Two Great Events in One Short Week!

Two Great Events in One Short Week!


If you happen to appreciate new beginnings, free refreshments, and fantastic local art, then we have the event for you tonight! Breeze Block Gallery, (where the Work DeJerk was featured in this summer's Sprockettes Show), is celebrating the opening of their new location on 19th and Burnside this evening with an all out sponsored bash and group show. The new studio location puts Paige, and the rest of the Breeze Block crew, in the spotlight for southeast Portland's First Fridays art events, and will even be the new home to Erhart, the "coolest streewear fashion designer in town."

To celebrate, tonight's show will be a cash 'n carry event, so bring your rain-proofed bike trailers along and stock up on affordable fine-art holiday presents for those cool cats that you love! The event happens from 6:00 - 10:00, and will feature art from Stephen Williams, Steve Mathews, Jason Graham, Garrett Price, Jason Vivona, Raskoe, and of course, Tiago DeJerk. Get there earlier, if possible, to catch the best deals! Oh, and speaking of deals, this little bash happens to be sponsored by New Deal Vodka - one more reason to show up before party o'clock! Check out the gallery website for all the details: www.breezeblockgallery.com.



Also, if you can't make it tonight, clear your schedule (and your checkbook) for the night of Wednesday the 10th, and join us (and the rest of town) at Bike Craft IV! For those of you unfamiliar with the event, Bike Craft is described on BikePortland.org as "a bike-lover’s bazaar that showcases local, handmade, bike-themed arts, crafts, fashion, and more." It also features some of the most affordable Work DeJerk yet, for the second year in a row! The party, (and sales), start at 5:30 at Roots Organic Brewing on 7th, just south of Hawthorne. For complete details, visit the Bike Craft page at BikePortland.org.

With these two events, you'll have absolutely no excuse to not get a wonderful present for your friends, family, or lovers! Come on down to one, or both, and say "Hey Hey" to us, and all the amazing artists featured during this holiday frenzy! But hurry, these events only last one night each!

xoxo,

Drica

Annnnnnnnnd We're Back!


Man, oh man, has it been a doozy of a fall, here at La Casa DeJerk. Between the Parents DeJerk's 2 month visit from Brazil, and our arduous struggle to make Tiago bonafide in the eyes of Uncle Sam, we've barely had any time at all to check in with you folks, and keep you up to date with all of our going's-ons. So sit down, exhale, then inhale, and repeat, while I try to turn you on, tune you in, and drop you off a little bit closer to "complete" than you were when I met you! (Also, if this one's just a little too long for you, I've added a bullet-point list at the end of the blog to sum things up for all you lazy cheaters.)

First off, I'd like to remind you that Tiago's BIGGEST SHOW EVER is still up at Vino Vixens, and will remain so throughout December. The opening was huge, with over 200 people in and out throughout the night, and a ton of wonderful feedback. If you haven't seen it yet, get your lolly-gaggin' behinds over to southeast 29th and Powell, grab a glass of the good stuff, and check out the show. The art is, of course, for sale, so feel free to rationalize the visit in your busy schedule as a holiday gift run for your partner or yourself.

Speaking of gifts - thanks to all of our hard work this last year, selling Tiago's limited space for holiday portraits was easier than getting a hippie naked in public. So sorry folks, but he's all booked up this year. However, now is the PERFECT time to put in order for Valentine's Day and beyond. We've got a very limited space for portrait projects in the coming months, so the sooner you get a project idea to us, the likelier it is to come to fruition! Portraits have run in the below $500 range in the past, and will only continue to be such a deal for a limited time as well. Email ideas and proposals to info@dejerk.com.

Next, we'd like to give a thank you shout-out to our new blogger friend, Andrew Mulick, of www.crowmolly.blogspot.com. Andrew recently became a fan of Tiago's and politely asked to use some of the Work DeJerk on his website and in his blog. In doing so, Mr. Mulick displayed the type of sincerity and respect that we has been absent from our experience in the world of art and art criticism at large since we've been, ahem, broadening our horizons. (See our August 19th post about my trip to New York...) We greatly appreciate his consideration and professionalism, and invite you all to visit his blog as soon as you're done reading ours! Note that he lists us as conspirators!

Moving right along... If you're wondering what other things we've been up to, you can thank Tiago, since he's a big fan of actually keeping surprises secret. If it were up to me, I'd have you counting un-hatched chickens right along with me, and probably leave you hanging, dissappointed, and disillusioned more frequently than I ought. Good thing Tiago has the final say on these things! As a result, you'll have to wait to hear about the most exciting of our many endeavors until they are complete. Until then, I'd love to share with you a project that Tiago has been working on for a very long time.

Months ago, Tiago was asked to teach a class on stencil art to children and young adults at the Mt. Scott Community Center. As happens with most of his encounters with the youth of the world, the adolescents immediately fell in love with Tiago and with his class, and requested his return presence within their program and at their community center. Tiago enthusiastically obliged, and it wasn't long before the wide-eyed, rag-tag crew came up with a vision to create a public mural together, with Tiago's art as the heart of the project. Ideas turned to proposals, proposals to contracts, and contracts back to ideas, until the last round which is currently up for approval for funding. When approved, the project will begin, and Tiago will be creating a mural with young adults in Southeast Portland, right around the corner from our first house with one another in felony flats. The wall up for beautification is appropriately adjacent to our old haunt, The Queen of Hearts, as well as Space Monkey Coffee, the site of Tiago's first solo show. Visit the project's site to learn more, get updates, and find out how you can help! We're really excited about this one!

Last, but certainly not least, Tiago has a show up currently at Muddy's Coffeehouse on Mississippi Ave. The show is not his largest, but it's definitely our most delicious of settings. It also features NEW work DeJerk at extremely affordable prices. Think of it as our holiday blow-out special, and a great excuse to get some of the best food this side of the Willamette with a bunch of your friends! To celebrate our collaboration with Dyer, and the rest of the crew at Muddy's, we'll be hosting a brunch get-together at the coffeehouse on Monday, December 1st at 11:30am. Come on down, bring the family, and get your brunch on, as we take over the inside and the patio with friends, food, and art. You better make it out that day, because the art will be coming down the next week, and with it, your chance to get the perfect, affordable, work DeJerk for the upcoming holiday season!

Well, I think that covers everything! Keep in touch everyone, give us some feedback comments, and of course, let us know when and where you're doing anything noteworthy! (As we know you are!)


Love, love, love,


Drica DeJerk

Abbreviated Version:

• Parents were in town and the man was on our back = we had no time, but we still love you.
• Tiago's biggest show ever is still up at Vino Vixens and will be throughout December. Go see it and buy something for someone you love!
• We're all booked up for commissioned portraits for the holiday season, but if you want something for Valentine's Day, get your order in ASAP.
• Visit www.crowmolly.blogspot.com
• Check out the great, city-sanctioned project that Tiago's been invited to conduct! http://www.dosomething.org/project/mt-scott-community-center-teen-volunteer-corps-community-mural-projecf
• Come have Brunch DeJerk at Muddy's Coffeehouse with us and all of our friends. Tiago's art is up, and we'll be bombarding the kitchen staff around 11:30 on Monday, December 1st to celebrate.
• Let us know how you are!
  

Big 'Ole October Opening at Portland's Premiere Wine Bar!






New Work DeJerk is heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere! And we are SO excited to share it with YOU!

You know, it was only a year ago that Tiago held his first solo show at Space Monkey, a wonderful-yet-tiny coffee shop all the way out in the Felony Flats area of southeast Portland. Now, a sweet 13 months later, the brand new Work DeJerk is returning to the southeast, and is bigger and better than ever!

This Friday, October 3rd, come on down to Vino Vixens (2929 SE Powell Blvd) and witness Tiago's art occupying the largest space it's ever graced! Bring as many people as you like, because this place is HUGE and the party is F-R-E-E! Music, dancing, schmoozing, and general tom-foolery begin at 8pm and last 'till 2am. There's also pool, darts and, for those of you who don't like socializing but still want to be seen at an opening DeJerk, there's a whole room dedicated to Nintendo 64!

Don't miss this chance to be present for a historical moment in the career DeJerk, and to meet the parents DeJerk, who are visiting all the way from Curitiba, Brazil!

We can't wait to see you there, folks! And just in case you wanted more info on the show, here's the press release:

The Work DeJerk: A Solo Stencil Art Exhibit

In a city saturated by art school aspirations, seasonal scenesters, and hipster couture, the work of an anarchist-clown turned renegade street artist is never done. On Friday, October 1^st, The Work DeJerk: A Solo Stencil Art Exhibit will premiere at Southeast Portland’s coolest wine bar – Vino Vixens. The exhibit will showcase the tragic-comedy of a popular culture hell-bent on digitally documenting and projecting that which it could otherwise be fully experiencing. Beginning at 8:00pm and lasting till 2:00am, the event is free to the public, and will feature several local musical acts of various styles, including ambient, techno, and beatbox.

Determined to expose fun for what it can be, and art for what it really is, internationally acclaimed stencil-artist Tiago DeJerk’s latest work responds colorfully to those who would rather witness an engaging experience through a digital lens or screen, than directly participate in it. Hailed as, “The greatest bicycle artist in the world,” by Amy Walker, Director of Art for Momentum Magazine, Tiago DeJerk is no stranger to creating and documenting fun and diversion for art’s sake. Otherwise known around town as Pinga de Clown, the funny foreigner in Portland’s favorite now-defunct Alberta Street Clown House troupe, Tiago has been participating in direct-action fun campaigns throughout Stumptown for over 4 years.

As a cyclist, freak-bike builder, and long-time Zoobomber, Tiago’s art has, until now, predominately reflected the Northwest’s D.I.Y. cycling community and its influences through highly detailed, ornate, and oddly photo-realistic reproductions and portraits. Previous work from this Brazilian-born harlequin has been featured in Russell Howze’s scene-busting book Stencil Nation: Graffiti, Community and Art as well as in live installation form at this year’s World Towards Carfree Cities Conference. From October to January, however, The Work DeJerk will highlight the full spectrum of Tiago’s insight and artistic capabilities, and will beg the question of which is more important: remembering the image, or creating the inspiration?

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For more info on DeJerk projects and other shows, click on the image above, or subscribe to our blog!

Thanks!

Drica

The Newest News




It was a superbly sordid, Sprockette saturated, splendid and schmoozy smash! Tiago sold two paintings at the opening to a young man who has, in his own words, been waiting to buy from DeJerks for months! Months! Now we're getting somewhere, people.

If you missed it, don't fret, because the work DeJerk, as well as the work of Jonathan Maus and Sarah Eastmand, will be up at BreezeBlock Gallery until the last Thursday in October! Also, if one show of brand-spanking new work doesn't satisfy your DeJerk desires, you can head on over to Blue Sky Wellness Studio on Mississippi Ave. to see the portraits DeJerk amidst a calming, restorative and anything but jerky atmosphere. When you stop in, say "Hi!" to me, Drica, as I'm usually there managing the goings-ons like I manage DeJerk.

Speaking of portraits, we're gearing up for two big shows this fall of - yet again - brand new work DeJerk. In the meantime, however, we'll be focusing on offering personalized commissioned portraits for the upcoming holiday seasons. What better way to say, "I love you, but someone else can tell you better on my behalf," than by commissioning a fine art representation of yourself, or your loved ones? (The question happens to be rhetorical, but if an answer were necessary, it'd be, "None!")Portrait commissions differ in price based on size, the intricacy of the image, and the date of desired completion. However, you have the word DeJerk that, as always, our art will remain accessible and affordable!

So thanks, again, to those that came to our two recent openings. Things are really starting to take off for us, but it is always such a heart-warming pleasure to see our familiar fans DeJerk at all of our biggest events! And to those of you who weren't there, you better be gearing up for the October 3rd premier at Vino Vixens. It's going to be the largest space that the work DeJerk has occupied, and the opening is going to be killer! More info to come, and, until then, keep on loving and please, for the love of all things DeJerk-y, please keep on being ridiculous!

Love, love, silly love,

Drica DeJerk

Oh! And as we promised, here's the last video that that DeJerk made...

Enjoy!

Well hello again, everybody! Didjya miss me? No? Well that's alright, I missed you enough for the lot of us!

You see, it turns out that New York is full of crotchety curators and naive nay-sayers, bloated blood-suckers and tasteless arteeeests. I'm sure that there's some good in there somewhere, but you're little 'ol country-mouse Drica couldn't find it in that big city she used to call home! I did a few cold calls, a few appointments, and dabbled in the (GAG) shmoozing events, and all I got in return were insults, ignorance, and insurmountable haughtiness.

The whole thing was a big, expensive, but necessary learning experience for we DeJerks, and what we've learned is that WE LOVE PORTLAND! And not just Portland, but our entire Pacific North West community of freaks, lovers, and friends! So, for the time being, we'll be focusing on local and regional endeavors, and - if something happens to come our way from New York - we might consider it... if they're lucky!

It's a good thing we've made this decision, too, because while I was gone Tiago made many wonderful connections, and dove spray-can first into just as many exciting projects!

For starters, he'll be debuting brand-spanking new work DeJerk at August's Last Thursday event on his old home-turf of Alberta Street. The Breeze Block Gallery, (located at 1011 NE Alberta in space #B), will be hosting a bicycle-themed night of art, entertainment, and tabling from local businesses and non-profits alike. Featured at the August 28th event will be photography from Sarah Eastmand and our man Jonathan Maus of Bikeportland.org, documenting the history of the Portland-based Sprockettes, including all new photos from their 2008 Summer Tour. Not to mention tables and merch from the Bike Farm collective, Black Star Bags, BikePortland.org and BellaDonna Bicycle Frames! The whole shabang starts at 7:00pm, with the highlight of the evening being an 8:00pm performance by the Sprockettes, themselves!

Next on our plate we've got a commission from Black Cat Cafe, to be finished and displayed within a month or so, PLUS a three-month show at SE Portland's Vino Vixens, beginning in October! Rest assured that more details will come, and that we'll be posting more regularly now that I'm home! Also, stay tuned for a special holiday offer from La Casa DeJerk...

Thanks for holding your breath for us everyone, it really helped! Now get out there and Jerk around!

Love, and Be Ridiculous,

Drica DeJerk

It's time for me to say "goodbye" for a bit, folks. Now don't go gettin' your stockings in a bundle - Mr. DeJerk and I are just fine. In fact, we're doing SO well that I'm off to New York for two weeks to scout out new places and connections for us and his art! I'll be putting on my best duds and cheesiest smile and hopefully, by the time I'm done, we'll have a show in New York secured for the Work, DeJerk!

Right now my itinerary includes visiting the Vanina Holasek Gallery, Giant Robot, Location 1, Cinders Gallery and Team Gallery, among others. If the Met's lucky, I might just stop by there, too!

So if you're in New York in the next few weeks, or if you know of any other places to stop - hell, even if you know someone who might know someone who does - drop us a line at info@dejerk.com! We'd gladly appreciate any help you can offer, and in return we'll continue to spread Love and Ridiculousness all over the world!

Thanks for everything, and remember to stay tuned for new video and pictures from DeJerk, himself!

Love, love, love,

Drica

Hiya, folks! If you happen to be in the Northern-lands of Vancouver, BC tonight, stop on by Bikeosphere - the art/fashion show and fund raiser party for Momentum Magazine. It's being held at the Centre A Gallery on 23 West Pender Street and, according to Momentum's publisher, Amy Walker, the turn-out is supposed to be fantastic! They've got a cash bar, a bicycle quilt, designers and artists from all over North America, and they even have 3 original works DeJerk! We'll post pictures as soon as we receive them, and they'll include a brand-spanking new piece, and a video of its making! So stay tuned...

To find out more details about the event, or to check out Momentum Magazine (a decision we DeJerks highly suggest), visit the site at: http://www.momentumplanet.com/node/2863.

Ever wonder how DeJerk does it all?
Check out this brand-spankin'-new video showing the process of Tiago's cutting and painting this year's Pedalpalooza art! Man, do those hands work quickly!

New Work DeJerk!
Stunning stencil stuff you have yet to see!




Click on an image to reveal the full deal! Most of these were created for small-scale sale, except for two: The Sprockettes and Carol.

Here-in depicted in their notorious chicken-fight sequence, the Sprockettes sold this painting at their AWESOME Bicycle Bash party this year, immediately following the 6th annual Multnomah County Bike Fair. The portrait of Carol was commissioned as a present for her mother last Christmas.

Stay tuned, because DeJerk will be offering this same portrait service for the upcoming holiday season this year! What says, "Thanks for birthing me!" better than the Work, DeJerk? ...we can't think of anything either!

Man, oh man, did we have an exciting week! It must have been the best 1st wedding anniversary ever! Let's see if we can't catch you up to speed...

Monday night's book-signing event was off the hook! We couldn't believe how many people showed up, and neither could Russell Howze, the book's author, and curator of StencilArchive.org. There were so many stencil enthusiasts in attendance, in fact, that the good people at Powell's City of Books had to bring out a whole rack of more chairs to accommodate the crowd. Still, there were people left contentedly standing on the sidelines when the chairs ran out. The presentation Russell gave was great, and the "wooooot's" heard when Tiago's name was called out were especially heart warming because most were from people we don't even know!
The subsequent Stencil Ride that Tiago led, (as part of Pedalpalooza), was a real hit, as well. Many left the event saying that it was their favorite Pedalpalooza event to date. We were out fraternizing about the city well into the night, and returned home very flattered and satisfied.

The next day marked the public portion of the Towards Carfree Cities Conference, and Tiago's first official public art performance with spray paint! Thanks to Meghan Sinnot, one of the organizers of the conference, for arming Tiago with the spray chalk and, more importantly, the official permit that allowed him to paint burning upside-down SUV's on the grounds of City Hall! Conference attendees from all over the world stopped to watch, applaud, and congratulate Tiago for his artistic accomplishments and messages!

The rest of the week was filled with wonderfully ridiculous and inspiring Pedalpalooza events, including the Solstice Ride, which we co-lead! We rode all night for the shortest night of the year, and were re-married in front of a crowd of about 100 bikey friends by bike light at the top of Mt. Tabor. Thanks to Rev. Phil and Leigh from Vancouver for the wonderful words and thoughts they shared, and to everyone who participated, observed, and heckled! We love you all!

Yes, it has been a magical week, and the perfect prelude to a magical summer for the year of two-thousand-great! Before I go, I just want to remind all of you that you only have a few more days to catch the rest of Cycleseen, the all-around-P-Town exhibit of bicycle related art, in which our own Mr. DeJerk is featured in not one, but TWO different shows! The art comes down this week, though, so get out there and Cycle-see it while you can!

Love, and be super duper ridiculous,

Mrs. DeJerk

DeJerk to be featured as interactive artist in this year's Towards Carfree Cities International Conference!

That's right! The 2008 Towards Carfree Cities Confrerence is coming to Portland tomorrow, and Tiago DeJerk will be leading an interactive art experience for the attendees on Tuesday the 17th. This is the first year that the conference will be hosted in North America, and it's occurrence coincides with Portland's recently earned recognition as the most bicycle-friendly city in the United States! The conference theme is "Rethinking Mobility, Rediscovering Proximity," and according to the site,

"This year’s Towards Carfree Cities conference theme is intended to promote discussion of urban livability, mixed-use development, local agriculture, pedestrianization, strong neighborhoods, accessible public space, and sustainable transportation. The conference program unites diverse interests, from city planners to developers to environmental activists to transportation service providers, around the common goal of reducing communities’ dependence on automobiles."

This conference is going to be amazing! Thousands of attendees are expected from ALL over the world. If you're able to, you should attend at least a portion of it. If you aren't in Portland, you can watch the video-stream coverage of the conference on CrankMyChain! Cycle TV.

Come on down to city hall on Tuesday the 17th to participate in the public day of the conference! Tiago will begin his interactive art installation around 5:00pm, and if you stay till the end you can catch the Sprockettes performance at 7:00! Can't wait to see you!

Love,
Drica

Just in case you live in P-Town and haven't been by Powell's this month, here's a shot of the front window of the world's largest independent bookstore! The Portland premiere event at Powell's is only a few days away!

Please join Tiago, myself, and Stencil Nation's author, Russell Howze, for an intimate event there this Monday the 16th at 7:30pm. Afterwards, Tiago will lead a Stencil Ride as part of Pedalpalooza. He'll take us all on a tour of some of Portland's stencil art, and we'll make stops on the way to stencil items ourselves! Bring shirts, bags, vinyls, and whatever else you want to stencil.
Also, as part of the exciting book related news, check out the list below that Rusell posted on Stencil Nation's blog!

We look forward to seeing you all this weekend, and especially on Monday!

Love, Drica

Here’s the list of museums that have currently ordered the book to sell in their shops:

• Weisman Art Museum Minneapolis
• Getty Museum LA
• MFA Boston
• National Building Museum DC
• Berkeley Art Museum
• Dia Center For The Arts NY
• Museum Contemporary Art Chicago
• MOMA NY
• Norton Simon Museum LA
• Walker Art Center Minneapolis
• MOMA SF

You know, Tiago's been getting a lot of well deserved, steadily increasing praise and adulation this past year. He's been featured on websites, in newspaper, on the radio, and now, even in a book. All in all, we feel pretty great about the direction we're headed! Something happened recently, though, that's filled us with a warm gooey feeling that's even warmer and gooier than all those other things - combined! It happened last Thursday during Tiago's Cycleseen show opening at the Independent Publishing Resource Center. There we were, hob-knobbing with the poster producing elite of Stumptown, when someone called Tiago over to the central cork board, to point out a very special note that the center had received. The note, (which can be seen on the opening page of the IPRC website), was from a student who had attended Tiago's Stencil Workshop, hosted by the IPRC last year. This student had been so inspired by her newly acquired skill set, that she developed an entire space at her home to be dedicated to art! Here she is in her own words...

PORTLANDERS LOVE THE IPRC AND OUR WORKSHOPS! Here's what one recent participant had to say: "I'm just writing to tell you how thankful I am to find a place like the IPRC! I took the spraypaint stencil class last weekend. . . the instructors were fabulous and have inspired me to turn my garage into an art space. Thanks again for offering such fantastic workshops!"

Wow! How's that for inspiring? I sure am proud of that Mr. DeJerk! Thanks for taking the time to read about this. Now let's all get out there, share some skills and spread ridiculous love and inspiration!

Heart,
Drica

Great news, folks!

The book Stencil Nation: Graffiti, Community and Art by Russell Howze hit stores on June 1st. You better get to your favorite book store and pick up a copy quick, because this hot little number features outstanding work by the likes of Banksy, Swoon, and your very own Tiago DeJerk! (Although the book has him listed by his given name – Tiago Denczuk – we see the misnomer as a minor defeat for the cult effect, the parents DeJerk see it all as a major victory!)

Mr. Howze, creator and administrator of the website Stencil Archive, has been a big fan of Tiago’s work since it was first posted to his site by an anonymous admirer in 2006. From that point, Tiago’s fan base on Stencil Archive alone grew so quickly that Russell was inspired to invite Tiago to be a featured artist in his upcoming book. This was all way back in the late summer of yesteryear, (literally August of last year), mind you, when Tiago was a young newlywed, with empty pockets and a head full of ideas. One idea that he couldn’t have had, though, was of how much this book would end up meaning to him!

Well friends, that’s the long and short of the history of the book. Now on to more good news! It seems that, as the book and author were making their way up the coast, a great friend of Tiago’s, the Sprockette’s very own recently transplanted Agent Chaos stumbled across a copy in San Francisco. This agent was a particular inspiration to Tiago during the formation of his stencil craft, and her opinion is highly regarded by him. Here’s what she had to say about the book: "Nice job being in a BOOK on the page after SWOON!! It makes me so happy!!"

Y’all may know as well as we do, however, that close friends – regardless of how desperately they try not to be – may become biased where art is concerned. It only took a quick trip to Powell’s, though, to prove Agent Chaos absolutely correct! The book looks amazing, and not only is Tiago one of 350 artists represented in its pages, he’s also one of only a handful of those artists whose work is accompanied by a two-page spread, complete with a colorful artists’ bio! YEE HAW!

We are so darn tootin’ excited, that we’d buy each and every one of you a copy if we could! Unfortunately, we can’t. But you can support DeJerks AND Russell Howze by visiting the book’s website at stencilnation.org and ordering your own copy at wholesale price! Then, if you’re in the Portland area, you can join us at Powell’s City of Books, the world’s largest independent bookstore, on June 16th at 7:30pm for an official book presentation and signing! Immediately following the event will be a bicycle ride led by DeJerk himself as part of (you guessed it) Pedalpalooza 2008. Read more about the ride and the event in our news section! And thank you for all of your support!

D e J e r k . c o m
coming soon...

www.dejerk.com

Reposted from BikePortland.org:

At this shop, not all the works of art have two wheels

Posted by Jonathan Maus (Editor) on April 22nd, 2008 at 10:53 am

Cyclepath Bike Shop co-owner Bill Larson pointing out a detail
in one of Tiago DeJerk’s paintings.
(Photos © J. Maus)

Cyclepath Bike Shop in Northeast Portland is known for stocking custom, high-end bikes that could easily pass for rolling works of art. Now, sharing space in the showroom among $6,000 bicycles, are four large-scale stencil paintings by Portland artist Tiago DeJerk.

The paintings were commissioned by Cyclepath co-owner Joshua Hutchens and were unveiled at a party at the shop Friday night.

All four of the pieces were painted on reclaimed wood (three of them use old wooden doors) and were done in the unmistakable style that DeJerk is fast becoming known for. (If they look familiar that’s because I wrote about a mural painted by DeJerk on the walls of my office back in October).

The paintings range from abstract repesentations of bike parts to stylized images based on actual photographs. Team Cyclepath rider Patrick Wilder sloshes through mud in one of the pieces, and over the shop’s front counter Hutchens himself is featured. An uninterrupted bike-chain motif ties the paintings together.

Hutchens first met the DeJerk at BikeCraft, a bike-themed gift bazaar where DeJerk sold some of his smaller works last November. That night, Hutchens says “I went to buy a few of his paintings, but they were already sold. I asked if he’d consider doing something larger for me and it led to this.”

With fond memories of painted murals in other shops he’d work in — in Moab, Utah and Grand Junction, Colorado — Hutchens said he wanted to bring “something big” into the shop.

In the weeks that followed their initial conversation, DeJerk visited the shop (on MLK at Brazee) to get a sense of the space and he looked over photographs to use as a basis for the paintings. The result is four inspired works that are sure to garner DeJerk even more attention in his fledgling art career.

At the opening night party.

Artist Tiago DeJerk

DeJerk got his start in Portland’s bike scene as a clown who performed with the Alberta Street Clownhouse. His first medium was self-expression, makeup, and building tall-bikes. That led to oil painting and printmaking, which he displayed at the Last Thursday artwalk on Alberta two years ago.

Up next for DeJerk is a series of promotional pieces for Black Sheep Bakery in Southeast Portland (yes, the one with the bike-thru window), and he’ll be the official artist for the upcoming, weeklong Pedalpalooza festival in June.

Also in June, DeJerk will embark on a book tour for Stencil Nation, a new book (due out June 1) in which he serves as one of three artists representing the Pacific Northwest region.

As for his works at Cyclepath, Hutchens says they’ve been a huge hit. “Everybody wants to know who did them and where we found the guy.”

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– For more photos of the paintings and the opening night party at Cyclepath, click here.

– Stop by Cyclepath Bike Shop: They’re located at 2436 NE. MLK Jr. Blvd. in Portland.

– To contact Mr. DeJerk, email info[at]dejerk[dot]com and stay tuned to DeJerk.com.