Dave the Chimp

Born in an egg on a mountain top, Dave the Chimp paints graffiti without his name, and makes fanzines to switch on your brain.
He runs the 243rd Skateboarding Support Battalion, helped create Big Cheese Magazine and was a founder member of Finders Keepers Crew (along with D*Face, PMH, and Mysterious Al).
He was head designer at Hessen Metal Skateboard Hardware and Artist in Residence at design/advertising agency Fold7.
His work has been published in such books as "Scrawl 2 - More Dirt", "Zines" and "Blower" (Booth Clibborn), "Concrete To Canvas" (Laurence King) "The Art of Rebellion 1 & 2", "Izastickup", and the Dazed and Confused book "Annual", as well as appearing everywhere from children's books for Hodder, tour posters for MTV, and number 1 UK singles, to the bottom of Burton Snowboards.
He has exhibited in London, Tokyo, Paris, Portland (Oregon), Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Milano and Barcelona.
He has worked on collaborations with Flying Fortress (under the name Visual Rock Stars) and murals and large abstract posters with the likes of Ekta, Nomad, and Product Two.
2006 saw his directorial debut, with a video for the band Robots in Disguise (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES672S-XdJ0), and he has since directed a further video for them, another for the Puppini Sisters, and tv commercials for the Badly Drawn Boy album "Born In The U.K." and the platinum selling Led Zeppelin compilation 'Mothership'.



He continues to bomb the streets under a variety of secret identities.
Painting and skating keep the noose from around his neck.


www.visualrockstars.net
www.243support.co.uk
www.hessenmob.de



Exhibitions



WOOLWILL presents Dave the Chimp - Woolwill, Hamburg, June 2009.

Solo show of new paintings and clothing collaborations.
This show at the Hamburg gallery/clothing store Woolwill focused on my Human Bein' characters. I produced 88 new Bein paintings (the 8th letter of the alphabet is 'H', and Hamburg is represented with the letters 'HH') as well as two new t-shirt designs. We also created a small collection of dresses and bags with the fashion label SuperHorstJansen, and I painted over 20 Beins in the streets.




All Great Men Are Dead, And I'm Not Feeling Well - Galerie Stephan Stumpf, Munich, May 2009.

Solo show to celebrate the release of my first book, Part Of Rebellion 2, published by Publikat.
A collection of drawings, paintings, and screen prints, shown for the first time in Munich, and documenting the last three years creations.




URBAN ART Werke aus der Sammlung Reinking - Weserburg Museum, Bremen, May-August 2009.

Group show at the Weserburg Museum für Moderne Kunst, featuring work by Banksy, Blu, Brad Downey, Mark Jenkins, Miss Van, Mode 2, Os Gemeos, DAIM, Shepard Fairey, Swoon, Tilt, Herbert Baglione, Zevs, and others from the private collection of Rik Reinking.
I showed one painting ('How I Learnt To Love The Bomb') and created a new wall piece in the first room of the exhibition.




PRINTS for the New Power Generation - ATM Gallery, Berlin, April 2009.

Solo show of new and old prints.
This show featured a series of lino prints made for my solo shows in Milan and Luxembourg, as well as four brand new screen prints, two stencil prints originally created for the streets of London, and my largest screen prints so far - the Chapel of St. Martin.




a DISPOSABLE art show - The Bait Shop, Toronto, Canada, April 2009.

Hand painted skateboard deck featured in this charity show organised by Freedom Fighter skateboards.
http://freedomfighterskateboards.wordpress.com/2009/04/




Searching For The Perfect Line - Vicious Gallery, Hamburg, July 2008.

Solo show focusing all new work exploring abstract letterforms, skatable terrain, and the movement of skaterboarders in a park environment.
This show was about personal experiments I'd been making in my drawings for a few years, looking at graffiti letter forms and the shapes I saw while skateboarding. Though still using characters, this was a step away from my usual style into a more abstract world. As well as all new paintings and drawings, the show also featured a 40 page zine of drawings, and two animation pieces, 'One Line' and 'Self Portrait June 2008'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5J3UTBbZvs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkPyVo0Y8M0




Pastures New - Extrabold, Luxembourg, April 2008.

Solo show celebrating my forthcoming move from London to Berlin.
Show featured new paintings on paper, wood and fabric, new drawings, and an installation piece of jagged black mountains, a reflection of how I felt about London at the time. One mountain was hollow, and inside we could see the central character from the show quivering with fear. Through a window in the back of this cave was a video piece showing a mountain range. A face (my face painted black like the mountains) could be seen in the largest peak, snarling and growling at the passing clouds and bolts of thunder that occasionally lit up the sky.



Wake Up! - The Don Gallery, Milan, March 2008.

Group show with Alex One, Will Barras, Bo130, Eric IlCane, Jeremy Fish, Galo, Mr. Jago, Microbo, San, Space Invader, and The London Police.
Exhibited my largest painting on canvas produced so far.
http://thedongallery.blogspot.com/2008_06_01_archive.html



Open Studio - Kingsland Road, London, December 2007.

Group show with Eine, Zeus, Mr. Wim, Pure Evil, The Toasters, and many others.
Exhibited painting, drawing, and a sculptural piece, and hosted a Lucky Art Dip event, where people got to pull small paintings and other objects out of a barrel in exchange for bananas and packets of biscuits.



Welcome To Zagorkia - LUCY*, Antwerp. November 2007.

Joint show with Nomad. A museum style exhibit was created about the fictitious country of Zagorkia, and included wall paintings, sculpture, installation, photography, paintings and portraits, on the themes of history, legend, famous Zagorkians, pop culture, wildlife, etc.



Vicious Gallery v Six Fingers - Vicious Gallery, Hamburg, September 2007.

Group show with Flying Fortress and others.



Curious Creatures - Spine skateshop and gallery, Worcester, August 2007.

Group show and zine, curated by the author of "Concrete to Canvas" and featuring French, Jon Burgerman, Jeremyville and others.



Backjumps -The Live Issue 3 - Kunstraum Bethanien, Berlin. June to August 2007.

Backjumps is the largest exhibition of artists, who are known for their work on the street, in the whole of Europe.
I created my biggest murals to date - both sides of a 40 metre long by 5 metre high corridor in the gallery, and the end wall of a building 12 metres wide and 25 metres high. The building mural is permanent, and can be seen at Adalbert Strasse 71, Kreuzberg, next to the childrens farm.



If Television Is Your God, Is Jesus The Remote Control? - Biokip Gallery, Milan, April 2007.

First solo gallery show. Exhibited 13 new paintings, drawings and lino prints, large cardboard construction/installation, and video piece, on the subjects of Jesus and television.



HOO WOT - ThisWayUp Gallery, London. February 2007

Group show in aid of the charity World Owl Trust, also featuring Kid Acne, Paul Insect, Cat Johnston, Matt Sewell, and more. Produced various drawings/studies and paintings of owls, along with the fanzine "HOOT".



Cable Street presents The Bad Note - ThisWayUp Gallery, London, December 2006

Group show with Showchicken, RichT, Jae, etc. Exhibited cardboard construction containing lights, mirrors, and small scenes, with flashing sign and abstract drawings on the exterior.



The Paint Ball - New York. September 2006

Group show of customised "Dunny" toys, auctioned for Save The Children, also including WK Interact, Gary Baseman, SEEN, and many more.



Gravis Street Art Show - Sofia, Bulgaria. May 2006.

Group show with Nomad, The London Police, Sat One, and various Bulgarian artists. First showing of the documentary "Backstage Pass" outside of the UK.
Also painted the 250 metre sea wall in Varna as part of the "Meeting Of Styles" graffiti jam.



Charming Suicide - Galleri ORO. Gothenburg, Sweden. May 2006

Group show (and zine) also featuring Remed, Andy Rementer, Alex Purdy, Miss Lotion, and Ekta.



Visual Rock Stars present Paris, Paris, Paris - Lazy Dog Gallery, Paris, France. December 2005-January 2006.

Two man show with Flying Fortress, featuring canvases, screen prints, a large wall painting, and a movie of the performance that opened the "Backstage Pass" show.



Santas Ghetto - London, December 2005

Group show with Banksy, Jamie Hewlett, D*Face, Eine and others.



WORDLESS - Zurich, September 2005.

Group show with Flying Fortress, Gomes, WK Interact, Bo130, Microbo, Jeremy Fish, Will Barras, Mr. Jago and many more.



Visual Rock Stars present Backstage Pass - Outside Institute, August 2005.

Huge show with VRS partner in crime Flying Fortress, including collaborations on canvas, on the main gallery wall, and installation of a stage and 8foot high speaker boxes. Featured live permanent marker tattooing, photo shoots with models and a wet t-shirt competition. Show ended with a massive 30 minute "Rock Band" performance piece.



The Art of Sharpie - Reading Frenzy, Portland, Oregon. July 2005.

Exhibition of artworks created with Sharpie Permanent Markers. Also featuring Rodney Greenblat, Martin Ontiveros, Bwana Spoons and many more.



These Are A few Of Our Favourite Fiends - Outside Institute, London, June 2005.

Group show also featuring Banksy, D*Face, INSA, Adam Neate, Pete Fowler, Paul Insect and many more. Exhibited 43 small canvases, works on wood, and framed photographs, plus two large tentacle bean bags.



The Dilly - DreamBagsJaguarShoes. April 2005.

Group show also featuring Gomes, Mentary Brothers, BeeFree, NEW Studios, Ichi Bunny, Paris Hair, Pinky, and Kabe 243.



Finders Keepers 05 - Milan, Italy. March 2005.

Street Gallery featuring artists from all over Europe.



Urban Edge Show - Milan, Italy. March 2005.

Group show also featuring Doze Green, Alex One, Shepard Fairey, Nano4841, Kami, The London Police, Henry Chalfant, Ricky Powell, Ed Templeton, and many more.



DANG at DRAGON - ThisWayUpGallery, East London. January 2005

Interactive exhibition of the doodle zine, Dang, created by the Chimp and Kabe243.



Visual Rock Stars - Montana Gallery, Barcelona. August 2004

Joint show with Flying Fortress, including 14 joint canvases



Finders Keepers Pirate Invasion - Hinterconti, Hamburg, Germany. August 2004

Pirate-themed show with Finders Keepers Crew.



Finders Keepers 04 - Barcelona. July 2004

First FKC street gallery held outside of London, attended by over 35 artists from across Europe, including Miss Van, Jace, Freaklub, Flying Fortress, BO130, Microbo, The London Police etc



Finders Keepers present "LOVE" - Montana Gallery, Barcelona. July 2004

Gallery show with Finders Keepers Crew



Rainbow Powers Cubed - Compound Gallery, Portland, Oregon, USA. November 2003

Group show with Bwana Spoons (Portland Comic Book Artist of the Year 2003) and Shawn Wolfe.



Finders Keepers 03 - East London. November 2003

The third FKC show took place inside, with all contributions given away in a free raffle. This event also featured the first public airing of the movie "Drawn, Scrawled, Scribbled, Scratched"



Trick or Treat, Motherfucker - East London, October 2003

Exhibition of over 60 assorted art pieces (canvases, broken skateboards, 3-D models, etc) and two large murals, by Finders Keepers Crew, at DreamBagsJaguarShoes, Kingsland Road, E2.



Origins - Rocket Gallery, Tokyo. August 2003

Part of group show including Dave Kinsey, Andy Howell, Dalek, Maya Hayuk, and Bwana Spoons among others.



Finders Keepers 02 - East London. August 2003

Organised and exhibited (11 paintings) at a gallery set up in the street for one night only. All the artworks (by 25 different artists) were available for free to anyone who wanted to take them. Over 200 people visited the exhibition over the course of the 4 hours it was open. A documentary, "Drawn, Scrawled, Scribbled, Scratched" was made about this event.



Underskatement Film Festival - Juggler Gallery, London. June 2003

"So Sami called me and asked me to put an art show on in two weeks time" - Drawings and paintings created in a fortnight, as part of the Underskatement Film Festival.



Finders Keepers 01 - East London. June 2003

Organised and exhibited at a gallery set up in the street for one night only. All the artworks (by 15 + artists) were available for free to anyone who wanted to take them. Over 150 people visited the exhibition over the course of the 4 hours it was open.



Illegal Street Gallery - London. September 2001

20 paintings and two sculptural pieces hung in an alleyway in Clerkenwell. All pieces found new homes over a 24 hour period. A sell out show!!



UNCUT - Summer Skateboard Weekend. ICA, London, August 1997

Curated, and exhibited at, an exhibition of paintings, movies, photographs, and board and magazine design, as part of the ICA's series of UNCUT film weekends.





Dave the Chimp published work

BOOKS


Part Of Rebellion 2 - Dave the Chimp. Publikat. 2009.

ISBN: 978-3-939566-17-5

The second book in a new series by Christian Hundertmark, creator of the popular 'Art Of Rebellion' books. This is my first solo book, and focuses on the most important themes that run through my work by looking at some key projects from my career so far, from early comic strips, pop videos, and design work for skateboard companies, to the cute and communicative street work I am best known for.

128 pages, 162 images.



New Skateboard Graphics. Mark Batty Publishing. 2009.

ISBN

Two of my designs for Hessenmob skateboards, and one collaboration piece with Flying Fortress, plus small interview, feature in this beautiful hardback book of skateboard graphics from the most creative and highly-acclaimed companies around today.



GRAFUCK: Book 2. Grafuck. 2006.
ISBN-10: 0-9770963-1-9
Second issue of this popular collection of erotic art by illustrators, photographers, painters and designers. Also features the work of Audrey Kawasaki, Airside, Buff Monster, and Zip Design.



Business Cards 2 - More Ways Of Saying Hello. Laurence King. 2006.
A book about business card design, featuring two pages of the Chimps hand-printed cards. Also features Pete Fowler, Jon Burgerman, Neville Brody and David Choe.



The Art Of Rebellion 2. Publikat 2006.
After the success of the first edition of TAOR, Publikat commissioned a second, much larger volume. Features two pages of the Chimps solo work, two pages on the Visual Rock Stars show at the Outside Institute, two pages on the Halloween exhibition Chimp organised in 2005, and two pages on his former crew Finders Keepers.



Concrete to Canvas. Laurence King 2005.
Featured Artist in a book about art made by skateboarders. Also features Dalek, Ed Templeton, Gomes, Andy Jenkins, etc



MONSTAHHH! Spooky Graf and Illuz. Belio Press 2005.
Book about monsters and the role of "horror/fear" in our lives, featuring work from artists around the globe. Flock cover and glow in the dark ink - a thing of beauty!



Izastickup. Drago Arts & Communication 2005.
ISBN 88-88493-33-6
HUGE hardback book collecting sticker art from over 600 street artists worldwide.



Welcome to Colors ZOO. Colorszoo 2004.
ISBN 84-609-0285-4
A detailed look at graffiti around Europe.



Hollywood- The Remix. Wooster Collective, 2005.
HYPERLINK http://www.woostercollective.com www.woostercollective.com is the largest on-line site for street and graffiti artists in the world. Hollywood The Remix is about what Hollywood means to the artists selected for publication.



Wooster/Sherbert Magazine "Colouring Book". 2005.
A collection of Black and White illustration that came free with Sherbert Magazines "Kids" issue.



The Art of Rebellion. Publikat Verlag/Ginko Press 2003.
ISBN 3-980-7478-2-4
The first printed collection of work by the leading street artists from around the globe.



Chemistry. Laurence King, 2002
ISBN 1-85669-260-4
A collection of work by design agency Fold7, featuring illustration, graphics, and paintings by the Chimp.



Annual. Dazed and Confused, 2002.
ISBN 1-903399-50-5
Created large graffiti piece for the opening spread of Dazed's Christmas Annual.



Blower. Booth Clibborn, 2001.
ISBN 1-86154-219-4
Featured Artist. Burton Snowboards produced this huge collection of images from their past as the biggest name in snowboarding.



Zines. Booth Clibborn, 2001.
ISBN 1-86154-224-0
A collection of work by some of the leading names in the underground press.



Scrawl 2 - More Dirt. Booth Clibborn, 2001.
ISBN 1-86154-213-5
The follow up to the much acclaimed "Scrawl - Dirty Graphics and Strange Characters". Features four pages of street paintings by the Chimp.



Skateboarding, Space and the City. Iain Borden. Berg 2001.
ISBN 1-85973-493-6
Extensive essay on the way skateboarders use the city environment from an architectural point of view. Fanzine work shown.



ZINES



Dave the Chimp has published the zines:



DANG issues 1 to 6 - 2001 to present
CHECK MY CHOPS issues 1 to 5 - 1994 to 2001
SWITCH ON YOUR BRAIN
HEADBONE - a collection of drawings
RANDUMB SHIT 1 and 2
TRAP BAIT - free zine with Big Cheese Magazine
SOME COMIC STRIPS
RECYCLE YA BASTARDS
HOOT - a collection of drawings on the theme of owls



And has contributed cover art and content to the zines:



A.N.B.F. MOONSHINE by Bwana Spoons
BIONIC ARM - by 86 the Onions, LA based ad agency
CHARMING SUICIDE
FEAR AND LOATHING - leading punk rock publication
MATH MAGAZINE
THE DILLY
NANNA
PENCIL FIGHT
STINK
THE MOBERNISTS - Hessenmob skateboards home publication.



INTERVIEWS AND ARTICLES



MONSTER MAGAZINE. October 2008
Germanys main skateboard magazine. Three page interview, featuring my first show design for Vans.



BERLINER ZEITUNG. Saturday 18th August 2007
Interviewed for article about the Backjumps street mural initiative in Berlin.



THE STOOL PIGEON. December 2006
Double page article on the Chimps first pop video for the band Robots In Disguise.



MODART. Issue 9, August 2006
Four page feature of new work in Europes leading art/board sports publication.



NUMERO. Finland 2005
One page article/interview in Finlands only skateboard magazine.



JUICE. Germany 2004
Five page article/interview in Germany's leading Hip Hop magazine.



THE FACE. UK February 2004
Painting featured in their "What's Cool" guide.



THE FACE. UK June 2003
Featured in a one page article on the latest Levis campaign.



XLR8R. USA 2002
U.S. based music and culture magazine. One page showcase.



Lowdown Magazine. Germany, 2001
Two page article/interview.



DOCUMENTARIES



Backstage Pass - a Visual Rockumentary 2006.
30 minute documentary on the now legendary exhibition "Backstage Pass" by the Visual Rock Stars - Flying Fortress and Dave the Chimp.
Released by Hessenmob Entertainment, September 2006



Drawn, Scrawled, Scribbled, Scratched. 2003
20 minute film about the Chimps street art crew Finders Keepers and the Illegal Street Galleries they host



The Mobernists. 2003
45 minute documentary by Christian Roth, looking at the work and the influence of artists working within the skateboard industry. Also featuring Eli Morgan Gessner (Zoo York), Dalek, Don Pendelton, Michael Leon, and The London Police.



DIRECTORIAL CREDIT



“Mothership” – Led Zeppelin. 2007
60 second commercial for the Led Zeppelin platinum selling compilation “Mothership”. Ad used a mixture of archive live footage of the band, original green screen footage of actors, and 3-D animation, all treated to look like Russian propaganda poster art. This commercial was shown world wide



"The Sex Has Made Me Stupid" - Robots In Disguise. 2007
Second promo for RID, this time a porno movie made with robot marionettes, and a stop-motion animated opening sequence.
Released November 2007



"Spooky" - The Puppini Sisters. 2007
Scooby Doo/Hammer Horror movie style promo for this three piece vocal harmony girl group, signed to Universal. Features painting with moving eyes, three-headed monsters, and other lo-fi special effects, plus a band of dancing neon skeletons.
Released September 2007



"Crazy Covers 2" - Various Artists. 2007
On-line viral ad for Tom Middletons latest compilation of twisted cover versions.
Stop frame animation with a breakdancing monkey and dancing type



"Girl" - Robots In Disguise. 2006
Chimp's first pop promo, featuring giant puppet robots, and sets entirely constructed from cardboard. Features the actor/comedian Noel Fielding, from the award winning Mighty Boosh tv show



"Born In The UK" - Badly Drawn Boy. 2006
30 second tv commercial for the 2006 Badly Drawn Boy album "Born In The UK". Also featured 2-D animation by the Chimp.