Chuck Sperry

The Free University of San Francisco aims to make the highest level of education available, completely free, to any individual who wants it, regardless of color, creed, age, gender, nationality, religion or immigration status—a university free of money, taught for free. The only requirement for membership is a desire to teach and/or a desire to learn.

Jon-Paul Bail & Chuck Sperry, “Occupy Art,”  Free University Art School Event

Every Sunday, February 5, 2012 through March 4, 2012 – 2:30PM to 5PM

Viracocha

998 Valencia Street (at 21st Street)

San Francisco, CA

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Course Description:

The Free University Art School is very proud to present Jon-Paul Bail prolific Bay Area artist who uses the streets of the world as his canvas. Since last year’s brilliant presentation – street action / wheat paste demonstration – at the Free University, Jon-Paul Bail has been extremely active making a series of “Hella Occupy” posters for the Occupy movement across the length and breadth of California. Based in the East Bay, “JP” set up a print station on site at Oscar Grant Plaza and the heart of the Occupy Oakland movement in the first days people gathered there. He began producing thousands of posters which have become iconographic to this historical event. As the movement spread and touched similar gatherings and actions across California, “JP” travelled and set up his mobile propaganda studio, printing at Occupy Oakland, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and Occupy San Francisco. Jon-Paul discusses his motivations, methods and will bring our art class to a live on-site, print-making session at the Occupy Education action scheduled for March 1st – location to be disclosed later. Chuck Sperry and Jon-Paul Bail are collaborating on a poster design which will be printed in quantity in the class, and later printed live at the Occupy Education demonstration scheduled for March 1, 2012.

Come early / limited room!

Jon-Paul Bail / Chuck Sperry Collaboration in process:

Here is a sampling of posters Jon-Paul is presenting to the class – which he designed, printed and collaborated on:

Bio:

Jon-Paul Bail (JP) founded Political Gridlock in 1991 and has been posting street art ever since.  JP’s work is branded by strong cohesive messages and relevant imagery, putting a funny and sometimes shocking spin on popular culture.  His work reference issues that are based in local, national and global communities.  His first company was called Reagan Wear and was co-founded with Ron Donovan from The Firehouse Kustom Rockart Company.  Having studied silk-screening with Malaquias Montoya at California College of the Arts from 1986 – 1989, JP graduated from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1991.  His poster titled Inhail to the Chief , which depicts Barrack Obama smoking a blunt, was featured in rap artist E-40′s music video featuring Dem Boyz in 2010.  He has done print work for Winston Smith and Emory Douglas and has shown work in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Rome, Italy.  JP’s art is in the collections of the Legion of Honor, Oakland Museum, and Center for the Study of Political Graphics and has been published in four political art books (Yo! What Happened to Peace, Reproduce and Revolt and two editions of Paper Politics).