DISRUPT the Fowler: Justin BUA
To put it simply, Justin BUA is a DISRUPTOR. BUA’s groundbreaking work seamlessly blends street culture with the fine arts, documenting the collective memories of HipHop culture. BUA reaches beyond the traditional canvas, applying his discipline to music videos, TV, film, animation, gaming, apparel, education, and more. BUA’s countless achievements are indicative of his ceaseless commitment to bridge his identity and culture to the fine arts world. BUA will share advice and anecdotes from his experiences of navigating the art industry as an artist of color. He will then offer a drawing technique workshop to help sharpen the skills of budding artists. Q&A to follow. Justin BUA is an award-winning artist, author, speaker, and entrepreneur. Groundbreaking in his field, he is internationally known for his best-selling collection of fine art posters—The DJ being one of the most popular prints of all time. Born in 1968 in NYC’s untamed Upper West Side, and raised between Manhattan and East Flatbush, Brooklyn, BUA was fascinated by the raw, visceral street life of the city. He attended the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Performing Arts, and complemented his formal education with street experience, creating graffiti and performing worldwide with breakdancing crews. BUA went on to the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, where he earned his B.F.A. degree. He taught figure drawing at the University of Southern California for 10 years. In June 2013, BUA became the first artist to launch an online school with ArtistWorks, enabling beginning and advanced students around the world to study his curriculum and interact one-on-one with him through video exchange. BUA exhibits throughout the United States and internationally—including in recent shows at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Pop International Gallery, New York. His energetic and vocal worldwide fan base ranges from former presidents, actors, musicians, professional athletes, and dancers, to street kids and art connoisseurs.
