The Screaming Can. A graffiti piece in Buenos Aires, Argentina, discovered by Brooke Calmes from Skateworks whilst on vacation. The Screaming Hand is one of the most influential and iconic pieces of skateboard art ever done. Drawn by Jim Phillips in the early 1970s, Phillips is quite possibly the single most important artist in the history of skateboarding. I still get stoked every time I see the Screaming Hand. Heck, I’ve got a friend who tattooed it on his hand.
As Jim stated in his book, “Surf Skate & Rock Art of Jim Phillips,” Jim said, “Our Company wanted to stay away from skeletons. Powell, one of our biggest competitors, had everything with bones and skeletons. To me, the only fun thing left was fleshy monsters and mixed up body parts. That’s why you saw so much of that stuff on our boards. Nonetheless, Screaming Hand was one of those designs I had to talk them into. The hand is the most familiar thing you ever see, you’ve always got them in front of your face. That’s why it really clicks. Then you add the raw emotion that a hand can convey by clenching, like someone drowning, and add in what else, a screaming mouth? A hacked wrist? It’s about as aggro as you can get!”
Tags: graffiti art, jim phillips, screaming can, screaming hand
01/30/2011 at 7:35 AM |
hi!… i’m the responsable of the screaming can (stencil)