I worked with a young man suffering from schizophrenia a few years back. He was a street artist, and was madly obsessed with wild style graffiti and chemical formulas to name a few. His graffiti is the only style I can compare to Kaytwo's. Kaytwo has the same crazy lines in his work, this fucked up, unstable and unpredictable theme. His work makes me imagine the whole world being pulled into a maelstrom. Everything is dissolved, chaotic and sickening. Our mind is programmed to recognize and categorize everything into the big black box. Kaytwo will make you question conventions, and I can just picture him smiling.Kaytwo is not fine art by any means. His work will never be exhibited at some posh upper class gallery, and not everyone will enjoy his style and technique. He is not a classical painter, I would categorise him as an illustrator and I doubt he's had any schooling or classical training. This is underground style, and his style of art must never leave the dirty city walls or underground galleries. That is where Kaytwo belongs, and I'm sure he is more than content.
Kaytwo works in different mediums such as paintings, graffiti (started out in 1982), sculptures, logos and CD covers. He explains he is very much interested in textures, which I see as the main inspiration for my own work. So cred for that. His paintings and graffiti share a common factor: organic compositions and the constant flux of everything. His wild style graffiti is out of this world and unlike anything I have ever seen before. He is exceptionally talented. I honestly don't feel worthy of giving his graffiti pieces a review. That takes someone a lot more knowledgable than my self.
What strikes me with his paintings is that many of them have propper art quality, while others have this fantasy art quality which I personally don't care for. The quality varies more than I have seen in most creative persons before. I find that strange, but fascinating. I love the dissolved paintings that are like Kaytwo puk
ed some memory onto the canvas, and then blew it all up with a shotgun. They have this really interesting and strange composition and they make me wonder for ages. What the hell is going on inside Kaytwo's head? They have a dissociative quality, confusing and hard hitting but at the same time they have an occult and mythological vibe. It's a very curious mix. His painting certainly confirms the impression I have of Kaytwo himself, and I am completely fascinated. My fav pieces are by far "Rox", "Tits Squish" and "Phood for the phoenixxx". He certainly shares some qualities with Dave McKean. McKean on LSD that is. His paintings are both figurative, non figurative and abstract. Often they contain faces,and dissolved bodies and shapes. I can see references to Giger as well, but more as a homage - and more organic where Giger is bio mechanic. He has a unique way of creating depth to his paintings, and some of his works has a hazy, milky transparency adding to the layering. Kaytwo also has a very distinctive way of mixing colors one would normally never use.He works with a large variety of materials, from the stuff he finds in dumpsters, to blood, oils, water colors, aerosol cans, garbage and more. Kaytwo's art thrives on what most people would overlook or be disgusted by, like dead animals. Kaytwo says, however, that no animal used has been killed by him. He states "There is as much beauty in death as there is in life". He gives life to inanimate objects that has lost their purpose. In some strange way Kaytwo is actually creating urban necromonicons.
The industrial world, with it's waste and treasures and it's run down concrete walls is Kaytwo's perfect playground. Thankfully this fucked up world will never run out of material for Kaytwo to force into his own creative mental blender.
This review is an intro the the works by Kaytwo. We will post a follow up interview with in depth details. Stay tuned.
For more on Kaytwo
http://www.myspace.com/
http://www.k2wcf.com/
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