Shoutout Sunday: CRASH
Sunday Shoutout is our new series profiling a creative we admire and have worked with. We want to showcase the vibrant talent we have been fortunate to work and partner with, in all mediums. Everyone from artists and designers, musicians and rappers, writers to photographers, we want to introduce you to new creatives in The Bronx. This week meet legendary Bronx graffiti artist John “CRASH” Matos.
John “CRASH” Matos
John “CRASH” Matos is a Bronx-born legendary graffiti artist, muralist, gallery owner, and entrepreneur with a career spanning more than 4 decades.
John CRASH Matos (b. 1961) is a legendary graffiti and street artist from The Bronx. He followed older neighborhood kids when he was 13 and soon started bombing trains with the tag CRASH. By 1980 he transitioned from train yards to galleries and he curated the ground-breaking “Graffiti Art Success for America” at Fashion MODA, launching the graffiti movement that has remained very active through today. CRASH has been part of numerous museum and gallery shows around the world focusing on Graffiti and Street Art, and has works in many permanent museum collections. His extensive career and portfolio of work includes partnerships with some of the biggest brands – Bearbrick, Fender, Absolut Vodka, Steve Madden, and Levi’s, just to name a few.
Chronicling CRASH’s extensive portfolio and career would fill a book, and it actually has! In addition to regular commission work, CRASH is the co-owner of contemporary art gallery WallWorks New York, and owner of WallWorks TWO, a retail boutique in the South Bronx.
WALLWORKS NEW YORK is a contemporary art gallery in the South Bronx, dedicated to bringing art back uptown. In the vein of Fashion MODA, WALLWORKS is dedicated to showcasing new and exciting art from both emerging and established artists, mixing “downtown” sensibility with “uptown” style; a place for exploration.
WallWorks TWO is a retail boutique in Kreate Hub, a co-working space in the South Bronx. WallworksTWO has been curated with pieces – art, clothing, accessories, prints, and more – from a wide range of artists and creatives.
CRASH x The Bronx Brand
CRASH has long been one of Michael, our co-founders, favorite artists. He remembers the CRASH mural at the entrance to The Bronx Zoo as a staple in his childhood and remembers the day he met CRASH, so being able to work with him, and call him a friend, is a tremendous honor for us. In 2017 2018 The Bronx Brand partnered with CRASH on a capsule collection. The capsule, limited to 150 sets, includes a t-shirt, print, pin, and custom box. The print is numbered and signed.
