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April Issue 2009
The old Lowcountry
Food Bank at The Navy Yard at Noisette in North Charleston, SC,
is the Place for 4th Kulture Klash Fest on April 18, 2009
The fourth installment of the bi-annual Kulture Klash Fest is just around the corner! With a generous helping of support from presenting sponsors Mellow Mushroom, this KK will no doubt be one for the history books. With a huge new space, unlimited parking, 8 musical acts and art galore, the possibilities are endless.
The old Lowcountry Food Bank, a vacant warehouse space that offers 40,000 square feet of fun in The Navy Yard at Noisette, is just 2 blocks from the previous KK space. A larger venue was needed to accommodate the growing number of attendees, artists and performers, not to mention that the feel of a raw, unpolished shell is more in line with what the producers had envisioned at the conception of this event.
The unique visual star of KK4 will be an experimental putt putt course designed by local artists and sculptures. The only common theme between the nine different golf holes is that each creator was required to use 50% post consumer waste, in celebration of upcoming Earth Day. Sharing the spotlight with the astro-turf and golf balls will be a custom shoe gallery filled with 15 pairs of artist-altered Adidas Stan Smiths and Superstar shell toes. These one-of-a-kind kicks will be on sale the night of the event and are offered in various mens sizes from 9 to 12.
The golf course will be on view during the event, then open to the public for a little "friendly putting competition" April 20, 21 & 22 from 3pm to 8pm each day. Playing the course will cost $5 and all proceeds will be donated to Creative Spark, School of the Arts and the Noisette Foundation.
KK4 offers a much welcomed feminine spin. Rose Knot will be hosting an interactive sewing studio that encourages participants to arrive at the event with scraps of unused fabric, vintage textiles, old t-shirts, that random one sock in your drawer or anything they feel like challenging the girls with. These sassy seamstresses will accept any "sew-able" item you present and transform it into something completely new-to-you, like a headband, wrist cuff, belt or clutch. After you get your new accessory made look for the ladylike lounge spotlighting Charleston Henna Body Art. There will be temporary tattoo artists on site to decorate hands, feet, bellies and lower backs.
Throughout the night party people can treat their ears to the musical likes of KK newcomers Stella by Starlight, a live indie/pop band, DJ Subdue, who will be spinning progressive house music in the kitchen, and Chaos in Gotham who will kick it into high gear with some straight up old school punk. Also joining the scene is ForthNBack, a live hip hop act with MC Femi, who throws his own spin on rhymes while playing old school 90's beats. Nestled in a side room you will be confused, yet intrigued by the sounds of the Noise Band, described by local artist Carl Janes as "music with a crude rawness that continually and uncompromisingly struggles to get closer to that primal scream." Comeback kids The Spaced Invaders, known for their massive video screens displaying all their multimedia antics, will mix it up outside on the turntables with special percussion assistance. Prepare to do some booty shakin' to local favorites Dub Island Sound System while they blow the house up with hip hop/reggae. Rounding out the night is the midnight man Rocky Horror, who beats you over the head with re-mixed indie music. He will be joined by Joycette from Augusta, GA who loves to twist it up with "dirty southern crunk dance music". PS- For the late night party, wear white.
With seemingly unlimited wall space available, KK4 will feature an astounding 60+ artists. KK is proud to welcome some very talented newcomers who are on the list of "must see" work. Coppersmith Chad Haselden will be demonstrating how he creates vibrant, acid washed pieces with unexpected effects during his heat induced process, Ryan Cronin is displaying curiously colorful acrylic on wood and Paula Pindroh has built an interesting little family of custom creatures. Luckily, Eye Level Art recently unearthed a rare sketchbook of some gorgeous Nicolas Drake pieces. Prints of that collection will be on display and for sale. Jack Alterman, Brian Kane and Kevin Hoth will each have private installations of their work for viewers to absorb all in one spot. Other artists on display include John Duckworth, Megan Lange, Charles Williams and Mary Edna Frasier who will be beautifully intermingling with new works from usual suspects such as Nathan Durfee, Lisa Shimko, John Pundt, Scott Debus, Badjon and Wolfkid. Expect to see multiple documentaries and video feeds during the evening and, of course, there will be lots and lots of live graffiti. It wouldn't be Kulture Klash without it!
This event could not be brought to this new level without the help of local sponsors. Mellow Mushroom will not only be baking up superb pizzas on site for hungry tummies, but they are also the presenting sponsor. Mellow Mushroom (with 2 locations, Downtown and new Mt Pleasant) has always been a huge supporter of Charleston's art scene. Joshua Broome, a managing partner, states "The art community here in Charleston has gained some serious traction in the last couple of years. The culture is much more edgy and expressive. As a city we have started to push the artistic boundaries; galleries are no longer inundated with Lowcountry landscapes and expressionists renderings of The Battery. The rise of graffiti artists, screen printers and the like have added an element of 'punk' to the local scene. This movement has inspired us to be affiliated with events like KK4 because it truly spotlights the local art and music scene."
Some new sponsors include: Celadon (who will transform the VIP lounge from a blank canvas into an evening oasis with their colorful, stylish and comfortable home furnishings & decor), local store Point Break joins forces with Montana Colors (who donated paint and spray cans for graffiti), Putter's Paradise (a new business on Folly that loaned putters and golf balls for the putting week), and Charleston City Paper (who supports KK with a much needed ad and marketing sponsorship). These newbies join KK's re-occurring sponsor friends PDA Green & Big Hair Productions (lights and sound), Artist & Craftsmen (art supplies) and The Navy Yard at Noisette (event space and parking).
If attendees are thirsty they can visit one of the beverage gardens co-hosted by Social Wine Bar and Tin Roof. The gardens are open to the 21+ crowd only and those drinking will be required to purchase drink tickets before entering the beverage areas. The bars will be serving pints of cold beer along with red and white wine. With an unlimited inventory, the drinks will flow till the wee hours. There will be plenty of Red Bull and SmartWater for those who choose not to drink alcohol.
This event is being held during Earth Day weekend, so the producers have made certain that this would be reflected in a number of ways. Mellow Mushroom will be using the least amount of paper products by serving hand held pizza slices requiring no utensils and creating less waste; in the beverage gardens, beer and wine will be served in compostable/biodegradable corn cups (some re-usable); party guests will be encouraged to recycle their Red Bull cans and SmartWater bottles on site; the LEEP Biodiesel bus will be shuttling people hourly to and from Charleston Museum downtown to the event to reduce the carbon footprint and fuel consumption, as well as get everyone home safe.
Tickets are $10 in advance and are available at Suite Sole (47 Spring St) or (www.ETIX.com). Tickets are $15 day of event at the door, cash only. Shuttle bus tickets $10, available at Suite Sole only.
For more info visit (www.kultureklashartsfestival.com).
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