SWISSTED Exhibition Opening & Book Party at L'Apicio Set for 7/23

On Tuesday, July 23, 2013, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM, Fourth Arts Block (FABnyc), Epicurean Group, and McNally Jackson Books will host a reception and book party at L'Apicio to celebrate an outdoor installation of designs from Mike Joyce's book SWISSTED: Vintage Rock Posters Remixed and Reimagined. The reception will include light snacks from L'Apicio and a selection of specialty cocktails for $5 to benefit the public art project. Books will be available from McNally Jackson; all book purchases will include a free specialty cocktail. Joyce will be onsite for book signing and mingling.

The latest project in FABnyc's rotating Public Art program, SWISSTED features typographic style posters that recreate vintage punk, hardcore, new wave, and indie rock flyers. Posters have been printed on vinyl and installed in the windows of L'Apicio; the exhibit will be on display through Fall 2013. This is the second exhibit at L'Apicio - part of Artist Alley, FABnyc's ongoing series of murals and art installations around Extra Place, the storied alley behind CBGB.

Joyce grew up listening to and attending punk rock and hardcore shows in the mid-to-late 1980s. Inspired by the raw, anti-art flyers for these shows, Joyce used his graphic design education under the great Swiss modernist, Fred Troller, to explore his long-time interest in punk and hardcore aesthetic. These experiments lead him to develop the first SWISSTEDbook and the current SWISSTED exhibition at L'Apicio.

SWISSTED combines and juxtaposes two of Joyce's aesthetic approaches. As Joyce clarifies, "while both punk and Swiss modernism share the same stripped down and minimal approach, their content and message were mostly polar opposites." - Mike Joyce's Posters: Where Punk Meets Swiss Design, Huffington Post

As a New York City-based graphic designer, Joyce has designed albums for prominent artists like Iggy Pop, Morphine, Lemonheads, Natalie Merchant, Cursive, New York Dolls and Aretha Franklin, and his work has been featured in more than 75 publications includingRolling Stone, Village Voice, Huffington Post, and New York Magazine.

SWISSTED is the latest in a series of temporary art installations by FABnyc's Public Art program, directed by curator Keith Schweitzer. FABnyc seeks to reinvigorate underutilized spaces through public art and community partnerships, featuring works mounted in atypical locations throughout the Lower East Side, including the Artist Alley series at L'Apicio. This exhibit is funded by Epicurean Group. FABnyc's Public Art Program is also supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Epicurean Group, established in 2007, is a team of creatives and entrepreneurs, that works together to develop, produce and operate a portfolio of world-class restaurants, events and catering services including dell'anima, L'Artusi, Anfora, and L'Apicio and Epicurean Events. With a strong passion for the arts and community, Epicurean Group teamed up with FABnyc to establish Artist Alley, a rotating outdoor installment of local artwork.