Sparks to ‘Ignite What’s Next’ With Art Tour

Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine and Cultural Icon Upper Playground to Produce East and West Coast Events


MILWAUKEE, Aug. 15 /PRNewswire/ — Sparks, Upper Playground, and Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine will team up this fall to debut the “Ignite What’s Next” Art Tour, with 18 stops on the East and West Coasts. The events will showcase three of the world’s top artists from the world of contemporary art – – David Choe, Herbert Baglione, and Saber — as well as some of the most progressive up-and-coming DJs for a mix-up of art, music and culture.


Live art installations will take place at a variety of venues, ranging from urban boutiques to bars and nightclubs. The entire tour will be chronicled on Juxtapoz.com through video recaps of each event.


“To get three artists of this caliber together and put them out on the road is just unheard of,” said Upper Playground CEO and founder Matt Revelli. “We’d dreamed of the concept before, but it took a brand like Sparks to take a chance, and finally step up and power this possibility.”


David Choe is a painter and graphic artist, who is known as much for his exaggerated vulgarity as for his aesthetic sense, and whose inspiration for his art comes from international hitchhiking expeditions. His art graces all facets of urban lifestyle, from t-shirts, to shoes, to video games and even hotel rooms. Sao Paolo-based Herbert Baglione is recognized as one of the staples of Brazil’s contemporary art scene. His work has been exhibited in galleries from Barcelona to San Francisco. Saber is a longtime fixture on the Los Angeles street art scene. He’s best known for completing the LA River Piece, the largest graffiti piece ever created.


The tour is just one component of the “Ignite What’s Next” movement for Sparks, the caffeine, alcohol and taurine hybrid. The brand is dedicated to uncovering and supporting up-and-coming artistic talents and plans to introduce a tour featuring emerging and independent musical artists this fall.


“The ‘Ignite What’s Next’ tour will embody the spirit of Sparks, by showcasing creative expression through the artists’ unique, powerful painting styles,” Sparks brand manager Herb Heneman said. “We have great partners like Upper Playground and Juxtapoz, which make our association with these legendary artists possible. We wanted to power their possibility to go out and play, and produce what is sure to be an amazing series of events.”


The live, daytime urban-themed art events will be free to the general public, and followed by nightly receptions, featuring DJs, artist meet-and-greets and book signings.


Details on times and venues will be available online in the coming weeks at http://www.juxtapoz.com/, http://www.sparks.com/, and http://www.upperplayground.com/. The current schedule is below:

  West Coast Tour Stops               East Coast Tour Stops

San Diego, CA – Sept. 7 Richmond, VA – Oct. 12-13
Los Angeles, CA – Sept. 8-9 Baltimore, MD – Oct. 14-15
Fresno, CA. – Sept. 11 Philadelphia, PA – Oct. 16-17
Sacramento, CA – Sept. 13 Montclair, NJ – Oct. 18-19
Berkeley, CA. – Sept. 14 New York, NY – Oct. 20
San Francisco, CA- Sept. 15 Brooklyn, NY – Oct. 21
San Jose, CA. – Sept. 16 New Haven, CT – Oct 22-23
Portland, OR. – Sept. 19 Burlington, VT – Oct. 24-25
Seattle, WA – Sept. 21 Boston, MA – Oct. 26

About Sparks


Sparks, the founder and leader of the caffeinated alcohol beverage category, is brewed by Steel Brewing Company, a subsidiary of Miller Brewing Company. Sparks is a blend of caffeine, alcohol, taurine, guarana and ginseng, and is available in Sparks original, Sparks Plus and Sparks Light. As with all Miller Brewing brands, Sparks markets only to legal-drinking-age consumers and strictly adheres to its Marketing Compliance Program, which is rooted in the Beer Institute Marketing & Advertising Code.


About Upper Playground


Based in San Francisco, Upper Playground (http://www.upperplayground.com/) was founded in 1998 to fill the fashion void between culture-based brands of clothing. At the time, clothing brands targeted toward one particular cultural group, such as skaters, surfers, or musicians, had no overlapping characteristics. Upper Playground was founded with the belief that numerous social influences, such as art, music, skateboarding, basketball, and street life, could be combined in one brand of clothing that celebrates contemporary urban lifestyle without excluding anyone. Today, Upper Playground is recognized as a catalyst for the fusion of fashion with art from some of the finest local and international artists and graphic designers.


About Juxtapoz


Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine focuses on underground artists and cutting-edge art movements. It was designed as a magazine for the new art movement with a goal to bridge the gap between art and culture. Juxtapoz showcases the highly developed skills of today’s most interesting and influential artists. The magazine also highlights rock-n-roll, pop culture, art books, videos and art supplies.

  About the Artists
For more information about David Choe, visit
http://www.davidchoe.com/
For more information about Saver, visit http://www.saberone.com/
For more information about Herbert Baglione, visit
http://www.herbert.ind.br/


First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:


Source: Miller Brewing Company


CONTACT: Tom Ryan, +1-414-931-3377, Ryan2.Thomas@mbco.com, or Julian
Green, +1-414-931-6313,
Green.Julian@mbco.com, both of Miller Brewing Company


Web site: http://www.sparks.com/
http://www.juxtapoz.com/
http://www.juxtapoz.com/