ARTIST NETWORK
SSUR ACCOUNT
2009-2010 Monument Snowboards SSUR I
Location: New York, NY
Profile
Ruslan Karablin, better known in the art & design world as ‘SSUR’, emerged from the NYC downtown art scene 15 years ago. Ruslan was born in Russian occupied Odessa, Ukraine in 1969 but later moved to Coney Island, NY where he spent most of his young life. In 1989, Ruslan, an outside artist with no formal training introduced himself to the art world when he released a series of paintings that have now become sought-after collector pieces.
With no formal training, the Coney Island raised artist secured his subversive status by developing a signature of work influenced by 3 main Soviet subject matters: sex, politics and protest. To follow up on interest generated by his paintings, he turned his attention to t-shirt design as a way for people to own copies of his artwork. It was the perfect option for both presentation and utilitarian purposes.
So, it was in this moment that the SSUR was born producing its first line of tees in 1990 under the SSUR Brand, pioneering what is known internationally today as ‘streetwear’. Since this venture began, the SSUR name has traveled the world and has secured itself as a brand synonymous with both innovation and quality. Ruslan is the complete conceptual artist. Every facet of the life he encounters becomes motivation for conceptual art.
The body of work he’s produced in the last eighteen years, from his commercial to artistic endeavors, encompasses a combination of pop culture, music, his own Russian cultural influences, as well as the revolutionary iconography of the 20th century. Ruslan’s work is a championing of the “anti-hero” theme ever present in the modern day urban myth. The 3 SSUR x MNMNT snowboards featured in this years special edition collection celebrate SSUR’s 15 year anniversary and represent the past, present, and future.
