Jun 15, 2015 8 Questions with: Low Bros
Low Bros are two amazingly talented artists from Germany, currently here in SoCal to open their new exhibition at Thinkspace Gallery in Culver City on June 20th. They are also going to contribute to POW! WOW! Long Beach, collaborating with Jeff Soto on a mural at the LB Convention Center. What better time to get to know a little more about this creative duo? Brothers Christoph and Florin Schmidt “got into Hip Hop as
teenagers graffiti was the perfect medium of expression.” Forced to collaborate on a very small wall, they fused their styles and were intrigued with the results. From that point the two collaborated on murals and art exhibitions in both in Berlin & their hometown Hamburg. It’s exciting to think we’ll have them here in SoCal for murals and an exhibition too. You can also check out their upcoming LAX/LHR group show at Stolenspace in London, this September, and another group show opening in Hamburg in October. Follow them on Instagram, Facebook, and Tumblr for more.
What are you currently working on?
We have just come back from Hamburg where we painted two murals. Now we’re finalizing our preparations for our first solo show in the US. It takes place at Thinkspace Gallery in Los Angeles in June 20th and it’s called Wasted Youth.
How would you describe your job?
Actually, what we do as Low Bros is something we wouldn’t call a job, it’s rather a passion. Even when it is hard work. It’s very diversified. We spend part of our time indoors, painting new works or building things and the other part outdoors, often doing physical labor as standing on a lift painting murals or building installations and stuff. What compares more [closely] to a job is the design agency ON&ON we set up last year with our friend the designer Christoph Bruns aka Boogie. He’s the head of creation and with him we work for clients and do commissioned work besides the Low Bros work. Our manager Diana Bach also provides a link between our art and the design jobs and pulls everything together. It’s like a family business.
What does your average work day look like?
There is no average work day. We’re always working on parallel projects. Usually we are painting at the same time but sometimes we have split the work up, to get things done. And then we also swap between the different canvases. What remains
constant might be the structure of the work day. First we discuss priorities before we start working. Our regular lunch breaks are also important to us and we go every day for a bite in the neighborhood. When the weather is good, we shoot some hoops in a court nearby.
What’s the best thing about living and working in Berlin?
Berlin is a great place where we find the necessary freedom and independency for our artistic work. The art scene is very vivid, and there’s a permanent coming and going of people with different vibes. Thus, we automatically receive lots of inspiration.
Where do you find inspiration?
See above. Apart from Berlin and the societal issues of a big city our common childhood and youth is certainly a source of inspiration. Other art genres like music and film find also their way into our work. And also places we have been to and their history. Everything which stimulates the senses can be very inspiring as well. The internet is somehow like the extension of the senses.
As kids, what did you both want to be when you grow up?
One of us wanted to become an archaeologist, and then a film director, until it was clear that the director is not also the scriptwriter and the cinematographer. The other was more pragmatic as child and wanted to become the owner of a candy shop.
Nice! What are you reading at the moment?
Unfortunately, we don’t have as much time to read as we would like to. We often read books in parallel. We both finished Jonathan Lethem’s Chronic City recently. One of us is reading The Medium is the Message by Marshall McLuhan, and the other a specialized book about
photography.
What’s your favorite post-work destination?
In fact, we often hang around in our studio, even after work. But when we go out we like to be at Urban Spree, an artistic place focused on urban cultures. It does not only provide many of the most interesting events in art, music etc. Many of our friends also hang around there, so it’s like homecoming there. Berlin is, especially in the summertime, a place with a vivid and social outdoor living, therefore the streets are also a favorite place to be.