Announcing PRESS START by PRIEST
BEYOND THE STREETS is pleased to announce PRESS START, the American solo debut from PRIEST. Inspired by the immersive world of video game technology, the exhibition will feature original works created from hundreds of different compositions to represent new sections of classic games that never existed. Achieved through complex research and analysis, each highly-detailed painting aims to capture the viewer’s eye and welcome them into a world that feels familiar yet slightly uncharted.
Building off of his showing within BEYOND THE STREETS London, PRESS START will mark the first PRIEST work exhibited within the United States. Serving as an escape and overpowering sensory experience, graffiti and video games have stood side by side in the world of the London-based artist, whose knack for seemingly-simple, yet highly detailed work brings an anticipated depth to the walls of BEYOND THE STREETS Los Angeles.
“PRIEST’s work lends itself to landscapes of nostalgia, creating vibrant new worlds where innocent meets sinister. Cartoons and heroes of our childhood are juxtaposed with menacing acts of vandalism amidst these beloved characters we thought we once knew,” shares Gallery Director Dante Parel.
The opening reception for PRESS START will take place on March 31, 2023 from 7PM to 9PM, with the show running through April 29, 2023.
BEYOND THE STREETS Flagship
Gallery and Retail Hours:
Wednesday – Saturday: 11AM - 6PM
Sunday – Tuesday: Closed
Address: 434 N La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036
PRIEST’s satirical style contrasts playful and innocent imagery with dark, subversive subject matters. His compositions are bright and colorful, combining nostalgic cartoons, video games and street art in a tongue-in-cheek critique of capitalism and corporate culture. Toys also feature heavily in PRIEST’s practice, the word doubling as a derogatory term for inexperienced painters in the graffiti scene while emphasizing the element of play that’s central to his approach. In his words, each project is a stupid idea taken much further than it should have been in the first place.