Foes on Vimeo.

After a chill Saturday afternoon, I came across a flyer for a jam in Sorrento Valley paying tribute to San Diego’s The Freak Show crew. My first encounter with TFS goes back to the days of The Getdown. My first time watching these cats was a tad bit confusing. They are not your traditional break crew, but are more of an alternative crew that integrates break elements into a sort of cirque performance, yet nonetheless they take it to the floor and always battle to the tooth. With no plans, I thought this would be a great way to get out and SHOOT, SHOOT, SHOOT! And I did just that…I shot. Below are a few of the 2-on-2 preliminary battles that went down. I got to the jam right before the prelims started so I wasn’t in the greatest position, but nonetheless, it worked. Big shout out to the Rock So Fresh family (an affiliates) as I had the chance to chat it up with King Saso, Mane One, Drah, E-Swift, and Godoyski. I also ran into elite Bboy Roxrite and got into a rather lengthy and interesting conversation about life, his professional career, and cameras of course. I have mad respect for him as a person and bboy and hope him much luck in his future! I was out by 6 and home by 9, just in time to kick it with the wife. That is never a bad time. Anyhow, enjoy the video clips as they are strictly meat & potatoe battles and please support by dropping me some comments below. Peace!

Coming from San Diego, it’s not very often that you can enter a room or gallery, sit in on a discussion, and all of a sudden realize that you are in a room full of top notch artistic talent that you only read about. One notable in the room, aside of lengendary LA artists Shepard Fairy and Saber, was Anna Siquieros. Siquieros, the great niece of Mexican Muralist David Alfaro Siquieros, stood up and reminded the group of her great uncle’s original intent, that is, to take his tools and lay down some paint to depict a story of struggle. I was floored by her moment as I am very familiar with the story of her great uncle’s mural that was whitewashed in the 30′s.

That night I walked away not only with a open mind to the current state of the Los Angeles art scene, but to what it takes to become a great and progressive city. The mere fact that both the art community and city officials can come together to work out differences takes this town to another level. My hat goes off to Daniel LaHoda and Tanner Blackman for their passion and drive to pipelines the objective of both sides and allow great things to come. Aside of the horrible weather south of the OC, I not only got to sit in on a landmark moment but also had a few minutes to snap some shots of my favorite parts of LA. Kudos to LALA Gallery on the opening of the spot. It looks amazing. Please check them out online for future shows, to follow the mural ordinance, and to support. I have also listed links below for the artists mentioned. Check’em!

LA FREEWALLS PROJECT

L.A. GRAFFITI ARTIST SABER

SHEPARD FAIRY

VIDEO CLIP:

L.A. Mural Ordinance Community Discussion from Friends vs Foes on Vimeo.

Post discussion, I decided to stick around and snap a few pics outside of LALA Gallery. I must say, LALA is perfect in regards to location, location, location. The gallery itself is the perfect size with tons of character and with the line up of artists that LA Freewalls hosts, I can’t wait to see what shows are in store for the LA art scene. I also revisited the recently completed Beautifully Destroyed mural created by LA artist RISK. Amazing! Anyhow, enjoy the pics below of Shepard Fairey and Retna for LALA Galley, as well as a small video featuring some of the discussion. Also, please support the artists by visiting the links listed below. Enjoy.

A few weeks back, Yoria made his way to San Diego for a show in Ocean Beach at the Lucky Lady Lounge. The concert was on a Friday eve and to my surprise, the venue had him as an opener and not the headliner. This meant the show opened at 7pm and with little time to spare, I went from day job, to freeway, to shower, out the door, and back onto the freeway to hopefully make the show. I was able to make the show at the opening track. This was one of those hidden San Diego Gems . . . a top notch show for only $10. It was a toss up moment for me. Do I sit and just enjoy an artist that I love to listen to, or to I get up on the edge of the stage and run the D7000? I decided to do both; I sat back for a bit to enjoy his music, but ultimately I could not leave without capturing Hoy Bostece. Thank you for the answering my request Mr. Yoria! I would have given anything to have my wife next to me to enjoy the moment. All in all, he played the show with an incredible stage presence and a natural ability to project a solid sound throughout the venue. I highly recommend checking out his website and taking advantage of another gem. Yoria even offers a flash drive containing all of his tracks for $20. You get both his English and Spanish tracks. I believe there is something like 50+ tracks on the drive. Thank you Arthur! Anyhow, check his site for future shows and support those artists that take the time to actually write, compose, and perform their art. I have listed a few of my favorite tracks below. Peace!

LINK:

WWW.ARTHURYORIA.COM

GOORIN BROS. HAT SHOP
631 5th Ave
San Diego, CA 92101