A mural by Alan Ket, Noxer and Tres (pictured above) was buffed by two NYPD officers this week. Ket says that the store owner was contacted by the police about having the painting removed, even though it was painted legally. Ket was planning to go talk to the police and see what was up, but then the police just went ahead and painted over it. The owner of the store where the wall is let the police go ahead and paint over the wall once they had started because she did not want any problems with them. More on this censorship at Hyperallergic.
As the lines between graffiti and street art continue to blur, Graffiti Underworld: Visions, Vandals and Visionariesreminds us just how distinct the two worlds are. Although both graffiti writers and street artists claim the streets as their own, their social and cultural backgrounds, motivations and sensibilities share little in common. Based on five years of interviewing and photographing writers throughout the U.S., J.R. Mathews — in this collection of oral histories — offers a fascinating foray into the minds of graffiti writers.
Particularly striking is the role that drama plays in the writers’ lives. Daily ventures often involve: running from cops, outsmarting the authorities, climbing treacherous heights, going all-out for quantity – often at the expense of quality — claiming territory, jumping on moving vehicles and courting danger. These are all elements of the adrenaline rush cited by many. And although most writers have frequent encounters with police, they often find in graffiti “a way out of the neighborhood…gang activity and all.”
Also striking are the initial motivations. Many writers are driven to make their mark in a quest for recognition or fame. Philadelphia’s Cornbread – deemed as the founder of modern-day graffiti – began writing Cornbread while incarcerated at a juvenile detention facility. He loved the instant fame and continued to get up all over Philly when he was released back in 1967. “There was Cornbread before there was hip-hop,” he says.
Graffiti clearly had — and continues to have — much to offer those who feel most marginalized. “Graffiti was the perfect outlet for a young guy trying to challenge this world,” suggests Saber. “Graffiti is the perfect opportunity to find a voice. Otherwise you would never find a voice.”
Interesting, too, are the surfaces favored by writers. Trains – particularly freight trains — are the canvas of choice for many graff writers. Seattle’s Asic explains, “I think it’s partially the nostalgia freights have, the open road, roaming the land. Painting them and seeing them leave, not knowing where they’re going and seeing them pop up is amazing.”
And unlike interviews conducted with street artists, there are hardly any references to art schools or galleries and lots of talk about devising and revising names and identities. (I must admit I was disappointed when I found that “Read More Books” wasn’t intended as a message!) But there are expressions of extraordinary passion, zeal and commitment from members of an underground movement that has transformed the contemporary art scene.
Graffiti Underworld: Villains, Vandals and Visionaries is worth a read for anyone curious about the largely unsung “urban style-masters of the now generation.”
Cornbread, incidentally, will be honored this Sunday at the Rotunda in Philadelphia — an event certain to attract other legendary writers.
I must have subconsciously went for cool colors. It’s a paint-under-a-bridge kind of day.
“Zeus” by Mr. Wany and “Wany” by Zeus in Toulouse. Photo by Heavy Artillery.Resh and MCT by Neoar in Paris. Photo by Startape Photographe.Spyro, MonkE and Astro in Montreal. (Part 1) Photo by Photofil.Otek and Astro in Montreal. (Part 2) Photo by Photofil.MataOne and Aien7 in Hamont, Belgium. Photo by Startape Photographe.Myt and Red. Photo by Startape Photographe.“Bridge the Gap” by Vibes in Waterloo. Photo by John19701970.Blomtrog in Sydney. Photo by Baddogwhiskas.
NoseGo, one of Philadelphia’s best-loved and most-talented muralists, will be doing some live painting in Philadelphia this ThursdayFRIDAY on at The Shaft, an open air gallery space on Broad Street.
The exhibit is part of a curatorial practice program being taught to UArts MFA students by Maiza Hixson and Lauren Ruth.
If you search aroundthe internet, you may notice that Artists 4 Israel (a controversialorganization) had been advertising this exhibit and saying that they are involved in it. This is no longer the case. Based on the group’s Facebook page, it appears that they are interpreting this situation as being “banned in Philly” and “censorship,” but I’m pretty sure that a gallery/curators deciding to part ways with an organization is not the same as censorship of that organization (although, ironically, I did have to Photoshop the Artists 4 Israel logo out of the above flyer). Personally, I would not work with a Tea Party-affiliated organization on an exhibit, but I’m not trying to censor tea partiers. Anyway…
Let’s all have a good time seeing NoseGo paint some cool stuff on ThursdayFRIDAY!
WALL\THERAPY, Rochester’s mural festival, looks like it’s going well so far. Here are a few shots of walls in progress (from Liqen, Case, How/Nosm and DALeast), plus How and Nosm’s completed mural…
Case’s wall in progressHow and Nosm at workHow and Nosm’s wall in progressDALeast’s wall in progressHow and Nosm’s finished wall. Click to view large.
One of the coolest spots in Manhattan’s Lower East Side/Chinatown neighborhood is the Klughaus Gallery, as it features some of the best graffiti and street art to be found anywhere. I haven’t been getting down there often enough, but when in the neighborhood earlier today, I dropped by. And it couldn’t have been a more perfect time, as the gallery was getting ready for Thursday evening’s Australia’s “Kingbrown Magazine” / Launch and Opening Exhibition. Curated by Fountain’s John Leo and Melissa McCaig-Welles in collaboration with Kingbrown and Morning Breath, the exhibit features a range of wondrous works. Here are some favorites:
BeastmanRekaAnthony ListerThe YokDaek
More about the wonderful Kingbrown Magazine — that I’ve only recently discovered — in a future post.
So here’s the deal. Complex asked Vandalog founder-leader RJ Rushmore to create a list for them, “50 Greatest Street Artists Right Now,” and that list came out this month. When I saw it I was surprised. Out of 50 names, the only women to make the cut were Faith47 and Swoon (and a few who make art with male partners).
Yes, I know that any person who makes up a list like that would come up with a different list. But the intro to the list read, “Public art has a whole new set of powerful voices. We’re celebrating those.” And 48 of the 50 entries on a list designed to celebrate powerful new voices were men’s voices. That’s not a lot of diversity. It’s not even a little diversity. I called out RJ for his selections, via Twitter.
We volleyed some names back and forth but ultimately my argument was not with his exclusion of any particular artist. In exchanges with RJ and others, the questions came up–as they tend to when women are breaking into boys’ clubs (politics, business, race-car driving, etc.): Should there be a separate list for women? (No.) Should there be a quota for women even if they’re “not as talented” as men? (No, but, false question.)
If I were RJ and knew the work of as many street artists as he does, I would start with my favorites, and probably run out of room just listing those artists. So I wouldn’t have to go looking under rocks to find artists I had never heard of before. If I were RJ, I might think that if there were any women (or men) doing truly great work, I would have heard about them by now. Except that’s not necessarily true, especially with women. For instance, RJ mentioned a few female artists he considered…but he didn’t put them on the list.
Consider that the most powerful and the most personal work is not necessarily going to resonate as strongly once it crosses gender lines, which is not a minor point. For instance, RJ said he’s not a fan of Olek. And I’m not a fan of Lush. And that’s how it works: women don’t end up on too many “greatest” lists, if the guys are the gatekeepers. And if they’re not on the lists, how does anyone hear about them? It’s a little like the axiom about getting a job: you can’t get hired till you have experience, but if you can’t get hired, where do you get experience?
After our exchange, RJ offered me an opportunity to write a post for Vandalog about women street artists, and I respect him for that. So here it is, there are five artists in particular who I think fit the Complex criteria but didn’t make the list. As I began researching the post, I asked around for referrals. Emails arrived all week with the names of talented women making great art all over the world. So as a deputized one-time Vandalog gatekeeper, I want people to know about established as well as emerging talents like Alice Mizrachi, Bastardilla, Bunny M, Cake, Elle, Fafi, Georgina Ciotti, Gilf!, Hyuro, Imminent Disaster, Lady Pink, Liliwenn, LMNOP, MISO, Miss Van, Sheryo, Shin Shin, Sofia Maldonado, Tati Suarez, Toofly, and Wing. Just to name a few. Because there are so many more.
The work they are making reflects their communities, it beautifies blighted areas, it makes us laugh, it breaks down gender barriers and smashes stereotypes and speaks out on behalf of women and children and parents and humanity. It is sensual and funny and simple and complex and symbolic and speaks of rights and wrongs and freedom. And these women have these strong, powerful, fierce, witty voices that we all need to hear. Why? Because they make images to express what we as viewers can’t articulate until we see their work. And then as it pierces our hearts and minds we say, simply: yes, that is exactly how I feel, too. But this is not because they are women. It is because they are artists.
OX has the very admirable ability to look at the city and see the potential for art just about anywhere. He finds billboards, looks at what’s around them, and uses those surroundings to inspire his takeovers of billboard spaces. For OX, even things as seemingly mundane as a concrete wall can provide inspiration. If street art is about making people look at the city differently, OX has most other street artists beat. Here’s some recent work from him in and around Paris.
Today Banksy‘s website was updated with two new Olympics-themed pieces. It’s not yet clear where these new stencils are located, but London is a good bet. If they are in London, that’s going to make for an interesting situation as someone is going to have to decide whether or not to paint over these walls which are suddenly valuable tourist attractions. The stated position of the authorities is that any illegal Olympics-themed street art or graffiti is going to be destroyed ASAP, but maybe public outcry and monetary incentives could make Banksy an exception. This is especially interested given the recent round-up by British police of former graffiti writers. The Atlantic has more on this potential controversial situation.
I like seeing more art on the street, and I like these pieces by Banksy. If this work is buffed, that’s two more grey walls in London. But allow them to remain unbuffed sets an unfair double standard (particularly punishing graffiti writers). The system would be preserving street art, but in an unjust way. So, should they stay or should they go? What do you think?
