SLAMXHYPE » peter dean rickards

Esther and the old hotel

Peter Dean Rickards — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 17:38:04 +0000

I grew up close to the Stony Hill hotel. It was right around the corner from where I lived on Willow Run near the Hermitage Dam in Kingston. Even in those days (when it actually had guests visiting), it always seemed to me like a place one goes to get murdered.

Its decor is frozen firmly in the 1970s, complete with yellow and green shag carpeting and furniture that seems like it was made in 2009 to LOOK as if it was made in the 70s (but clearly wasn’t), if you know what I mean.

Years later, a visit to the hotel confirms that absolutely nothing has changed, except for the fact that the old lady who owned it has died and the place has now been sold (nobody knows to who).

It seemed like a perfect place to photograph Esther -Quiet. Weird. Pretty.

More after the jump…

Esther and the old hotel is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Banksy Recession Sale!

Peter Dean Rickards — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 23:21:00 +0000

Remember ‘THE ROCK’ ? That potentially priceless chunk of concrete with the scribble on it by that guy that we chopped down in Kingston a few months ago?

It wasn’t for sale….till NOW. Bidding starts at $1.00 (shipping not included).

Seriously!: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140296281035

Banksy Recession Sale! is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

David Houncheringer & Marc Ferrario: Smells like Shit’mas trees

Peter Dean Rickards — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:08:38 +0000

The last time I checked in with my friend, Swiss photographer/artist David Houncheringer he was killing models and complaining about the weather. Now he’s making Christmas trees, decorated with grenades, Xanax and a few other goodies that you probably won’t be seeing at your local midnight mass.

Weird, but really good.

Check the entire series HERE.

David Houncheringer & Marc Ferrario: Smells like Shit’mas trees is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Indigenous Weekly

Peter Dean Rickards — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:22:30 +0000

Yes this is wrong on many, many levels, but somehow, I think it speaks for the silent majority.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Indigenous Weekly is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Dark day in Jamaica

Peter Dean Rickards — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 02:31:59 +0000

Cotton trees….folklore says thats where ghosts live.

Dark day in Jamaica is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Peter Dean Rickards Gives Away Banksy’s “Balloon Girl”

James Oliver — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 03:59:19 +0000

Our very own Peter Dean Rickards, well known Jamaican photographer and man behind the Afflicted Yard not so long captured Bristol based artist Banksy. If that was not enough he is now giving the public another chance to get there hands on there own piece of wall marked by the famous stencil street artist. Check out a short video clip below and read more over at Rickards blog here, while there is a great article on NewsOne.

The Afflicted Yard: The Rock from firstjamaica on Vimeo.

Peter Dean Rickards Gives Away Banksy’s “Balloon Girl” is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Banksy’s ‘Balloon Girl’-FREE (conditions apply) :)

Peter Dean Rickards — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 21:28:24 +0000

It was a non-eventful day when he actually drew them. He bought some construction paper from a local pharmacy and cut the stuff out. Then he drew this stencil of a girl on an exterior wall and some rabbits on the inside the pub itself. I kind of just stood there taking his picture because it was something to do. I had already captured his face back at Buju’s studio where he had done some other stuff so this was just extra. I didn’t really think much of it. I mean I live in a place where people get shot for marking up people’s walls (usually with a paintbrush), so a few sprayed stencils on the wall of a pub didn’t strike me as particularly interesting.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Later when I heard how much his stuff was selling for, I contemplated going back and chopping the wall down. It was there for years and I’m sure I’m not the only one who thought about doing it. Mona road is heavily travelled by a lot of foreign students on their way to the university so people from all over the world would often mention it, but nobody ever took the steps to cut it down…till this last August when I got a email from someone asking about my knowledge of the locations Banksy had tagged. That’s when I figured I should probably go get it before someone else did.

The wall is the last remaining tag that he did in Jamaica that can be seen in public. It’s also the only remaining stencil that has the tag BANKSY on it. The other ones were:

-A bridge in Charleton gully which was painted over.
-A rusting old ship near the airport (a stencil of a skull, crossbones and the signature ‘Banksy’has since faded)
-Buju Banton’s studio in Kingston ( where there is another ‘balloon girl’ and some flying insects.

The wall is 60 inches by 55 inches and about 7 inches thick. It weighs like 2000 pounds though that is just a guess. I spent the day getting a bunch of drunk guys to cut it down and raise it onto a flatbed truck tied to one of those sealtbelt-type industrial straps. I was amazed that it didn’t smash to pieces which would have really been an incredible waste of energy and patience. All the guys in that video (including me) had no real idea how to cut the thing down (much less move it) and were completely impaired by the time we actually got it tied to a backhoe (borrowed from a nearby construction site). Ironically, the damn thing almost fell on me in which case there would be a much funnier headline : Jamaican who revealed Banksy killed by falling artwork.

So now I have this wall sitting in a garage here in Kingston and the guy who owns the garage is pissed because the back part of his car doesn’t fit into the garage properly anymore (it’s a very small garage). I was going to put it on display at Miami Art Basel this year but then it occurred to me that it would cost about 10k to ship over there and I really wouldn’t know what to tell customs as a value price…so instead, I’m not going to sell it. Instead I’m selling the photographs of the excavation on EBAY and giving the wall away to whoever buys the set. Since it has no declared value, you can get it out of here at the estimated value cost of $0.01 and then hoist it onto your wall at your mansion and have a big party with lots of coked-up models and invite the BBC.

See more pics HERE

Banksy’s ‘Balloon Girl’-FREE (conditions apply) :) is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Drunk in New York

Peter Dean Rickards — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 16:08:41 +0000

Here’s one thing I like about New York; on any given day, things can take a sudden turn for the better.

Even if the bathroom is flooded, the top of the jeep is ripped to shreads and you’re stealing electricity from the neighbours, you can still find models, makeup artists, a proper studio to cram everyone into and lots of booze (at any hour of the day).

After that, all you have to do is play the music really loud and keep sending someone out for more liquor. Soon girls are swinging from the rafters (or an old exercise machine that hasn’t been used in years), lying around on the edge of the bathtub…eye half-closed from too much wine…runny makeup…soaked blouses…drippy hair….and pictures…lots of pictures (after the jump).

Drunk in New York is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Harlem: The Day After

Peter Dean Rickards — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 08:39:57 +0000

Undercurrents in the history. More after the jump (who came up with that term ‘more after the jump’ anyway?)

See the full set at The Afflicted Yard

Harlem: The Day After is a post from: SLAMXHYPE

Cindy – ‘Anything’ (barely safe for work)

Peter Dean Rickards — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 03:38:54 +0000

Cindy Wright… Miss Jamaica 2006. More after the jump…

Cindy – ‘Anything’ (barely safe for work) is a post from: SLAMXHYPE