MAIDEN, BROOKLYN
SATURDAY APRIL 1st 2006


CLICK HERE FOR INTERACTIVE MAP & PHOTOS


If opening up a boutique/independent designer showroom is today's equivalent of joining a rock band, we at Maiden, Brooklyn, an artist-run storefront venue and workshop dedicated to the latest in DIY design and fashion, would like to take a step back and pay an homage to the neighborhood's past. Beginning on April 1st, we are turning the front room of our space at 252 Grand Street into an old school bodega.

As part of his ongoing Shopdropping project, artist Ryan Watkins-Hughes curates an open call exhibition of art placed on store-bought cans of victuals. Coming out of a tradition that is part guerilla street art, part culture jam, Shopdropping places stimulating visuals in unexpected places. By covertly sneaking into grocery stores and supermarkets and replacing merchandise with altered soup cans, Ryan anonymously activates the visual space usually taken over by corporate branding.

For the show at Maiden, Ryan asked over 40 artists to contribute their art. After placing the submissions on standard 15.5oz cans, he will display them, NY Deli style, on narrow racks lining the walls of the store. Also, through the cooperation of some Grand Street storeowners (and to the surprise of others), the project will continue in several spaces along the street. The visitors to Maiden, Brooklyn will be provided with a detailed map of the neighborhood spots where the cans can be found, dispatching them on an appropriately timed Easter Egg hunt, but for cans. Hilarity will ensue.