ARTISTS
DEFER
BIOGRAPHY
DEFER (Alex Kizu) is an American Postwar & Contemporary painter who was born in 1971. Numerous key galleries and museums such as the Getty Museum in Los Angeles have been actively exhibiting Alex Kizu’s (aka Defer). His work stems from his culture and connection to graffiti and the urban landscape, representing a profound artistic language that distorts the lines between street art and fine art. Kizu was one of the pioneering members of the first generation of Los Angeles graffiti writers, and he has distilled the hand-style developed since his youth into abstract pieces that incorporate not only typographic motifs, but cultural motifs and complex patterning. Kizu’s paintings are highly detailed examinations of line and color.
Frenetic structures flow organically with multi-layered abstractions and create a borderless visual depth and complexity. Defer has been an integral part of the Los Angeles street art scene since the mid-1980s. Along with Chaz Bojorquez who is acknowledged as a pioneer of East Coast “cholo” style graffiti, Kizu has emerged as a leading figure in the East Coast graffiti movement along side Retna, Zes and Saber
Notable supporters are Koby Bryant, LeBron James, LL COOL J, Chris Brown, Chris Rock, RVCA, LA Lakers and Beats by Dre
Adept at working in various mediums – such as markers, spray paint, acrylic, gouache, etc. – Kizu is well known for expertly rendering beautifully complex letterforms. His interviews and works have been included in a number of esteemed compendiums of graffiti art – a testament to Alex Kizu’s artistic stature in the realm of Los Angeles street art. Whether it’s the LA-centric graffiti book “Graffiti LA” by Steve Grody, or the national scope covered in “The History of American Graffiti” by Roger Gastman and Caleb Neelon, Kizu’s influence on the visual language found in the City of Angels cannot be overlooked.
Kizu aka Defer will be featured in the upcoming “Beyond the Streets London” exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery
