TheLegendsLeague

So, my first solo art show is only a few days away and you’re not quite sure what to expect, how to act, what to wear or what exactly #BTKDP means. Have no fear, I’ve put together 10 things you need to know to prepare yourself for the best Friday the 13th of your whole entire life.

Relax and take notes.

1. First Come, First Serve
It’s a simple rule that works whether you’re standing in line at a McDonalds or getting a rub and tug at some shady establishment on Bathurst – 1st Come, 1st Serve.

There will be 56 canvases and 300 shirts available to purchase at the show. I don’t expect you all to be there at 7pm and leave at 2am but if you want to get your hands on something, arrive before the other guy. There will be no reservations on items so when they’re gone, they’re gone. For-ev-er.

Sandlot.

2. Bring a Friend
It’s quite possible that you have 1 friend who has not yet heard Rebecca Black’s classic musical bludgeoning, “Friday”. But YOU could be the one to introduce that friend to her vicious audible massacre of the kings english. Then YOU’RE the cool one! You’re the connector. You’re responsible for A meeting B.

This Friday, be that person. Bring a friend who has never heard of Ideall, doesn’t follow me on twitter and doesn’t read my blog, and introduce us to each other. This event is about Toronto coming together. Be a connection point.

Fun fun fun.

3. Get Edumacated
Because The Kids Don’t Play is actually a poem I wrote in 2009 exposing parental neglegence when dealing with children who suffer from adult issues. Those kids, in turn, lose their want to just be kids.

Each piece in the show relates to a verse in the poem. Read the cards next to the pieces and get edumacated. The writing is the key to the concept of this show, so please get engaged by reading what it’s all about.

4. Talk To Me
Social media, shmocial clamedia. I follow you, you follow me, tag, tag, pokey pokey.

Fuck that. Talk to me.

If we connect through the internet, let’s have a word, a hello, a handshake, a toast, a hug, a daps, a cheers, a chest bump, and a good old fashioned session of pure, unadulterated chummery.

My name is Bryan. I have piercings and tattoos. Say hi.

5. Rock The Cash Bar
I love alcohol just as much as your next wino, college douche, redneck or Vegas visitor. And I’m sure you do too. The event will be fully licensed and there will be a bar for you to whet the appetite of your inner sinner. Take advantage of it, but please, let’s be responsible.

If you’re driving, don’t drink. If you’re drinking, don’t drive. Foreal.

6. Let’s Put The “Arty” in “Party”
Sure, this is a celebration for my 30th birthday. Sure, we’ve got some of the city’s best DJ’s and dopest performers providing the music. Sure, there will be alcohol and fun-chummery. But it’s an art show. The last thing we need is people standing on the couches, pouring liquor down each others hatches, climbing on the bars or making love in this club. Toronto needs more events like the Hermann & Audrey Exhibit and Because The Kids Don’t Play. If we make fools of ourselves like Girls Gone Wild meets Jersey Shore in The Real World Las Vegas, we can’t be taken seriously. Seriously.

Keep it classy, San Diego*.

*San Diego = Toronto

7. Hands? No Hands
Good artwork, like a bad genital affliction, is not to be touched. Play, but paws off.

See what I did there? Play. Paws off. Pause off = Play? Whatever. You get it.

8. Cross That Bridge
Connecting the Hermann & Audrey Exhibit next to Because The Kids Don’t Play is a pathway. Enter that pathway to experience some incredible work by some of my good friends, including SKAM, Che Kothari, Jalani Morgan, Elicsr and more. The exhibit is fantastic, and is a further display of how Toronto is really starting to present it’s creative talents on a larger scale.

By supporting work like this and coming out to these types of events, we’re opening up a flood gate for more artists to realize that their dreams aren’t limited to resorting to design or advertising as a means to express some level of creativity and make a living. The idea of the starving artist needs to change, cus a motherfucker tryin’a eat out here.

So cross that bridge… if you are so wise to answer the 3 riddles testing you via the local bridge gnome, that is.

9. TwitPic It!
So you’re gonna be at the show. Amazing! Sometimes you gotta remember that sharing that amazing-ness is just as important as experiencing it. So grab your Blackberry’s, iPhones, Startac Motorolas, or whatever you got, and TwitPic shots of the show to all your fans, friends, family and followers! Let them know that the amazing that you’re in is amazinger than the amazing that they’re in. Hopefully they’ll join us. And the amazement can spread and spread.. like an infectious, non-lethal, no adverse side effects, type of virus of joy.

10. Enjoy Yourself
Everyone says, “Work hard, play hard”. And the reason everyone says that is because it’s the ideal situation to live in. You work as hard as you can to live. Then you’ve gotta live as hard as you can to be able to muster up the mustard to catch up on your work. See what I did there? Mustard? Ketchup? Whatever. You get it.

The people at 99 Sudbury, namely Kim, Ashley, Marco and Dean, along with my friends Clay, Jared, Bryan, Addy, Amber, Ashley, Lissa, Shez, Dustin, Kaelah and APB, as well as my lady, Stacey, have been incredibly supportive and helpful in getting this show to the point that it is. We have worked insanely hard through blood, sweat, tears and ink stains, to make this event incredible. And it’s almost time to share it with you.

I said today that no matter what negativity is happening in my life, I’d always rather be laughing. It’s true. Laughter makes my world go round. It makes my eyes go squinty and my teeth go bling. And I need you all to enjoy yourselves at my show. It is so important to me to see so many different groups of people I love and care about come together all in one space. I’ve never had this opportunity before and I don’t know that I’ll have an opportunity quite like this again. I need this. And I really and truly want you guys and girls to enjoy yourselves. You deserve it.

I can’t wait to see you all this Friday, and thank you for your consistent support for my work. I appreciate it more than words.

Extreme.

See what I did there? More than words? Extreme? No? Damn it.

Love&Above,
- Bryan

(thanks to Andrew for requesting these tips)

- Bryan 'be.' Espiritu