The old wall of Sclater Street, often used as a canvas for street artists was turned into a Pop up Art Gallery by ‘The Art No Cube’ team of curators. The event called ‘Photo Invasion Invades Shoreditch’, showcased the new works of illustrator Lucas Levitant to the sound of Boom la Tete hypnotic music.

Levitant's work consists of superimposing his quirky and playful illustrations onto images he finds on Instagram. The result of this ‘invasion’ creates unpredictable and staggering new stories while conserving the integrity of the original images. The curators conveyed the idea of ‘invasion-with-integrity’ all through out the evening, from the choice and the design of the venue to the band and covers they played. The work was glued to the picturesque brick wall of Sclater Street, shamelessly adding a new layer of colour and texture to an already visually chaotic space. The industrial spot lights which hung from rusty metal window panels equally lit the works of Lucas Levitnat and the existing street art sprayed across the brick wall canvass. As a result the exhibited works seemed to be merging with the existing images of the wall in an unexpected and surreal manner, creating a credible interaction between the art and the urban street wall prototype.
Consequently the otherwise passive wall was elevated to the same status as the illustrations displayed.
Legal reasons aside, Lucas Levitant refused to sell any of his work in an attempt to continue the art ‘invasion’. Instead he willingly invited guests and onlookers to steal the pictures and to share their invasion via his Instagram page.

The advertising for the event was mainly through Social Media and online Magazines. Hours before the event, while the show was in construction, fliers where handed to people and left in both surrounding shops and bars. Although this conjured up a sense of thrill and excitement in the area, the organisers chosen location and provided live entertainment was certainly most effective in drawing in the target audience at their source; creatives’ from the very heart of Shoreditch’s hipster hub. By hosting the event in Sclater Street, one of the most in vogue locations in fashionable East London, the organisers assured the show would be seen by the audience in mind. The trendy and up beat vibe created by ‘Boom la Tete’ alongside the provided bar successfully invited the audience to stay. I found the accompanying booklet to be informal whilst being informative in depicting the pieces showcased, equally bringing to my attention Levine’s previous works and inciting me to actively seek them out via social media.

‘Photo Invasion invades Shoreditch’ Pop up gallery attracted more than 150 people some of which bloggers and journalists. Undoubtedly The Art No Cube team did an outstanding job in curating this exhibition and although it was reviewed on ‘The Cube’ and ‘Made in Shoreditch’ online magazines a better promoted exhibition would have probably had a major impact on better known magazines and lead to further publications.