RULES WERE MADE TO BE BROKEN

The art world and all its glory has long been isolated to the restrictive and towering edifices of academia; exclusively studied by the wealthy and privileged. Even as children, with our Disney coloring books, we were instructed to “stay inside the lines”, until, finally, all creative energy and imagination was drained and obliterated. Growing up, Philadelphia-based artist Stefan Kietzman drew outside the lines and now throws paint on everything from sneakers to vinyls to windows.

Two years ago, the 24-year-old walked into Philadelphia clothing store, Kulture Shop and saw a pair of painted sneakers. “It had like some planets or some spaceships on it or something, and I was like, ‘wow that’s cool, it’s a good idea but I could do something so much better’.” Kietzman copped a pair of Air Force One’s - common starter kicks for painters- and created his first painted sneaker creations. After noticing his designs on Myspace, sneaker design collective, Rebellion Customs contacted Kietzman and asked him to join. “I drew on my shoes when I was a kid,” he shares, “I had Chucks when I was a kid and I took my Sharpie marker and just drew on them , made them different colors or whatever so it’s kind of like an evolved form of that.”

In 2007, Adidas took note of Rebellion Customs’ skills and commissioned them to design sneakers for the MTV Music Awards. “We did TI, Cee-Lo Green- Danger Mouse was supposed to be there but he didn’t show up-Justin Timberlake and Ludicris. We got to travel around, meet the artists and hand out the shoes.” Although not a new style, the majority of people aren’t too keen on dropping hundreds of dollars for custom made footwear. “You don’t wanna buy something expensive and have like 20 other people in the room have it. So anything they do that’s custom designed is going to be desired by people that want to spend money. [Philadelphia] is not such a fashion city, and people aren’t as willing to pay for a pair of shoes.”

But don’t get it twisted, though unafraid to step out of the box, Kietzman is highly learned and skilled at a multitude of art mediums, and has a strong appreciation for fine arts. After starting off with a graphic style learned from comic books, his talent was honed and sharpened at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. “That’s where I pretty much learned technique. Before that I kind of taught myself. Any art field you go into, it’s good to have a good fine arts background. I think that people have gotten away from that. Part of it is learning the rules so you can break the rules and make up your own rules.” After graduating

school, he went on an art binge, traveling around Europe, and completely immersing himself in the museums and architecture of Greece, Rome and Austria.

Even in the artistic hub of Philadelphia, making the leap from school to the galleries, no matter how astute one is, is a brutal game with a viscous cycle. Many galleries want to see an extensive resume before allowing artists to display work. Even when an artist can get their work on a wall, galleries can charge up to 50%-60% commission. Café’s are a simpler route, not usually demanding previous showings but they often charge a commission of 20%-30%. However, confident in his talent, Kietzman isn’t pressed. Steering clear of the starving artist plague, he is able to sustain himself by working at a cafe and doing freelance design work all while continuing to pursue his passion and breaking artistic barriers.