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Inspiring interview with a great feel for Prefab77 and the faces behind the art.

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RESEARCH & ANALYSIS

BRAND HISTORY - THE STORY

“We begin to work as designers in Newcastle. We have worked globally and spent time in New York and California. The main real buzz came whilst living on Elizabeth and Houston in NY ’97-2002 when street art started making a cheeky appearance in the doorways and walls of the city at the end of the millennia. These were subsequently ripped down, tagged over and replaced in an endless game of creating public beauty fit for a vibrant city. This had us hooked. Our first serious show sold out was in 2006.”

Brand history confusion in relation to the people behind Prefab77 - website says ‘the gentle young giant’ whereas Facebook refers to a collective?

BRAND VALUES

“We are focusing a lot on creating beautiful portrait pieces, both on canvas and large overpowering walls. Throughout the ages portraits are used to reflect the subject but also the time period that the subject inhabits, with secret messages, religious affiliations and iconography woven into the piece. We want to take this forward and use the main figurative element reflects these messages into a powerful piece”

Anti-establishment, romantic, rebellious, cheeky, beautiful, musical influences, fashion, politics 

“Desire to avoid boredom.”

MISSION PROMISE

Art that is beautiful, inspired by music, politics and the idea of being anti-establishment. 

Power to the people

Conceptual imagery

Makes you ask questions & makes you think

Down to earth, relatable feel

The opposite of pretentious 

Street Art & Graffiti Blog. 2018. Interview with Prefab77 - Street Art & Graffiti Blog. [ONLINE] Available at: http://streetartandgraffiti.com/blog/2015/12/25/interview-with-prefab77-2/. [Accessed 28 January 2018].

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4 C’S OF DIGITAL CONTENT

CREATING

Using social media outlets such as Facebook and Instagram, Prefab77 shares their artwork in order to promote themselves. In order to further enhance their online presence, they could possibly create accounts on Twitter and YouTube to share behind the scenes footage of how the pieces are created and the inspiration behind the work.

CULTURE

Taking inspiration from a variety of different cultural influences, Prefab77 is current. Putting a satirical twist on traditional political figures, such as the ‘Winkin Churchill,’ demonstrates how the artists are modern and sticking with the times. Drawing on subcultures like Punk, their work with Doctor Martens shows their distinct style. In order to attract a wider audience, Prefab77 could use online Instagram insights to see who their typical followers are. Their social media posts could follow a more specific style through the use of graphic design style and typography.

CURATING

With over 15k followers on Instagram alone, Prefab77 has curated a broad following and fan base. In order to attract more people, they could promote their artwork through advertising on social media platforms. In terms of art curation, their work is visually appealing and beautiful but a lot of it has been done before so producing more original content would further help develop them as a brand.

CONNECTION

To connect more with consumers, Prefab77 could again enhance their social media presence. Their anti-establishment attitude would be attractive and interesting to most millennials, so by reaching out to them through hashtags and descriptive language would create a better connection with consumers.

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THE 7 PS OF MARKETING

PRODUCT

Using an array of different materials such as spray paint, acrylic, inks, varnish and wheatepaste, Prefab77 creates collaged and graffiti style artwork/street art that often makes you think.

PRICE

Ranging from £30 to £200, the artwork is priced according to the style and size of the piece. Most expensive and also popular, the ‘Winkin Churchill’ stands at £210.

PLACE

The artwork can be purchased at www.prefab77.co.uk and also other artwork websites selling niche street art and graffiti style pieces.

PROMOTION

They promote themselves on Facebook and Instagram, sharing their work and giving followers an opportunity to comment and buy pieces.

PEOPLE

The faces behind Prefab77 are Peter Manning and Marc Ross, however on the website the frontman is called the ‘Gentle Young Giant,’ an almost anonymous figure, adding a sense of mystery to the brand.

PROCESSES

Using mixed media and collage, the artists use different materials and layering to produce unique pieces that are influenced by current events, politics, music and fashion.

PHYSICAL EVIDENCE

Displaying work all over the North East, pieces can be found in Newcastle’s Hoult’s Yard, the Doctor Martens store, the Ousborne area and even in some letting agencies.

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PREFAB77

“Prefab77 is an artist who has origins in the north of England, California and New York.

Creating, hard edged and stripped down artwork that is often political, sometimes anti-establishment, but always beautiful he weaves small pieces of modern popular culture, pure rock and rebellion reflecting on the passing of our familiar institutions, shadowy establishment on the take and take small bites out of the underbelly of our modern culture that gets more bizarre with each passing day.

It is a dark word of money, fashion, music and politics woven into a luxurious mixture of acrylic, spraypaint, wheatpaste and varnish. He is the Gentle Young Giant.”

From http://www.prefab77.co.uk/about

WHAT DO I THINK?

At first glance, PREFAB77 is interesting and intriguing. Using political figures like Winston Churchill, Queen Elizabeth and Abraham Lincoln, the Gentle Young Giant creates artwork that is visually appealing and also satirical. I really like how he has used a mixture of both collage and mixed media to create inspiring pieces that draw on current events and pop culture.

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#iamallwoman campaign x barbie ferreira 

Editorial Photography inspiration for one of the stories.

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Words that spring to mind when I think of BODY IMAGE in 2017 / playing with graphic poster design / typography

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CURVE MODEL DIANA VERAS

Words I associate with her & her ethos on body positivity and self love

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MOODBOARD 3

Inspired by Petra Collins’ photography & how I feel she captures women/girls. The warm lighting and grainy filter is welcoming and childish.

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MEET THE BODY POSITIVE INSTAGRAM GIRL GANG

DOUNIA: teenager, curve model, activist & recording artist

INSTAGRAM 

MINA HILL: teenager, influencer, activist

INSTAGRAM

LULU B: signed to Wilhelmina NYC Models, activist, social media influencer 

INSTAGRAM

JORDYN WOODS: signed to Wilhelmina NYC Models

INSTAGRAM

DIANA VERAS: Signed to MILK Models, social media influencer, activist

INSTAGRAM

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(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLbsnGDgf3U)

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(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oqF60fvosQ)

BODY IMAGE RESEARCH BARBIE FERREIRA FOR STYLELIKEU 

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KOREA’S FIRST PLUS SIZE MODEL FEATURED IN ELLE

Kim Gee Yang is the first plus size Korean model featured in Elle Magazine. Attempting to fight the strict ‘fat shaming’ stereotypes in Korea, Yang is taking a stand against society’s conventional beauty standards.

Although in the US Yang would actually be classed as too thin to be a plus size model, it’s still a step in the right direction as in Korea she can’t even shop for clothes her size, never mind be seen as a model.

References:

Public Radio International. 2017. In the US, I'm too skinny to be a plus size model. In Korea, I'm a fat woman. | Public Radio International. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-12-30/us-im-too-skinny-be-plus-size-model-korea-im-fat-woman.

YouTube. 2017. Kim Gee Yang is Korea’s first plus size model to be featured in ELLE - YouTube. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=332QUMj7mKM.

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WATCH THIS SPACE: BARBIE FERREIRA

Talking about plus-size models is always a controversial topic. Even in 2017 people still get squeamish at the mention of plus or curve modelling.  But at a time where the body positivity movement is so prevalent, it’s just something that must be addressed.

At just 19 years old, curve model Barbie Ferreira has over 400,000 Instagram followers, done campaigns with both American Apparel and Mango and has a large fan base of young women all over the world. What makes Ferreira so unique is her story of discovery. Frustrated with seeing the conventional body type all over billboards and fashion magazines, she took photographs of herself and sent them to American Apparel in the hopes of attempting to change their outlook. The Queens-born star was shortly picked up by American Apparel and then signed to Wilhelmina Models as their newest curve model.

What makes the doe-eyed beauty stand out amongst others is her constant advocacy for self love and body positivity. Making sure all of her photos are unretouched, she sets an example for young girls all around the globe - using her social media platforms to speak out about social injustice and issues like feminism and the Black Lives Matter movement. Standing up to the ‘beach body ready’ stereotype, Ferreira and the young creatives she surrounds herself with are part of a generation who encourage loving yourself instead of changing yourself. Her unfiltered, vivacious personality and determination to educate millenials is inspiring.

Speaking to ID Magazine, she says: “Those 11 year old girls who have big dreams can find an ad with a thick girl who has a flawed body and know they CAN do it. Body rolls and all. I just hope those little girls can feel beautiful and worthy.”