4 superstars of American street art in episode 501 of The Simpsons

This Sunday night, March 4, the 501st episode of The Simpsons will feature four superstars of American street art: Kenny Scharf, Ron English, Shepard Fairey, and Robbie Conal.

Kenny Scharf came up in the East Village art scene in the 1980's and covered the walls at last year's amazing "Art in the Streets" show in L.A.; Ron English hacks popular brand images (think "Super Size Me" posters and 2008's groovy "Abraham Obama"), and favors billboards; Shepard Fairey is...well, Shepard Fairey; and Robbie Conal is the genre's outlaw godfather — a whip-smart, wisecracking political satirist who's been wheat-pasting posters of white-collar bad guys (remember CONTRA DICTION and Cheney as the Energizer bunny?) since before most of today's street artists were zygotes.

Conal says: "I consider it one of the highest honors in the land to be 'Simpsonized.' To me it's the American equivalent of being knighted by the Queen of England.”

The episode, titled "Exit Through the Kwik-E Mart" (get it?) runs at 8PM ET/PT on FOX. The four artists will be guest-voicing themselves.

Previously:

Gritty guerrilla poster artist Robbie Conal's new book features... cute animals!?

Shepard Fairey pleads guilty over "Hope" court case

• [Brainspore]

  Conal is a great guy. He was one of the few prominent street artists who actually got back to me when I was trying to find subjects to interview for my Masters’ thesis.

• [Bender]

  I bet they show Shepard Fairey back in his hotel room watching skinemax while the guys he hired are out pasting up his work.

  edit- Even better, the guys he hires are Bart and Milhouse.

• [hypersomniac]

  Will be the first time I’ve watched The Simpsons in years. Just watched the David Choe doc ‘Dirty Hands’ which I found more entertaining than ‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’.

  • [MrEricSir]

    Will be the first time I’ve watched The Simpsons in years.

    Keep your expectations low and your beer glass full, and you might be able to power through it.

  • [musesum]

    Wow. David Choe, I just watched ‘Dirty Hands’ based on your post. Particularly like the “finished” piece discussion with Sean Parker at Facebook – the $200M finished piece. 

• [Guest]

  I happened on Conal’s crews slapping up posters in the middle of the night in  Los Angeles more than a few times.  I always loved seeing them, or just seeing the posters show up in various places. They were always dead-on and did an amazing job encapsulating current issues.  They’re a strong part of my 80′s L.A. iconography. Long may you wave, Mr. Conal!

• [emilydickinsonridesabmx]

  I was never a fan of Kenny Scharf’s art until about two years ago. There is a wall in Manhattan, on Houston St. just east of Broadway, that many famous/infamous graf artists have painted over the years. It’s huge, it runs the entire block. The city asked Scharf to paint it. It’s on my way to work, so for a few days I had the opportunity to watch him paint. I was really impressed. He did the whole mural with spray cans and a little cherry picker. The finished product is great, but watching him put it together can by can was a unique process to watch. Ever since seeing this piece get created, I’ve been a Kenny Scharf fan.

  Here’s a link to him painting the Houston St. mural: http://www.freshnessmag.com/2010/11/29/kenny-scharf-mural-on-houston-street-and-bowery-street/

• [AwesomeRobot]

  Sell outs.

  • [Colin Berry]

    Sorry, AR,  but how is Robbie Conal a sellout? He teaches art, paints, and occasionally shows his works in galleries or on the street. Would you prefer he starve to death? 

    • [Pedantic Douchebag]

      Here, borrow my comb.

    • [AwesomeRobot]

      Ah no worries, I was just being facetious. 

• [Wayne Dyer]

  Conal’s “Men With No Lips” still resonates with me.

• [hassan-i-sabbah]

  Ah c’mon Matt the last time I spoke to Banksy he was very gracious, said you were a “Swell Fellow” and that he “Really respected the work that you do, and the debt of gratitude owed to you by the street art community is immeasurable.” Don’t be such a churl, and put memories of “that weekend ” aside.