Thierry Noir exhibition at The Howard Griffin Gallery sponsored by Hennessy

One of the world’s most renowned street artists – Thierry Noir -, is showcasing his work as part of Shoreditch’s Howard Griffin Gallery’s extraordinary new exhibition.

The Gallery will present Jazz, a unique synthesis between the worlds of art and music as seen through the eyes of the infamous Berlin Wall artist Thierry Noir, supported by Hennessy.

In the 1980s, Thierry Noir moved to Berlin to follow a burgeoning underground music scene. Berlin was the capital of alternative music at that time, from Nu Wave to Hip Hop, Punk Rock to Jazz. Fuelled by the creative energy that electrified the city in the midst of intense political and social upheavals, Noir began to spontaneously paint his characters. As Noir says, "If I had not been an artist, I would have been a musician". With Jazz, Noir returns to the musical influences that brought him to Berlin, capturing the spirit of the times through art that has come to visually define an era.

Noir has also designed the labels for 20 Jeroboams of Hennessy VS, that will be displayed and sold at the Gallery, with all proceeds going to Centrepoint – a charity that supports homeless young people and helps them to get their lives back on track through housing, learning, health and life skills (centrepoint.org.uk).

Leading London bar NOLA has created a bespoke Hennessy cocktail serve in celebration of the partnership and inspired by Noir’s artwork. It will be available at NOLA throughout the exhibition period.

In Jazz, Noir will exhibit new works exploring the harmony of art and music. His depiction of instruments draws many allusions to Picasso, and in fact Noir has often called himself 'The Picasso of the street'. In the exhibition, Noir will show an exploration and finessing of his use of line as a primary tool. This emphasis brings his work further in line with the Primitivist tradition, elevating simplicity in form and execution to become a primary focus.

The exhibition will explore the unending line of Noir's work as it moves into other forms and objects. Within the space, large scale sculptural works and playable musical instruments inspired by Noir's imagery will act as a continuation of the feeling of his works in physical space.

Alongside the exhibition a series of new screen prints based around the theme of Noir's musicians will be released. Howard Griffin Gallery has also commissioned several new murals to be painted throughout the course of the exhibition by Noir in London. Finally, the exhibition will feature a unique musical performance in which specially designed instruments in the form of Noir characters will be played live.