I came across Street Art View only the other day, which is pretty pathetic considering the number of Facebook and Twitter posts on it. Right now I am teetering on how I feel about it. Powered by Red Bull (who seem to have their hands in street art related activities a lot recently) and Google Maps, the site allows people to virtually “tag” graff and street art as depicted on the Street View. Thing is though, isn’t most of the work already covered/altered/buffed/etc.? Just an initial look, there is work from JR and Banksy that are no longer on the streets. For historical purposes, I guess this is a good idea because you can find exact locations or learn where they used to be. But in the present, works change so much, that tagging something on the map misleads people looking to see works. Also, since the Street View is already created, won’t new works not be able to be seen at all? This is like a “Where is Waldo” of street art from a certain time period. I personally enjoyed finding the wizard more enjoyable.
This map is a lot like Marxism to me- sounds good in theory, but shit in practice.
I also hear there is an Iphone app in the making (already created?) that you can take a photo of a piece and it recognizes the artist when people upload the same work and tag it as an artist? I read this somewhere a few weeks ago, but don’t remember where. I bet the cops will have a field day with that application.