The Greatest Show on Earth
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New York-based Vault49 return to the UK for their third London exhibition.
The Greatest Show On Earth is inspired by a world of questionable morality and alternative pastimes, influenced by the lives and performances of early twentieth century traveling entertainers. Worlds collide to give birth to a fresh collection of unforgettable images ranging from the sublime to the fanciful. Vault49 continue to create images, which confront our visual tastes, and challenge us to re-imagine the world in which we live.
In-keeping with the collaborative spirit in which Vault49 was conceived, The Greatest Show On Earth showcases Vault49Æs partnership with some of the hottest photographic, illustrative and typographic talent around. The collaborations within the exhibition are truly international and feature illustration contributions from Daryl Waller, typographic image-making from Si Scott, and photography by Rinze van Brug and Michael Creigh in New York, and Stephan Langmanis in London.
Vault49’s unfettered images, both bizarre and gorgeous have appeared on or between the covers of Flaunt, Dazed & Confused, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times. Since establishing Vault49 in early 2002, the collaborativeÆs pioneering work has gained rapid international recognition through countless features in the best of the global design press, and has sold hundreds of limited edition artworks worldwide to private collectors and other design and advertising companies. Vault49Æs work is also featured in the syllabuses of many colleges and universities internationally, and they are regulars on the lecture circuit.
The work of Vault49 carves a unique space for itself. Vault49 maintains that it is no longer possible to refer to graphic design as being so disconnected from the art world. Graphic design is growing and evolving to encompass many different approaches, techniques and genres, including much of the territory that was the exclusive reserve of the artist, such as self-commissioned and self-published work like The Greatest Show On Earth.
BIOGRAPHY
Jonathan Kenyon and John Glasgow founded Vault49 in 2002, having met on the graphic design degree course of the London College of Printing. Since then they have worked together as graphic designers and art directors of a variety of private and commercial projects. Vault49’s client list reads as a who’s who of the advertising world, and includes such notable agencies as M&C Saatchi, Leo Burnett, and Ogilvy and Mather. Vault49 have worked directly with such clients as MTV, Greenpeace, the BBC, Cancer Research UK, and Honda.
Following their relocation to New York in 2004, Vault49 continues to achieve sustained coverage in the best of the UK, US, and worldwide design press, and their New York clothing collaboration with Artful Dodger has seen their designs sported by such celebrities as Kanye West, Usher, the Black Eyed Peas, Ludacris, and Duran Duran.
EXHIBITION CREDITS:
Design: Daryl Waller (www.winterdrawings.com) Si Scott Photography: Rinze Van Brug (www.triple-zero.com) Michael Creigh (www.michaelcreigh.com) Stephan Langmanis (www.langmanis.com)
Hair, Makeup and Styling: Keith Washington, Stylist. Martha Amelia Friedlander, Makeup. Livio Angileri, Hair at Ford Artists (www.livioangileri.com)
Model: Bekah Jenkins of Next Models.