Guess it shouldn’t surprise us when we find out that the sticker, wheat-paste, or mural we published of “Street Art” or graffiti actually turns out to be a logo or promotion for someone who is selling sneakers, t-shirts, lip-gloss, tampons, or toe fungus spray. That’s how people pay the rent, yo!
After all, we get press releases all the time from “Street Artists” who purport to get up all over the place in their home city of New Jesusville – but nobody we talk to has heard of them. Eventually word gets around and its not our business to trash people. And we all know at least one or two fine artists who have used the strategy of putting their stuff on the street to add some sort of “cred” to their “brand”. Fine. And look at the countless corporate names that have been inserting (or “integrating”) themselves into all manner of social/electronic media and “stories” in the last couple of years – just to leach off grassroots D.I.Y. culture and make the money and get the clicks but not actually support the art community that birthed it. It’s a complex story.
But it’s hard not to feel a little bit like you just got punked when you walk into a store and find the stuff you shot in a putrid garbage strewn alley is now silk-screened across a cheap flask or frisbee or truckers cap, giving it about as much meaning as a Kardashian wedding ring.
What are we going to do? Oh probably nothing – there is no purity test or reliable scale for measuring when someone has “sold out” and we don’t like pompous peeps who pretend otherwise. We’re just keeping an eye out, sister, and trying not to get fooled again.
Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring Alinic, ASK, BAMN, Chris & Veng RWK, Gilf!, Icy & Sot, Lambros, Meer Sau, Mosstika, MUDA, Pixote, Tripel, and WD.
Top image > ASK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Lambros (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Tripel (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Meer Sau “I Love Porno” in Salzburg, Austria. (photo © Meer Sau)
Meer Sau “Art is not a Crime” in Salzburg, Autria. (photo © Meer Sau)
MUDA (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Gilf! Her tribute to Malala Yousafzai (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Icy & Sot (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Chris, Veng RWK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bishop 203 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
BAMN does a memoriam for Aaron Swartz. Pixote on top. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Mosstika (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Alinic (photo © Jaime Rojo)
WD in Athens, Greece. (photo © Philipp Gor)
Untitled. Brooklyn, NY. Februray 2013 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA
Please note: All content including images and text are © BrooklynStreetArt.com, unless otherwise noted. We like sharing BSA content for non-commercial purposes as long as you credit the photographer(s) and BSA, include a link to the original article URL and do not remove the photographer’s name from the .jpg file. Otherwise, please refrain from re-posting. Thanks!
<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA<<>>><><<>BSA<<>>><<<>><><BSA
Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
Belgium’s ROA, whom we have featured in perhaps 30+ articles, put out his “CODEX” monograph this spring, and while sitting inside your lockdown we thought you would enjoy freeing your mind to travel ...
As we prepare to celebrate 15 years of daily publishing stories and insights about street artists from around the world here on BSA, you’ll know that there are some whose work has merited hours of wr...
"The Workhorse" gallops through Brooklyn and Sets Another Record Stencil artist Logan Hicks completed his largest stencil to date today on the streets of Brooklyn. Then he posed for a few photos and r...
In the tradition of modern street photography, Brock Brake is finding places for you to get access to. Sometimes these are physical locations, like under a cavernous underpass and skateboarder hangout...
Happy Holidays to all you stupendous and talented and charming BSA readers! We thank you from the bottom of our socks for your support this year. The best way we can think of to celebrate and comm...