The RGB Lounge is pleased to present Stef Sola • Out of Darkness-- a solo exhibition of Chicago based graffiti artist Stef Skills. Stef is one of the most established female graffiti artists in the Chicago scene today and in this, her very first solo show, she features new works in a series that interprets the graffiti experience in an indoor setting, while exploring the context of gender through figurative outlines and aerosol tags. The divinity of the creative process is represented by using symbols of sacred geometry and the goddess emerging from her primordial state. Graffiti often executed in the darkness lights up urban landscapes, nurturing areas of neglect and decay with handwritten signs of life, hence Out of Darkeness. This process is reflected using acrylic and aerosol on wood and canvas.
Stef Skills was born in 1971 in Brunswick, Maine. Her mother is of Costa Rican descent and her father a U.S. Navy pilot. The experience of moving frequently, a fundamental requirement of a military family, coupled with growing up in a household of boys (four brothers) seasoned Stef for her eventual involvement in the typically male dominated arena of graffiti and urban art. The re-acclimation to new surroundings and social circumstance lent her ample opportunity to develop her art and letter styles, while impressing new teachers with her impeccable handwriting. After establishing roots in Florida, she was awarded a summer residency at Parsons School in New York City, which left her longing for big city life. She relocated to Chicago in 1990 and quickly infiltrated the boy's club of the Chicago graffiti scene, becoming a prolific member of the Hash Crew. She later established all female crews with ONI29 and ESA.
In 1995 she enrolled at Columbia College and studied multi-media art and sound egineering. She has been a curator and exhibitor in several international showcases and is currently an administrator of several high caliber mural productions, as well as, art instructor to children of all ages. Stef has recently embraced her brother crews XMEN and K.A.O.S., inc., and is a mother of two boys.
Opening reception- Thursday • July 21 • 7 to 11pm at the RGB Lounge • 1420 N Milwaukee Ave. • Chicago, Il • 60622. the RGB Lounge is a gallery/event space, design/production house and artist's cooperative. Hours are 12 pm to 8 pm, Monday through Saturday.
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