Street artist Above has hit the road again, embarking on what’s sure to be another epic tour of painting, stenciling, and general havoc across Europe. Well known for his social and political stencils, witty word play pieces, and the infamous spinning arrow mobiles (hung in cities across the globe), he’s been kind enough to give us a heads up to what he’s been working on.

Above hits Copenhagen, Denmark with The Naked Truth.

“The Naked Truth” - a mixture of stencil and proverbial wordplay...

First stop was Copenhagen, Denmark, where Above worked on the site-specific installation titled “The Naked Truth” - a mixture of stencil and proverbial wordplay, along with the physical elements of the shower head and curtain. Taking into account how the piece would interact with the surroundings, Above made a point of tucking it away so the “naked truth is only found by those who look”.

Peep the vid to have a closer look:

THE NAKED TRUTH from ABOVE on Vimeo.

Next up, a set of three works – “Ears, Tears and Fears” – in Madrid, Spain. Where better to have a piece featuring a flamenco guitarist and dancer?

The flamenco dancer is dependant on the sounds of the guitar to tease her ears and make her dance.

The juggler on the unicycle by Above encourages it's audience to rise above their fears.

The three characters all interact and depend on each other for the piece work. A sombre guitarist plays in the hopes his music will make the woman dance, as Above says, “helping ease his tears”. In turn, the flamenco dancer is dependant on the sounds of the guitar to tease her ears and make her dance. “The relationship and co-dependency of both characters in need of the others interaction to find happiness is sensual and vulnerable.” The final piece with the juggler on the unicycle is a bit trickier, so I’ll leave Above to explain: “I have been searching for over 9 months for such a situation! I finally found what I was looking for. This character and piece completes the Ears, Tears, & Fears word-play.” Interpret that as you wish!

EARS, TEARS, & FEARS. from ABOVE on Vimeo.

I definitely recommend checking out Above’s site – the amount of countries he’s left his mark on is insane, not to mention jealousy-inducing!

Above did it again. He’s managed to make art out of his frustration with what’s going on in current events. Check out the video below to see more of the Easter AIG Hunt!

EASTER AIG HUNT from ABOVE on Vimeo.

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A few months back we posted about Above’s “Giving To The Poor” piece that was cleverly placed near an ATM. Now, he’s taking his concept a bit further and acting as the “Robin Hood” of graffiti by taking an active role in helping those less fortunate. Above is selling the “GIVING TO THE POOR” print at an affordable cost and he’s donating 100% of ALL PROFITS to two homeless shelters. By giving away his profits, he’s hoping to get as many people involved in this benevolent project as possible. Above personally carefully selected the Homeless shelters because of their long-standing active role in the homeless community. The two homeless shelters, E.C.S. Shelter and C.H. Center, stand out among others because they accept and strive to help those without a home regardless of RELIGION, RACE, POLITICS or SEXUAL PREFERENCE. During this time of giving, help out those in need any way you can.  With these prints, you get a great print, but you’re also helping a great cause.  You can purchase the print here and details on the print and ordering info after the jump.

…GIVING TO THE POOR from ABOVE on Vimeo.
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Yet another clever piece by M.I.S.S. Favorite, Above.  Don’t get tricked on Tuesday!

TRICK OR TREATING AT THE McCAIN’S from ABOVE on Vimeo.

And, while you’re at it, check out his clever take on the economy after the jump.
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Above has gone from arrow mobiles twirling mysteriously on electrical wires across cities around the world, to giant word-play pieces across South America.  His newest encroachment onto the public space is stenciling.  In true Above fashion, there’s more than meets the eye and a clever message is involved.  Check out his “Stealing From The Rich” piece in Lisbon, Portugal.

STEALING FROM THE RICH from ABOVE on Vimeo.

Above just released part 3 of 4, of his South Central Tour videos and it’s an amazing pictoral journal of his travels through Brasil, Argentina, Peru, Columbia, Guatemala and many more. And as always, the soundtrack is amazing - this time, the Denots from Paraguay are featured. Check it out!

SouthCentral (PART 3 of 4) from ABOVE on Vimeo.

A few weeks back we told you that Above was working in Italy with the screen print company Studiocromie on a 6-part ARROW MOBILE series. The fruits of their labor are on sale and you can purchase the first 3 prints of the set online. The prints are printed on magnani cotton paper and consist of a 4-color, 5-color and 6-color screen print with 2 color stenciling. Above did all the cutting and stenciling himself and each of the prints are signed. You can purchase individual prints here or the full set at a discounted price here

We’re big fans of Above here at the M.I.S.S. HQ and we just got word that he released part 2 of his 4-part South Central Remix series. It includes new footage and the most cases of Montana paint that I have ever seen. It’s enough to make any artist very, very jealous. You can view it here:

ABOVE: SOUTH CENTRAL TOUR (PART 2) from ABOVE on Vimeo.

Above truly gives life to the phrase “never not working” and he’s currently in Italy traveling throughout the country and painting. He’s part of a collective of artists that are participating in the Fame Festival in Italy hosted by Studiocromie. It’s an amazing project with artists from all over the world including Dave Kinsey (USA), Conor Harrington, (IRELAND), Blu (ITALY), Ethos (BRAZIL), JR (FRANCE), Eine (U.K), Chloe Early (IRELAND), Above (USA), Erica il Cane (ITALY), Mantis (U.K.), Microbo (ITALY), BO130 (ITALY) and Lucy McLauchlan (U.K.). Between June and September, all of these artists are converging on Studiocromie to create new works, all of which will be shown at the final show in August. Check out the videos of Above’s work for the Fame Festival after the jump!
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A while back I posted about Above’s travels in over 11 countries in Central and South America that was sponsored by Montana Colors. He’s just gotten back to us with a remixed version of his video montage that’s split up into four parts. Check out part 1 here and stay tuned for the next 3 parts!

A while back we told you about graf artist Above’s South Central tour. Well, 6 months later, Above is back from his tour and is sharing his adventures. His tour included stopping in 11 countries over a period of six months with stops in: Brasil, Guatemala, Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Panama, Paraguay, Costa Rica, Mexcio and Chile. I’ve been following Above’s work for years and it’s wonderful to see him grow as an artist. He’s done several other tours - United States Tour (2004), European tour (2005), and the Sign Language Tour (2006). Back then, his art involved more of his trademark arrows teasing viewers with mobiles in the streets with word games or fabric covered arrows stuck on buildings. For his South Central Tour, you can see Above’s work evolving. He uses more lettering now - on a much larger scale - and you barely see the ubiquitous arrow. He hasn’t abandoned his word play though. This pieces are clever and interact with the community and spaces around him - they are now part of the ever changing landscape. Above has definitely left his mark in South and Central America, despite tales of being robbed and getting stabbed on his travels. He’s also picked up some sponsors along his way. Montana Colors, the crème de la crème of graf supplies, sponsored his most recent tour.

The video is fun, entertaining, has a killer soundtrack and you can watch it right here! Get lost for a minute and go above . . .

ABOVE: SOUTH CENTRAL TOUR from ABOVE on Vimeo.