U R B A N M U R A L G R A F F I T I S T R E E T / ARTIST
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Steve Locatelli is a Belgian artist born in Brussels. He started on the graffiti scene in the early 90s in the Brussels metro. Steve’s passion for Graffiti drove him to conquer forbidden boundaries and his works were often visible in unmarked territories. In 1998 the city walls have become exclusive places to let young people express themselves through this new art. It was during that time that Steve could give free rein to his imagination and develop his style.
He became a prominent figure in the street art world and his street art pieces can be seen in Brussels, Amsterdam, and all over Europe.
Nowadays, Steve spends most of his time in “Artifex” a gallery that he and his wife opened in Antwerp/Gent since 2007.
Skull Art
Steve Locatelli is a Belgian contemporary artist known for his brightly coloured pieces often featuring skulls. He is an important figure in the street art world whose art on canvas can be found all over Belgium, including Brussels, Ghent, and Antwerp, as well as abroad, in Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Dortmund, Germany, among others.
“I like the symbolism of skulls. It is so universal, you can not tell if it was a boy or a girl or if it was white, African or Chinese person. We are all the same under it all!”
Paintings by Steve Locatelli
Self-taught, Locatelli did his first canvas in 2007. His paintings are characterized with briskly, sometimes very graphical, brush strokes. The artist knows how to find the best combination of colors and to add perfect distorted shadow. Skulls are one of the most recurring motifs in his art, but he also depicts subjects such as girls faces, guns, dogs and bones, among others. Locatelli’s subjects are mainly very bright and colorful, and occasionally with a dark background.
Artifex Gallery In 2007, thae artist and his wife opened a gallery called “Artifex” in Antwerp city. Here he gives workshops to the new generation, while graffiti fans purchase material, ideas and buy unique creations of the artist. His goal is to transform into a form of expression so that it will not be seen as vandalism.
Steve Locatelli lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium.
Hi Steve, could you tell us who you are, what you do, and how did you get started in the urban art scene?
I grew up in Brussels where I saw the development of the graffiti seen in the 90’s. By then I was already drawing and I found the subculture of things related to hip hop, skating, tagging, graffiti, very interesting, and I wanted to be part of it! I got involved and quickly I became addicted ….it became my lifestyle!
I started with drawings on big stickers and put them up everywhere around the city and in the underground…The mystery of who the artist was and the interaction with the other writers was interesting to me.
My next level was tagging and bombing big letters…EVERYWHERE. Hehe, I loved it!
In 2000, I started painting legal walls and it felt great to paint with no stress and no rush, and the new challenge was making connections and collaborations on big walls! Those days were a great time too, my drive was to see my evolution in my works.
In 2004 I started to go with the flow of street art. I started pasting some big hand painted posters in the city’s (fun fun fun), but after a year of doing so, I started missing my walls and spray-cans and wanted to get back on it.
In 2007 I did my first canvas and was more and more working individually (on one wall and on my own). I think this was the best way to learn my own style and to allow it to evolve. I started to really enjoy being in my studio painting my canvases. The experience of painting slowly and more detailed was a new experience and it was a great one too. All of these experiences together, after all of these years of playing around with my sprays, have made me who I am today.
I am still playing with paint on walls and canvas and it makes me feel like I will never grow up! Hahaha
It’s difficult to get a name in the art culture, therefore in 2007 together with my wife we started our own gallery in Antwerp city called Artifex. From then on I got some recognition and other galleries started showing my work too. Artifex is now a gallery, artistic desk and the place where I give workshop to the new generation
Do you have a formal art education?
I am 100 percent autodidact, but I have learned a lot from my friends, going to events, making connections ……
Going to school was not my style. I didn’t like to be taught and I was always a little bit rebellious. I think you may still find some “nice” pieces that I painted on some school desks..
Skulls appear a lot in your works, is there a reason behind it?
I like the symbolism of skulls. It is so universal, you can not tell if it was a boy or a girl or if it was white, African or Chinese person. WE ARE ALL THE SAME under it all!
Also, I always felt like a PIRATE who was taking walls in the city…and have many more explanations for it, but the book will come out soon ;)
What is your opinion of street art? And what is your main reason for producing street art?
I like the evolution of it and also I like that it’s more accepted as an art form and that street artists are now taken seriously….. I think street art is the new contemporary art. Before you only had graffiti and now street art has become so much more. My passion is to paint walls and hope I will do this till my very end. It’s my meditation and one of the drives in my life and I hope people enjoy my work.
What have been your most challenging and rewarding piece of work thus far?
One of my own works is the kid soldier (Pictured above) in 2007. It’s the work which gave me a name in Belgium. It was shown in the museum of art in Brussels. The second one, was not so much about a personal work but I really liked how they filmed it and showed their trust to me in this commercial! I did a commercial video for the new AUDI car….It was minus 7 Celsius and you can feel it when you watch the video hehe. These 2 had a strong impact on my evolution and opened up doors for me.
Any words of advice for aspiring new artists?
Keep doing your thing!!! Evolution is the drive!!!!
txt STREET ART US
He became a prominent figure in the street art world and his street art pieces can be seen in Brussels, Amsterdam, and all over Europe.
Nowadays, Steve spends most of his time in “Artifex” a gallery that he and his wife opened in Antwerp/Gent since 2007.
Skull Art
Steve Locatelli is a Belgian contemporary artist known for his brightly coloured pieces often featuring skulls. He is an important figure in the street art world whose art on canvas can be found all over Belgium, including Brussels, Ghent, and Antwerp, as well as abroad, in Amsterdam, Netherlands; and Dortmund, Germany, among others.
“I like the symbolism of skulls. It is so universal, you can not tell if it was a boy or a girl or if it was white, African or Chinese person. We are all the same under it all!”
Paintings by Steve Locatelli
Self-taught, Locatelli did his first canvas in 2007. His paintings are characterized with briskly, sometimes very graphical, brush strokes. The artist knows how to find the best combination of colors and to add perfect distorted shadow. Skulls are one of the most recurring motifs in his art, but he also depicts subjects such as girls faces, guns, dogs and bones, among others. Locatelli’s subjects are mainly very bright and colorful, and occasionally with a dark background.
Artifex Gallery In 2007, thae artist and his wife opened a gallery called “Artifex” in Antwerp city. Here he gives workshops to the new generation, while graffiti fans purchase material, ideas and buy unique creations of the artist. His goal is to transform into a form of expression so that it will not be seen as vandalism.
Steve Locatelli lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium.
Hi Steve, could you tell us who you are, what you do, and how did you get started in the urban art scene?
I grew up in Brussels where I saw the development of the graffiti seen in the 90’s. By then I was already drawing and I found the subculture of things related to hip hop, skating, tagging, graffiti, very interesting, and I wanted to be part of it! I got involved and quickly I became addicted ….it became my lifestyle!
I started with drawings on big stickers and put them up everywhere around the city and in the underground…The mystery of who the artist was and the interaction with the other writers was interesting to me.
My next level was tagging and bombing big letters…EVERYWHERE. Hehe, I loved it!
In 2000, I started painting legal walls and it felt great to paint with no stress and no rush, and the new challenge was making connections and collaborations on big walls! Those days were a great time too, my drive was to see my evolution in my works.
In 2004 I started to go with the flow of street art. I started pasting some big hand painted posters in the city’s (fun fun fun), but after a year of doing so, I started missing my walls and spray-cans and wanted to get back on it.
In 2007 I did my first canvas and was more and more working individually (on one wall and on my own). I think this was the best way to learn my own style and to allow it to evolve. I started to really enjoy being in my studio painting my canvases. The experience of painting slowly and more detailed was a new experience and it was a great one too. All of these experiences together, after all of these years of playing around with my sprays, have made me who I am today.
I am still playing with paint on walls and canvas and it makes me feel like I will never grow up! Hahaha
It’s difficult to get a name in the art culture, therefore in 2007 together with my wife we started our own gallery in Antwerp city called Artifex. From then on I got some recognition and other galleries started showing my work too. Artifex is now a gallery, artistic desk and the place where I give workshop to the new generation
Do you have a formal art education?
I am 100 percent autodidact, but I have learned a lot from my friends, going to events, making connections ……
Going to school was not my style. I didn’t like to be taught and I was always a little bit rebellious. I think you may still find some “nice” pieces that I painted on some school desks..
Skulls appear a lot in your works, is there a reason behind it?
I like the symbolism of skulls. It is so universal, you can not tell if it was a boy or a girl or if it was white, African or Chinese person. WE ARE ALL THE SAME under it all!
Also, I always felt like a PIRATE who was taking walls in the city…and have many more explanations for it, but the book will come out soon ;)
What is your opinion of street art? And what is your main reason for producing street art?
I like the evolution of it and also I like that it’s more accepted as an art form and that street artists are now taken seriously….. I think street art is the new contemporary art. Before you only had graffiti and now street art has become so much more. My passion is to paint walls and hope I will do this till my very end. It’s my meditation and one of the drives in my life and I hope people enjoy my work.
What have been your most challenging and rewarding piece of work thus far?
One of my own works is the kid soldier (Pictured above) in 2007. It’s the work which gave me a name in Belgium. It was shown in the museum of art in Brussels. The second one, was not so much about a personal work but I really liked how they filmed it and showed their trust to me in this commercial! I did a commercial video for the new AUDI car….It was minus 7 Celsius and you can feel it when you watch the video hehe. These 2 had a strong impact on my evolution and opened up doors for me.
Any words of advice for aspiring new artists?
Keep doing your thing!!! Evolution is the drive!!!!
txt STREET ART US
video > AUDI & LOCATELLI STEVE
Locatelli at BOZAR-CANVASCOLLECTIE 2008 -SPRAYCAN -150X100.
Over Steve Locatelli / A propos de Steve Locatelli.
Steve Locatelli werd 1978 geboren in Brussel.
Zijn passie voor graffiti stamt uit de jaren 90. Hij begon in de Brusselse metro.
Graffiti is een echte passie voor deze jonge artist die vaak speelt met de grenzen van het legale.
Zijn werken uit de jaren 90 zijn vaak te zien op ‘illegale’ plaatsen.
Vanaf 1998 werden de muren in de stad de exclusieve plaatsen waar jongeren konden experimenteren met deze nieuwe kunstvorm. In die periode kon Steve zijn verbeelding de vrije loop laten en zijn stijl ontwikkelen.
De 37-jarige artiest heeft sinds 2007 een winkel in Antwerpen, ‘Artifex’. Hier kunnen graffiti fans materiaal aanschaffen, ideeën opdoen en unieke creaties van de artiest kopen. Steve geeft ook workshops aan senioren. Zijn doel is graffiti te transformeren tot een expressievorm en het zo te ontdoen van het vandalisme stigma dat er aan kleeft.
Steve Locatelli est originaire de Bruxelles. Sa passion pour les graffitis vient des années 90. Il a commencé dans le métro bruxellois. Le graffiti est réellement une passion pour ce jeune artiste qui joue souvent avec les limites de l’interdit. Ses œuvres des années nonante sont souvent visibles dans des endroits ‘illégaux’. C’est en 1998 que les murs de la ville sont devenus des lieux exclusifs pour laisser les jeunes s’exprimer à travers cet art nouveau. C’est à ce moment là qu’il a pu laisser libre court à son imagination et développer son style.
Cet artiste de 37 ans possède depuis 2007 une boutique à Anvers « Artifex ». Cette boutique permet aux passionnés de graffiti d’acheter du matériel, des idées et surtout des réalisations uniques de l’artiste. Il propose également des workshops pour les séniors. Son but est de transformer le graffiti en moyen d’expression et supprimer l’idée de vandalisme gratuit.
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