So Fresh and So Green

Last week I had the opportunity to head over to the “Graffolution” show at the Soapstone Gallery in New York City. Among the artists featured were friends to the blog bodega enthusiast Josh Goldstein and the non cubist Gigi Bio, who had a piece that featured our other friend artist Marthalicia Matarrita as a modern day Frida Khalo of Brooklyn. You can check that out and some of the other highlights I was tall enough to get pics of. (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

So Fresh And So Green would like to say Happy Father’s Day to some of our favorite fathers by giving you some links so you can get to know them. (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

Kid Cudi has teamed up with vitaminwater to sell you a dream. The dream is that vitaminwater is actually healthy, so healthy it could help you beat the common cold, for which there is no cure as far as I know.

Also girls will not you more, not just cause you’re not sick but because they won’t have to take care of you while you’re sick. Way to be self sufficient guys.

The campaign is called “Strong Man” and no I didn’t make that up. The commercial features the music of Kid Cudi and I admit I was a bit disappointed that Cudi wasn’t in the commercial holding a bottle of colored water and trying to break dance without spilling it. (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

Photo Credit: “Cylone Nathan’s Wonder Wheel Astroland” by Josh Goldstein

Today is the birthday of artist and bodega enthusiast Josh Goldstein. Josh has been doing some big things lately including participating in a huge Times Square ad for Target, museum exhibitions with fellow artist Gigi Bio and some new online treats at etsy.com.bodegaNYC.

You can get you very own (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

Happy New Year and Happy Independence Day to All the Haitians out there. We here at sofreshandsogreen.com we are excited about this new year. So here’s a look back at last year’s greatest hits just before we jump into what’s in store for 2010.

Homelessness Sucks: Carteret Island Climate Change Refugees
Victims of climate change make it a not so abstract concept in this post full of images to illustrate the point.

Hello World! Welcome To So Fresh And So Green.com
There’s a nice intro to the site in this post.

An Interview With DJ C-Reality: He’s Not Just A DJ, He’s A Hip Hop Purist Part 1 and Part 2
One of my favorite interviews with one of my favorite DJs.

An Interview With Josh Goldstein- Artist and NYC Bodega Enthusiast
Part 1 and Part 2
Here’s 2 for the price off 1. It’s been a big 2009 for Josh Goldstein and it was a pleasure to have a Q&A with him.

Is Cookie Monster Now Veggie Monster?
One of our most popular posts attempts to answer the question once and for all: Is Cookie Monster Now Veggie Monster?

Here’s a few honorable mention posts:

Graffiti Taxonomy Project

My confession about where my commitment to nature comes from: Madam Toussaint as a Treehugger

Special thanks to Marthalicia for her participation in Marthalicia Matarrita On Being An Artist In The Military

What does Ghostface have to do with overfishing? Find out in Overfishing Slows In Some Areas But Continues In Others

Hope you enjoy the links and feel free to follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/sofreshsogreen

Join us on Facebook at facebook.com/So-Fresh-And-So-Green

Or follow me, Madam Toussaint, on Twitter at twitter.com/madamtoussaint

sofreshandsogreen.com helps the young and the urban learn more about the environment through Hip Hop, art, information and ideas. Come for The Fresh, stay for The Green!

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

Photo Credit: bodeganyc.com. Who else but Josh Goldstein could bring bodegas to Times Square?

Target is currently featuring commissioned art in Times Square New York City from local artists Laurie Rosenwald, Michael Anderson, Charles Wilkin and sofreshandsogreen.com’s friend to the blog Josh Goldstein.

The four vinyl billboards are meant to celebrate upcoming Fashion and International Design Weeks as well as New York City iconography. Goldstein’s muse has been the New York City bodega, or corner store typically fond in urban neighborhoods, which he uses images of in sculptural reconstructions for his art. Who else but Josh Goldstein could bring bodegas to Times Square?

“Target’s new jumbo boards will buck the Times Square trend towards mind-numbing digitized signs that have infested the area of late, and in their old-school pop art vibe will depict such city favorites as the beloved potato pie, Empire State Building, coffee, the Statue of Liberty and proclamations of love for itself. ” ~nbcnewyork.com

The billboards debuted on Friday September 4 and will be on display until November 1. From there the billboards will be (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

“Vectorized” Josh Goldstein by Madam Toussaint

Here’s part 2 of my interview with Josh Goldstein. If you missed the first part you can click on AN INTERVIEW WITH JOSH GOLDSTEIN- ARTIST AND NYC BODEGA ENTHUSIAST PART 1. In this last half of Josh’s interview we learn how the dynamic artist feels about the graffiti scene, Chinese food take out menus and his own “Happy Family”. We also discuss the color purple (not the movie) and how he feels about the color green (the color and the environment).

MT: What kind of gear do you use to take your photos?

JG: Trade secret…ok fine, a Canon Power Shot.

Supermarket Chain (2003), photo on russian baltic birch multi-ply plywood, 48″x8″, private collection, Brooklyn, New York

MT: When I see your work I can see Hip Hop has clearly been an influence on you. Were you ever on the graffiti scene? Who are your favorite graffiti artists? If want to see dope graffiti in NYC where should I visit?

JG: Damn, I wish I could say I was, but the truth is I was too busy collecting baseball cards in Indiana. Favorite graf/street artists – Doze Green, Banksy of course, Swoon, Lee Quinones, Taki 183, and the guy who wrote “gang mafia” on the wall of the bodega on my corner.

Best place to see dope graffiti? 5 Pointz in Long Island City for sure – best seen out of the left side of a Flushing-bound 7 train. Also check out the piece on (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!

Untitled (2005), photo on russian baltic birch multi-ply plywood, 72″x48″, corporate headquarters, Vitamin Water.

I got the opportunity to throw some questions out at artist Josh Goldstein about his art, his love of New York City and a major theme in his work, NYC’s local convenience stores- bodegas.

Madam Toussaint: The economy is effecting our corner stores now too. I never thought I’d see the day when even bodegas would be going out of business, not mention the exterior replacements with “impermanent vinyl awnings”. In these times it seems your work is taking on a historical/archival tone. You couldn’t have predicted the economic crisis but how do you feel about the tone of your work possibly changing?

Josh Goldstein: I love bodegas. Especially a classic bodega with all the Dominican candies in the plastic canisters on the front counter, and an endless supply of tropical sodas from the Bronx, and the Yankees game playing on a small TV above the deli counter. But I’ve never really thought of my work in an archival way. It’s true that I’ve focused a lot on bodegas, but mostly it’s their energy that inspires me, not really their particular look from a particular time. It’s that raw energy that I try to use as a starting point to capture the energy and chaos of New York. (more…)

If you like it then you shoulda put a bookmark on it!