Blackwater (Click to enlarge)

Jesse Hazelip is an artist firmly rooted in the now. Equal parts street and fine artist, the Oakland-based Hazelip has crafted an iconographic language based on global headlines, warfare, and the political monotony of repeated mistakes. His upcoming solo show, Belle of the Brawl, centers on the recent discovery of lithium in Afghanistan and our ongoing occupation of the country. It also demonstrates Hazelip’s ability to infuse the Middle East conflict with a contemporary angle — rare amongst artists of his generation. His work is a provocative, yet painterly call for intellect and revolution, created out of a deep inner need for resolution. Mingling his telltale herons and buffalo with Islamic geometry and scientific renderings, Hazelip’s new paintings reveal a primal relevance rooted in history, politics, and the latent desire to be better human beings. With this show, it’s clear that he’s moving beyond the substrata of modern-day street art, revealing a heightened focus and sharpened point of view that repeatedly begs the question: how are we going to change these patterns? Jesse Hazelip spoke candidly with PLANET about some possible answers to that very question.