Frank Castle reports back from the Sky’s the Limit show…

Gallery shows aren’t usually my kind of thing, particularly ones in Notting Hill, but I had the night off work and heard that three of the more interesting artists blessing the capital’s halls of fame with their work were having an opening…so, beer in hand, I headed down to see what they had to offer. 

It was pissing with rain when I reached Westbourne Park tube and a magnificent rainbow dominated the west London skyline - which is funny, because it was almost a pre-cursor to the beauty of some of the work I was to witness just a few minutes later. 

The 188 Gallery is located on Westbourne Grove, and they signed up InkFetish, Bonzai and Spanish export Rabodiga, to paint some pieces for a show called The Sky’s The Limit. It was buzzing by the time I got there (’late as usual, but I show up’), the crowd was a mix of the usual suspects, clients, friends of the artists, and a couple of naughty writers as well.  

On to the work - if you’re not familiar with any of the names mentioned above, then you should be. All three are highly-skilled in their chosen areas of painting: Bonzai drops some futuristic mechanical/organic-type stuff. InkFet paints the kind of characters I wish I could paint - slightly dark, offbeat in a way, almost anime-esque, but all his own. And Rabodiga’s women are the kind that most men want to marry, but they’d be eaten alive… modern-day mermaids.

All the paintings were top notch, and I’m sure they’ll sell most if not all of them - the kind of thing that has mass appeal without comprimising the artist’s integrity and personal style. 

As well as canvasses, the artists painted the walls of the gallery - it looked great - a particular fave was Rabodiga’s Michael Jackson quote, and InkFet’s excellent girl with a butterfly. 

Ok, so it’s not graffiti in the traditional sense but who cares? Art is art and the work on display spoke for itself. 

A top notch show - I think I’ll be going to a few more of these things in the future!

Words/Images: Frank Castle

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