Also Known As

If you didn't know there has been this guy who's mad at me and he's been destroying my walls and it had me stressed. But I am so happy now, and I'll tell you why. I dropped my Mom off at the dentist and was walking around the mall when I noticed some spraypaint art on the inside of a store so I asked the girl who worked there if she knew who did it. She told me then asked me if I spraypainted. I said yeah, and she said "do you know Jon Smith* he goes by Phais". I couldn't believe it she told me the name of the guy who has been bugging me for the last few weeks. She might as well have given me his head on a platter. I bet Constable Sean Travis would love that piece of information. Not that I would want him to go to jail, I just want him off my back and for him to stop destroying my stuff. The lord gives good gifts, who can stand against him? No one! No matter who you are or how long you've been completely untouchable God can find you and deliver you into the hands of your enemy. It's comforting and scary. All the discouragement that I've experienced and then Jesus comes and lifts my burden. When I thought I was helpless, when I thought all I could do was lay down and let him have what I've worked for - God has empowered me, he has laid up the wealth of the wicked for the righteous. If God is with you no one can stand against you. So get out there and stand with God!

*Jon Smith is not acctually his name

King Ruse

I had this idea to paint something that was very technically difficult, a portrait of a famous London citizen. I thought "it'll be hard to pull off but, if God has given me the vision he'll provide a way to pull it off". I was downtown painting it today and it came out so tight, much better than I could have done without God's help. Most of the time I can't pull off that on a piece of paper let alone a wall. But you can see it so you be the judge.




I was filling up the London wall and I was approaching the end of the wall where a Ruse throwup was. I remembered how much flack I got the last time I painted over someones bomb but I also thought about what I've promised the owner. Just then, who should walk up but Ruse he said he was mad cuz Phais crossed me out and he told me I could paint over his bomb and he wouldn't care. I told him that the owner wants the alley looking good and that your stuff looks good to me but to the owner it looks like poop. I told him that if he wants to put something that looks good at the end of the alley he's welcome to come paint with me and I left him my email address. I finish up and got on the bus to go back home and there's Mark "the Mechanic" a guy who I went to school with and he asks me about what I've been doing I tell him I've been painting and he mentions Ruse cuz he's his friend. He tells me about some graff pit in London and that he'll take me and Ruse there sometime.

Mainstreet

I got a call from the owner of the london mural and he wants his wall finished. But he's also been talking to Jenette McDonald who works for mainstreet in london. Mainstreet is a downtown group of business owners interested in making the core of London look better. Anyways he says she's got a pile of walls and a wad of cash set aside for young painters such as myself, paying for thier supplies and time. I just don't want to sell out and sacrifice my message. I've also talked with a few other people who want me to paint varrious things for them. Like this one urban clothing store is opening up and he wants me to do the inside of the store. But really, I don't care about these big opportunities I just want a positive message to deliver to the world. God has been more than faithful in providing walls I hope he gives me the messages for these walls too.

Sketches 11

Reuel

I entered this one in a battle on the day star tribe forum

Battle

B36

B36

I got Arrested

Viceral and I went out painting and were drawing on the permission wall. When I noticed two police officers running toward us. Immediately I waved at them hoping to show them that we were happy to see them and not vandals. But they knocked the spraypaint cans out of our hands and put us in cuffs. We said that we were doing this legally they told us that we were being put under arrest for suspicion of property destruction (or something like that). We tried to explain it to the cops that it as all legit but they searched us and kept us in cuffs. People were staring at us so I waved at them and they stopped staring. I was having a fun time because I knew it was a mistake and I thougt it was just funny. Viceral was sweating and just keeping completely silent he wasn't lauging I guess he didn't share the same hilarious outlook on the situation. I was cracking up cuz I just couldn't believe I was under arrest. It was after dark so no one was in the building to varify our legitamacy. They asked for the name and number of the owner I only had his work number so I gave that to the cops. The police officer called the guys work but, of course no one of that name was registerd as an employee. I started laughing so hard and Viceral's got this look of terror on his face like "ohhh... **** I'm going back to jail and they're gonna rough us up when they look at my record and who i was affiliated with and find out about my past". They asked us for our names and called the police headquarters to look up our records... Viceral is not looking happy and BAM! the one cop says to the other "thier both six-one-owe, no record". They let us out of the cuffs and left. You see Viceral hasn't had the best past but, a few years ago he left all that behind him and gave his life to the Lord. As it turns out past records and stuff were mostly when he was under sixteen and the other stuff was dropped on a technacality and all the subseqent charges that followed. And as for the affiliation's He thinks that the last time he talked to the cops he explained it to them how it was now and they changed the files around. He doesn't have a record anymore!

So, we keep painting and up pulls this patty wagon and an officer steps out. And I say "not AGAIN!" the cop laughs and says "no, I herd what happened I'm constable Sean Travis I'm in charge of the graffiti unit." He talked to us about the London graffiti scene, where the legals were, what the city's plans are, who's not writing anymore cuz they got arrested etc... and gave me his card that if there was any information I'd like to pass on just to give him a call.

Jeff the Satanist

A month ago I was walking in the alley's in downtown and I had found some upside down crosses and 666 spraypainted around and it was kinda sad. A few weeks ago My Dad stopped by one of my walls and said that someone had painted some satanic stuff on my wall, I immediately thought of the upside down crosses. That was kinda upsetting so, I talked with Isaac about it and he said that I will find out that this person is a broken person and not hardened in his ways. He said that this is happening for a reason and that God has ordained our steps (mine and his) and it's part of God's plan. So, I went to check out the wall and it wasn't the guy who I thought it was. I thought about Isaac's "prophesy" and what it ment. Would I meet this guy? will I just have an instict that this guy isn't hardened? or was he just saying it so I wouldn't be angry?

I was fixing up my alley the other day working on a fish hook and some other stuff and I took some time to look through the alley at the diferent artwork. I was admiring the artistic skill of one piece. When two guys came out of the building that I was staring at. And they started talking to me and the one guy says to the other "you can tell which ones I did eh?... a big **** inverted" (upside down cross). So I told him that I'd been thinking about his artwork recently and the origin of the inveted cross. How Peter said he was not worthy enough to be martred in the same way christ was. I asked him what he believed in. He said He was a satanist and he was going to hell. I told him it doesn't have to be that way. He said being evil is more fun, I said it's more fun but only for a time(heb11:25). He said that God is too forgiving and that he could never forgive like He does. I could tell he was holding onto something that he just couldn't forgive. Behind his rough exterior he was so vulnerable - like an innocent child. He didn't feel worthy enough to be saved because no one is worhty enough to be saved. God is forgiving and I wouldn't have it any other way because we all need alot of forgiveness.

Sketches 10

Viceral

Jesus

Diamond

"Battle" on my skateboard

DA

Hello, My name is Battle Three Six and I'm a recovering discourage-a-holic. It's been one month and sixteen days scince my last confession. The guys who were looking for for me got me a little shaken at first, I'll admit it. Which is usually not like me cuz I've had my life threatened alot before (just not scince I left the homeless shelter). So a few guys wanting to paint over my stuff isn't a big deal. But I was discouraged again last week. I tried to fight it! but... I felt it for maybe an hour or two. I even thought about hanging it up after a couple more walls. I woke up in the morning and I drew this picture and I felt better about it. In fact I was happy about it by the afternoon and I was psyched to just keep painting. A friend told me the story of David and Saul and no matter what Saul tried he couldn't stop David cuz he was anointed by God. You know, I've never really had many enemies so some of the psalms I never really understood thier great significance - like these ones but now I'm lovin' it.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Psalm 23:5

See how my enemies have increased and how fiercely they hate me! Guard my life and rescue me; let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you. Psalm 25:19-20

The LORD is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident. psalm 27:1-3

...Thanks for letting me share.

Devotion

There is annother contest at Gospel Graffiti this month to draw the word devotion. I had this idea of using the "o" and "t" like a clock and cross kind of saying like devotion is time with God maybe reading your bible. So I drew a quick sketch (top left) it looked really weak and so I scraped it.




I drew annother one this time I was praying and thinking about God while I drew it and I took a little more time. I liked it and all but it was kinda simple and on the last contest I got dissed by some guy for my sketch (he said he could do better with his eyes closed). I didn't feel like it was good enough to enter so I decided to try again.



The next one had a few more extras to make it look cool so I sent it off to the contest. Then I was looking through some other guys online blackbook and I saw his devotion sketch. It was so good I felt that mine still wasn't good enough and that if I wanted to really show support for Gospel Graffiti and make thier contests look a little better I should really spend some time on it.



And that's what I did, I spent alot of time on an intricate sketch. While I was drawing I thought about what devotion really is and I eventually came up with this. Devotion is not doing something for show but the sacrifice no one sees.

Meeting a "king" of London

Awhile ago I met with a building owner to see if I could paint his alley he didn't like my stuff but he said I should give him a call later. Well, I got a good idea for the wall one that I think he'd like so I gave him a call and we met a couple of days ago. I showed him my sketch he liked it and gave me some money to help pay for the paint. I've buffed (painted it all one colour) the wall and I started working on it yesterday. I was painting in the alley and met a few nice people. One of which was RUSE he's probibly responcible for a quarter of all the vandalism in London, his stuff is all over the place. He told me that a few guys are looking for me cuz thier not happy with me painting over thier stuff. I told him I ment no disrespect and that I'm painting this alley so it was nothing personal. He said that they'd probibly understand because I'm not just buffing thier stuff - he seemed nice. The wall is coming off so nice right now. It's really beautiful, I hope those guys who are looking for me don't destroy it .