New York Comedy Festival Presents THE ART OF COMEDY in Little Italy and at Carolines on Broadway, Beg. Today

The New York Comedy Festival presents, in association with Vandalog.com, Little Italy, and Montana Cans, announced today the addition of "The Art of Comedy," a series of events and art installations involving New York's most talented street artists that will take place this November. "The Art of Comedy" brings together acclaimed artists Ron English, Hanksy, and Gilf! who will showcase their respective humorous works of art in an effort to bring smiles to the faces of millions of New Yorkers.

There will be an "art crawl" debut event today, November 3 at 12 noon, with the unveiling of artist Hansky's portrait of comedian AZIZ ANSARI on the sidewall of Caffe Roma, at 385 Broome Street. The debuts will continue further up Mulberry Street at the following locations:

• At Mulberry & Grand, on the Mulberry side, a restaurant under construction will transformed into a hilarious sight gag featuring Jim Gaffigan - Hanksy
• At that same location, but on the Grand side, will be the canvas for a funny skewering of our political candidates – Gilf!
• Past Grand Street, further up on Mulberry, this artist will present 2 of her favorite works – Gilf!
• Umberto's Clam House, 132 Mulberry Street, will be home to another funny or "punny" image - Hanksy
• Diagonally across from Sambuca's Café on Mulberry between Canal and Hester Streets, the side of a building 40 feet high x 25 feet wide will be painted with a classic character from this iconic artist - Ron English

Like comedy, street art is about having fun, but it's also about engaging with public space. Curated by RJ Rushmore of Vandalog.com and Wayne Rada, "The Art of Comedy" is the NYCF's way to take the laughter out of the clubs and into the streets. This exhibition marks the first time that a comedy festival has teamed up with street artists for such exhibitions and events.

From November 7 through 11, the duration of the NYCF, work by English, Hanksy, and Gilf! will be on display inside of Carolines on Broadway (1626 Broadway), the legendary Times Square comedy venue owned by NYCF creator Caroline Hirsch. There will be an opportunity for press to view the installation on November 8 at 11:00 a.m.

In collaboration with Little Italy, Ron English, Hanksy and Gilf! will paint permanent murals on Mulberry Street between Canal Street and Broome Street between October 26 and November 3. There will be an opening tour of the walls for press and the public at noon on November 3. For his first mural in Manhattan in 25 years, Ron English, a master of both street art and pop surrealism, will be painting a wall over 40-feet tall with one of his classic characters. Using stencils that are sure to make passersby take a second look and have a laugh, Gilf! and Hanksy will be painting permanent and temporary murals. Gilf!'s murals will focus on the upcoming elections, and Hanksy's murals will depict NYCF performers. With these murals so close to one another, there will be a new hub for muralism in New York City.

"We're always looking for new and creative ways in which humor is represented in art," says Hirsch. "These talented artists add a really unique element to this year's festival, literally taking comedy to the streets."

Says Rushmore: "I could not be more excited to be working with such a well-established festival to bring more art onto the walls of New York City. We have some really talented artists, and The Art of Comedy will give New Yorkers thousands of square feet of new public murals, as well as hopefully expose a new audience to just how fun and powerful street art can be."

And as pre-New York Comedy Festival events Ron English, Gilf! and Hanksy all have solo shows in New York City opening November 1st. English's show, Crucial Fiction, opens from 6-9pm at Opera Gallery NYC (115 Spring St) and runs through November 29th. Gilf! will be showing at Galerie Swanström (136 Sullivan Street, 3rd Floor) opening from 5-9pm. Hanksy's show, Young Puns 2 - Now With More Pun, opens at Krause Gallery (149 Orchard Street) from 6-9pm and runs through November 28th.

Paint for The Art of Comedy is provided by Montana Cans.

The 2012 NYCF is presented in association with COMEDY CENTRAL. Now in its ninth year, Carolines on Broadway produce the festival. Sponsors are Citi, Klondike ®, JetBlue, Axe Hair®, Toyota and SVEDKA Vodka. The media sponsors are New York Post, Timeout New York, Variety, and the Village Voice.

ABOUT THE NEW YORK COMEDY FESTIVAL:
Now in its ninth year, Carolines on Broadway produce the New York Comedy Festival in association with COMEDY CENTRAL. The festival has featured the country's top comedians, including Louis C.K., Bill Maher, Ricky Gervais, Kathy Griffin, Dane Cook, Sarah Silverman, AZIZ ANSARI, Wanda Sykes, and Joel McHale, to name a few. In 2007, the festival launched the "Stand-Up for Heroes" event to benefit The Bob Woodruff Foundation, which has featured performances by Robin Williams, Jon Stewart, Jerry Seinfeld, Lewis Black, Ricky Gervais, Conan O'Brien, and Bruce Springsteen.

ABOUT RON ENGLISH:
One of the most prolific and recognizable artists alive today, Ron English has bombed the global landscape with unforgettable images, on the street, in museums, in movies, books and television. America's Premier Pop Iconoclast, English coined the term POPaganda to describe his signature mash-up of high and low cultural touchstones, from superhero mythology to totems of art history, populated with his vast and constantly growing arsenal of original characters, including MC Supersized, the obese fast-food mascot featured in the hit movie "Supersize Me," and Abraham Obama, the fusion of America's 16th and 44th Presidents, an image widely discussed in the media as directly impacting the 2008 election.

ABOUT HANKSY:
New York City based artist Hanksy uses the streets as his canvas, employing clever puns and turns of phrases to delight fans and observant passersby. After moving to New York in 2010 and wanting to contribute to the city's ever-growing street art movement but determined to maintain a light-hearted approach, Hanksy began satirizing British street art legend Banksy by mashing up his most famous works with references from Tom Hanks films. His clever remixes delighted New Yorkers, turning Hanksy into a social media phenomenon. Hanksy's new work broadens his satirical scope, lampooning pop culture icons like Bruce Willis and Ryan Gosling, while staying true to his punny origins. With Hanksy on the streets, no celebrity is safe.

ABOUT GILF!:
At once powerful and playful, the street artist Gilf! is focused on creating positive change through her work. Motivated by the idea of inspiring people who she will never meet, her goal is to create art that provokes thoughtfulness and motivates a change of the zeitgeist. With her indoor work a portion of each sale is donated to a charity specific to that image, when applicable, which allows the collector to take an active approach to the world around us.

ABOUT RJ RUSHMORE AND VANDALOG:
RJ Rushmore is the 21-year-old founder of Vandalog.com. Rushmore created Vandalog in 2008, and grown the site to become one of the most-read street art blogs worldwide, and the top street art blog as ranked by Google. He has been widely quoted in publications including The Economist, The New York Times, L'Uomo Vogue, CNN.com, Juxtapoz.com, and Complex.com.

ABOUT MONTANA CANS:
Montana is an art product company that has been influencing the art and street art scene for many years. Montana Team and founders continue to be visible, active members of the art and street art scene. Montana products are unparalleled in quality, assortment and variety.