-Ghost-
Cousin Frank, A.K.A. GHOST, was born in the Bronx in the mid 60’s. He turned to the world of graffiti writing on walls to release aggression and to survive. He took to the tunnels and quickly learned how to navigate them well and even thrived there. Among other writers he quickly gained a reputation and became known for his “don’t give a fuck attitude” and for his tags and throw-ups which were everywhere, especially on trains. He also became recognized for his unique style and color schemes, as he began to paint full size pieces with crazy undulating lines and a funky look (he calls it his Bugaloo style). Unlike other writers he rarely planned what he was going to create, taking chances with both what and where he was going to write.
Those familiar with graffiti history, call him one of the “die hards.” For his extreme attitude and relentless ambition to bomb trains – which he believes is the place where graffiti has the truest meaning. Because of this belief, and because Cousin Frank views his roots in graffiti as a matter of survival, he has never been comfortable with transferring what he did on the streets and trains onto canvas or into galleries. The development of his drawing style which bears the influence of his piecing style has allowed him to make a transition between both worlds. His black and white highly detailed pen and ink drawing style shares the same risky spontaneity of his pieces. Both possess the same distinctive undulating linear style with intricate patterning and fantasy dreamscape look. Here Cousin Frank also starts with no preconceived ideas, effecting surrealistic automatist drawing practices, as well as other surrealistic imagery. There is little room for error in his drawing technique. Just as there wasn’t in his bombing days. These constraints have been balanced out by the strange, almost playful humor of the artist’s characters, by his freaky sensibility, which he sums up as “burnt.”
Cousin Frank’s newer paintings fuse some of those anthropomorphic fantasy characters of his drawings with the vibrant colors that his pieces are known for. These works combine the in-your-face energy and exteriority of his throw ups, within the twisted fantastical interior workings of the artist unconscious.