Every year on the eighth of March International Women’s Day is celebrated the world over. It celebrates womanhood and pays tribute to the indomitable spirit of women across the globe. This day is set for recognising and celebrating the achievements of women, and in todays interview we speak to super talented female street artist BK Foxx, whose been catching international attentions for her huge impressive murals and attention to detail. With this much talent we wanted to find out more  …

GraffitiStreet

Tell us how you got your tag BKFoxx?

BK Foxx

My initials are BK – the fox is my icon because I like what they represent in almost every culture.

BK Foxx, Photo Credit @just_a_spectator

GraffitiStreet

When and at what age did you begin your interest with art?

BK Foxx

Well, I always took art very seriously. I made many beautiful rainbow drawings as a child. Then there was a time when I was 4 or 5 and my little sister made a drawing on the Magnadoodle and everyone fawned and said it was really good and I thought, “uh, no, it’s not that good.” I was really jealous. That was my first encounter with the art world.
In first grade I had an art teacher who invited me to take her advanced summer program. We’d go to her house and make art in her basement studio for a couple hours a few days a week. She always had on classical music and brought us iced tea. She taught us the basics and how to use all different kinds of mediums. It was one of the best places for me to be as a kid.

BK Foxx, Photo Credit @just_a_spectator

GraffitiStreet

When did you first get involved/interested within the urban art scene? / When was the first time you picked up a spray can and painted a wall?

BK Foxx

A friend took me to an abandoned greenhouse complex near where I lived after the hurricane in 2012. Every wall was covered in graffiti. I thought, I should come back in here and add something. I got some cheap cans from Home Depot and ….

BK Foxx, Life Cycle of a Dandelion with Sebastian. Photo Credit @bytegirl24

GraffitiStreet

Who are your biggest influences; people, movements, styles?

BK Foxx

I’m from the suburbs. I was raised in a culture vacuum, so I’m just trying to learn as I go. It’s terrible.

BK Foxx, Life Cycle of a Dandelion and a Sunflower and a Sunproof Bird. Photo Credit @bytegirl24

GraffitiStreet

2017 was a great year for you as an artist and you impressed the viewer with your level of realism, have you a formal art education?

BK Foxx

Shout out to that first grade art teacher from question 2. I skipped higher education completely. Art didn’t seem like a career option to me (I mentioned being from the suburbs..) I worked for many years at many different jobs just to live. When I thought about getting back into art mostly because I hated everything else, a family friend recommended that I take drawing classes at the students art league in the city and “see how it goes.” I really liked them. I wish I could have made it to more of those.

GraffitiStreet

We've seen you paint some super impressive murals of huge dimensions, such as "Neighbours" in Sweden for Artscape. What are the challenges painting such huge murals?

BK Foxx

Time constraints. Limited energy reserves. I did that one in 6 and half days and I almost missed my flight out. I also lost feeling in a finger for 6 weeks from overuse. It’s pretty great that they have like 17 hours of daylight in the summer there though.

BKFoxx, Artscape Street Art Festival, White Moose Project, Sweden 2017. Photo credit Fredrik Åkerberg.

GraffitiStreet

Your skills have taken you around the world as an artist, how does the scene differ from Brooklyn and what do you take away with you after each trip?

BK Foxx

When you’re invited to do something so far from home it’s more about the quality of what you do than any other factor. It’s more about who you are and less about who you know. It’s also very different painting in NYC than anywhere else. In most other places in the world people will stop and notice what you’re doing – in New York you’re often just part of the scenery, because there’s crazy stuff to look at everywhere all the time.
I have to say, I feel much more appreciated when I paint in other places. And I don’t get the feeling it’s because I’m an American or foreigner – but because it really does become about the quality of what I’m doing and the meaning behind it, and it feels more important. All the politics and bs are not so relevant.

BK Foxx, Can’t we all just get along? Photo Credit BK Foxx

GraffitiStreet

Is there anywhere in the world that you would love to paint and haven't visited yet?

BK Foxx

I really would like to go back to Kyiv. I felt the love there. Other than that I’m pretty much down to paint anywhere new.

BK Foxx, Rise up in the dirt, Kiev. Photo Credit Sergiy Kadulin

 

GraffitiStreet

Recently, in Brooklyn you painted 'Sick,' that illustrates how gun-violence affects today's society. Do you think as a street artist it is important to use your creativity to reach and inform the public?

BK Foxx

That mural was meant to illustrate more the way we think about guns in this country, and how twisted the mentality is.
I can’t speak for anyone else, because everyone expresses themselves differently and has a different thing they do. For me personally, it’s part of my motivation – I don’t take the opportunity to have such a public presence lightly. I spend a lot of time thinking very hard about what I’m going to paint and the way I’m going to paint it, and then I spend a lot of time making sure it is as technically sound as possible. At the end of the day, whether a mural is there for 6 hours or 6 years, it is a reflection of what I do, and people have to look at it. I have enough respect for both them and myself to do the best I can.

BK Foxx, Sick. Photo Credit @just_a_spectator

GraffitiStreet

We can see why you enjoy painting in the fantasy world of Alice in Wonderland, populated by peculiar, anthropomorphic creatures and scenes. You've painted 2 murals now. Can you tell us more about Alices adventures? and describe your creative process...

BK Foxx

My model for Alice is a family friend’s daughter Sammy, she’s 9. I bought/assembled the outfit, and the only dress I could find that wasn’t a bizarre and/or skanky Halloween costume was adult sized, so I had to cut the thing up and resew it. We dressed her, and my friend @just_a_spectator came out and helped me do a photoshoot, and she was a pro. And then I used those photos as references for her, and Zeso painted her world around her.

BKfoxx and Zeso, Alice in Wonderland Street Art Mural series 1 ‘Getting to know you’ 2017. Photo Credit BKfoxx

GraffitiStreet

For the Alice in wonderland series 1 and 2 you collaborated with Zesoner, how did you guys hook up and was this your first major collab with another artist?

BK Foxx

Yes. We became friends in Brooklyn, liked each other’s art, and he came up with this idea as a good way to blend the two styles.

Zeso, Alice in Wonderland Street Art Mural series 2 ‘ Day Dreaming’ 2017. Photo Credit Joel Bonnard

BKfoxx, Alice in Wonderland Street Art Mural series 2 ‘ Day Dreaming’ 2017. Photo Credit Joel Bonnard

GraffitiStreet

Alice in Wonderland quotes are rich in truisms and life's great philosophies. What is your favourite quote from this classic story, and why?

BK Foxx

‘”I don’t think…”
“then you shouldn’t talk”, said the Hatter.
Such a basic one that so many people disregard, so relevant to modern life.

BKfoxx and Zeso, Alice in Wonderland Street Art Mural series 2 ‘ Day Dreaming’ 2017. Photo Credit Virginie Favard

GraffitiStreet

We know you mostly for your spray can skills on the street, however, you also paint fine canvas work too... Oil and acrylic. A beautiful example of this was the artwork you painted for Medair charity auction in March 2017. What are the different challenges you are confronted with when painting murals in the street vs painting canvases in the studio?

BK Foxx

Well, when you sit and paint inside a studio all day, the thought of going out on the street to be harassed and interrogated by strangers seems crazy. When you’re out on the street being harassed and interrogated by strangers all day, the thought of sitting inside a studio seems kind of boring.
It’s a totally different experience making art in a public setting – it is in a category of its own compared to any kind of studio work. Whether you want them to or not, people affect the work when they have access to the process. I like that about painting outside – things don’t always go exactly as I plan, but I have a good story and a personal connection to the people and the place.

BK Foxx, Photo Credit Luca Babini

GraffitiStreet

Is there any other format/medium you may want to explore in the future?

BK Foxx

Sculpture. Glass blowing. Macaroni art. I like to make things, period, and I like to learn. Repetition gets boring pretty quickly.

BK Foxx. Photo Credit @just_a_spectator

GraffitiStreet

How much does your art affect or influence your everyday life?

BK Foxx

It ensures that it’s difficult to pay rent. Gives me agita that I’m putting myself out to the world to be judged. I’ve also heard complaints from select family members that I “don’t have a job.”
Other than that, it is my life. I walk around and see things and think, oh, that’s an image – people should see that.

BK Foxx, Chinatown on a Wednesday Afternoon. Photo Credit BK Foxx

GraffitiStreet

What music do you listen to when you paint?

BK Foxx

My family contributes to my art career by making me playlists. Everything from alternative to classical to hip hop and instrumentals. Agnes Obel was my soundtrack in Kyiv.

 

GraffitiStreet

Today is international Womans Day! Is there gender parity in the street art scene?

BK Foxx

No, it’s not equal. Things are rarely equal. That being said, for me personally, I don’t really care. I don’t see myself as being limited by anything but the quality of my art. I want to be known as a great artist, not a great female artist. I am female, but I am many other things – everything together makes up the person that does what I do.

BK Foxx, Lines in Israel. Photo Credit Gershon Abramashvilli

GraffitiStreet

What can we expect to see from you in 2018?

BK Foxx

More work.  More stressing over the aforementioned work.  Hopefully bigger walls.  Hopefully I’ll get to paint something as big in my own country as I have in several others.  I’m also going to have some new canvases and a couple of print releases coming soon.  I have a pretty excellent screenprint coming out in the next couple months, so keep an eye out for that!

BK Foxx, Please be Reasonable. Photo Credit BK Foxx

Thank you BK for taking time out your busy schedule for the interview. BK is a positive representation in the street art world, and an inspiration and role model for all to follow their passion.

BK Foxx, Tuff with Juliet. Photo Credit BK Foxx