The writing on the wall : AZ IMC

"Tempe died when Long Wong's died. Everything, the old ways and the
old days, are gone, done."

That's Jesika Jordan, 26, urban artist, gallery owner, and recent
Phoenician, reflecting on the bittersweet end to her gallery in Tempe.
She laughs when she says it, but she's not kidding.

Jordan's Wet Paint Art Supply & Gallery at 7th St. and Forest has
been a Tempe fixture for over five years. It is a main stop on Final
Fridays, when it advertises as B-Side Gallery and offers DJ's,
refreshments, and a changing selection of student and local artists.

In December, the shop will close its doors, and the space will stay
vacant until the current building is demolished. A new art supply
store, still called Wet Paint, will move to Ash Ave. and University.
Her new gallery will be in downtown Phoenix.

Rising rent and a desire to move on have been pushing Jordan toward a
move for over a year. Recently, however, the owner of the building
sold it to a developer. Town homes are planned for the site, which
will be directly across the street from the $500 million University
Square project, a combined effort of Shea Commercial, 3W Companies,
and Trynar LLC.

"Well, I was feeling the urge to move somewhere," said Jordan. "I
really wanted to move out of state, just because of Tempe's
redevelopment plans, and because of me wanting to go back to school,
but .… moving to Phoenix kind of feels like you moved to a different
state, because it's a completely different demographic."

The new B-Side gallery in Phoenix will be at .anti_space, located at
4th St. and McKinley. The building holds four artists' studios and two
boutiques already. "I'm excited to move in there, and they're excited
to have me there," said Jordan of .anti_space proprietors Justin McBee
and Scot McKenzie.

"The thing is, though, it's another temporary spot, because within a
year to a year and a half, that's zoned for high-rises, so the initial
owner might sell it, and it would get plowed down," Jordan said. "But,
by then, that will hopefully give me enough time to maybe find another
location that could be another store and a gallery all in one."

B-Side Phoenix will be open in tonight for First Fridays, with a
"grand opening" scheduled sometime in November.

Last Friday saw B-Side Tempe's Colab Show, its third to last in that
location. It featured pieces made collaboratively by multiple artists,
and music by DJs Brazilia, Issa, and Mosha, Jordan's "alter ego behind
the turntables."

The main organizer and artist was Disposable Hero, whose
characteristic, stylized pandas were in nearly every painting. Other
featured artists included AKO, Dan Flores, Downtimer, EEE, Dumperfoo,
Breeze, and Mad One. In addition to the hanging paintings, intended
for sale, Jordan, Disposable Hero, and most of the other artists
painted the actual walls for the show.

"The place isn't going to exist soon anyway, so we're just like, '…
let's get the walls,' wheatpasted them ... the walls were our canvas,"
said Jordan. "It's a shame that it took this long to do it, but I
think our perspective on what's going to happen is kind of making us a
little more destructive."

Jordan, a native of Tempe who has lived there most of her life, is
uncomfortable with many of the changes that are occurring in her
hometown. "...the end result of [the development in] downtown Tempe is
five thousand condos. Well, it's thirty high-rises, composed of five
thousand condos, office buildings, all this crap," she said. "I think
it's unnecessary. Tempe's culture is going down the pooper," she said,
laughing. "It started a long time ago, though."

Jordan offered some parting advice to young artists. "Don't be afraid
to get mad at what's going on. Don't be afraid to have a voice, don't
be afraid to express yourself artistically and just happen to leave it
somewhere where people can see it on the street," she said.

"You know, because everybody else ... cramming everything down your
throat, on billboards, and all this crap, you don't have a choice ...
so why not give them a little bit to look back at."

Those interested in more information on Wet Paint and Jesika Jordan
can check out http://www.wetpaintaz.com.