A Walk Through Reality to Idea, Joshua Vides’ First Exhibition

Joshua Vides, the founder of LA based clothing label CLSC, held his first experiential exhibit this past weekend. Entitled Reality to Idea, it showcased his signature black and white painted objects that caused quite the storm on Instagram (his first ever prototype was an Air Force 1, sending the ‘Gram into a frenzy). Today, Vides is one of the front-runners in street-wear and continues to advocate for the culture through his social media presence. Vides has provided a new way to look at odd objects through design with a touch of vibrancy. He has painted on objects like porta potties, fire hydrants, basketball hoops and more, and he brought these designs to life this past weekend.

Executing the Concept

Through Reality to Idea, Vides has presented a new way to look at objects in a space and exhibit. The space itself replicated the Instagram layout, with coke white walls and a black border tape wrapped around the edges. The exhibit featured 2 sections; an office area (which included his original work desk where he came up with his first concept) and a basketball locker room featuring an American Flag. Every object in the space was for sale, except the American flag, with all sales contributing to future projects and his next exhibit. Objects that were sold included; Eames chairs, picture frames, skateboard decks, basketballs, gym lockers, mirrors, clocks, and the iconic Air Force 1’s. From the design of the skateboards on the wall to the way each object was placed, every detail was exactly positioned and designed by Vides.

Experiencing the Exhibit

I saw on Instagram that Vides had something big planned for the weekend of February 10th and 11th. I watched him painting gym lockers and basketballs on his story all week and waited patiently in anticipation. Needless to say, I was blown away walking into the show. The space design and overall experience he created was a wonderful representation of a world of his own. Vides hung out in the space and encouraged photos for the 20 minutes we had. He talked to anyone who wanted to have a friendly word. I joked about how I thought it would be outside because of his story from earlier in the week. He laughed and said, “My backyard is my studio and without having the space replicate the design of the objects, you wouldn’t be able to feel the entire experience.”

That was a fact. Without the space, you wouldn’t feel the same experience. Everything inside mimicked the original concept and it made the space feel natural. I mentioned the layout of the pieces and asked what he plans to do, since majority of the items are bound to sell out. His thoughts were “I think I will try and keep the office set-up for each exhibit and switch the theme for the next time. NBA All-Star weekend is right around the corner though, so we’ll see.” Sounds like we should stay tuned and see what tricks Vides may have up his sleeve!

@realitytoidea