A 2013 visit to St. Pete's warehouse district found me on a couch looking at Venture Compound's Jesse Vance and Bradley Kokay. Our conversation yielded a story I feel grateful to have had the opportunity to write, but one of the longest lasting memories of the visit was listening to Kokay, 35, talk me through the process of his intricate collage work where he uses a photocopier to manipulate images before splicing them into elaborate works that could keep me enthralled for hours.
Yesterday, former CL food and news editor Arielle Stevenson posted a video featuring the Venture Compound art director composing a large mural at Central Avenue watering hole Cycle Brewing. The almost-stop-motion four-minute clip finds Kokay toiling through a work week's worth of labor, which he spread over seven nights.
"At first, collaging a wall by hand seemed like a good idea. And then, a few nights in, it seemed utterly ambitious" Stevenson, 25, wrote in a message to CL. "But Bradley dove in, and brought it all to life, because he's got the skills. His hands can execute what he has in his head, and that takes fortitude (along with some good ole' fashioned madness)."
Cycle Brewing, for their part, weren't exactly sure what they were going to get from Kokay since he refused to show Tara Dozark, who oversees the art at the brewery, a sketch of the mural. Safe to say, they're probably happy with the result.
"He said that he doesn't sketch these collages and I respected that this art was coming from his own passion and inspiration.," Tara Dozark told CL. "Trying to force cycling imagery into his vision was not something I wanted to do. We absolutely love the mural [and] we're looking forward to many more projects together."
Original music for the video was composed by Vance under his DC9V moniker, and the whole clip can be seen below. As with all great things, this mural — and Cycle Brewing's suds — are best experienced in person. You can water yourself at 534 Central Ave. in downtown St. Petersburg. More information is available here.
Cycle Brewing Presents: Mural in Seven Parts by Bradley Kokay from Arielle Stevenson on Vimeo.