2008 was a great year for street art, but why look at the past when there is such great list of raw talent looking to blossom in the future. With the help of the forum members, we have comprised a list of 20 artists which you should all be watching in 2009! We’ve included information and pictures of each of the artists work below:

Funky Red Dog - I personally have been watching this artist for just a number of weeks. But in this short space of time Red Dog has hit the streets hard! His name is a clear indication of what to expect when you see his work on the street - dogs, and lots of them. Woof Woof! [Straws]

China Mike - Not strictly a street artist but his work is still fantastic and inspirational. “His painting style and use of colour is something you can’t ignore, and with his progression into live painting showcases and big murals, 2009 should be a great one for China Mike”. [Stephen Ball]

Pahnl - Pahnl seems to be always working on something new and inspirational. Small ’stick men’ are in their element when Pahnl is working with them and will often be seen hunting something. Last week Pahnl developed an impressive sticker stick man which morphs into a monster when the sun goes away!

elph - His writing style is complex and his can control can only be viewed with awe. There are few artists which can compete with elph’s complexity.

Disaster Strikes - DS’s work looks like someone has simply drawn a beautiful potrait on the wall. 2009 should be an awesome year for DS.

That concludes 20 Artists to watch in 2009! Part one. Come back tomorrow for Part two!

The Concrete Canvas twitter feed is now up and running. If you’re a twitter user, add us and follow what we doing when we’re not on the site.

Click here to see our new twitter feed.

Recognise the names? Well these guys have managed to sort themself an exhibition for the start of the new year, judging by the pieces that i have seen in the past, this is set to be some show. The details are as follows:

The Lover and LukeDaDuke have an exhibition together at Jongerencentrum Dynamo in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.

Opening of the exhibition will be at January 10 2009, at 19.00h.

You can find Dynamo at
Catharinaplein 21
5611 DE Eindhoven
the Netherlands

They are also looking for street art pictures to be included on the opening night, contact LukeDaLuke, either on the forums here, on on his flickr at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lukedaduke/

The hustle and bustle of London is a perfect way for new previously unseen artists to make a name for themselves. The street art scene in London is probably the biggest of all the cities in the UK. London attracts artists from around the world to get up on the walls of this concrete playground and, as a result, attracts a lot of different styles which makes London an ideal place to go search for inspiration.

London’s East End has to be the most condensed area of street art. Shoreditch and Bricklane are a haven for both new and experienced artists: this is where the big names come to play. Regulars to the East End include ATG Crew, Eine, Banksy, Eelus. Snub23 and Fark FK. It really is a fantastic place to come graffiti spotting.

One of the most famous London events this year has to be Cans Festival. The tunnel in Leake Street, right beside Waterloo in the centre of London, has involved hundreds of artists that have come from right around the world. Cans Festival, set up by Banksy, has gathered huge media attention and allowed many previously unknown artists to achieve mainstream following. If you have any form of interest in graffiti and street art (I guess you do, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this) The Tunnel in Leake Street is a location you must visit the next time you are close to London. It’s a really inspiring location for artists and fans a like.

Thanks to HowAboutNo! for the London images.

Urban Shrines of Sztuka Fabryka

Growing up on the countryside an ancient old community of small farmers became replaced by glossy villas  folk art and culture [chapels - shrines - …] in the name of devotion disappeared along with the little farms - the trees - our urban shrines are a homage to the culture and the beauty of the past yet combined with influences and ideas we do get today.

Links:
http://www.sztuka-fabryka.be/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sztuka_fabryka

- Stephen Ball