We’re up to our necks in deep frosty wind-whipping winter, and yet the Street Art right now is verbose, detailed, bright eyed, distinct, political, critical, stylish, dense, richly colorful.
Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week from Miami, and this time featuring Armyan, Captain Eyeline, Cash4, China, City Kitty, COMBO, CP Won, Food Baby Soul, Glare, Jaroe, Jaye Moon, Jazi, Marameo Universe, Plasma Slug, Rodak, Sara Lynne Leo, Smells, UK WC, and Winston Tseng.
We made it! But it was a rough few days just finished with storms and rain and snow and high winds and flooding and downed trees around New York and its environs. Similarly, as one surveys the chaos reigning in Washington, one must not be blinded by the sound and fury and has to measure what foundations are being broken and what soil is being eroded during this deliberate and man-made storm. Also Tax Payers, You’ve Been Scammed.
In other news Street Artist JR and New Wave cinema pioneer Agnès Varda are well positioned for an Oscar tonight, Nuart continues a 2nd year in the beautification of Aberdeen, Street Artist Haifa Subay is painting murals to help ensure that victims of Yemen’s grueling three-year civil war are not forgotten, conservative Street Artist Sabo took over three billboards to attack Hollywood about hidden pedophilia, a Florida billboard calls NRA a ‘terrorist organization’ , INDECLINE did a billboard takeover protesting gun violence and criticizing the ease of gun access, and NY street collage artist PhoebeNewYork says her background in fashion is the driving influence in her work on the streets.
Here’s our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring Below Key, Bond TruLuv, Bunny M, Combo, Crash, Eleonora Arosio, Faith XVVII, Free the Bunny, Imraan Christian, Jaeraymie, Lamkat, Little Ricky, Manyoly, Olek, Ollio, PAM, Paper Skaters, RAD, SK, Specter, and UFO907.
French Street Artist and media-savvy prankster COMBO is back with a new street art and social media campaign to affect what he calls “a bourgeoise hypocrisy that reminds us of alcohol prohibition”.
Enter Kermit the Frog smoking a J.
The new images on the street are meant to “support legislative change on medical marijuana” says the artist, and he invited a number of Street Artists to lend their skills to the project, which so far has focused primarily on Los Angeles but probably won’t stop there.
Here’s Robotbama by Finnish Street Artist Sampsa telling passersby that marijuana legalization could yield taxpayers $1.2 billion, there are the four previous US presidents touting pot use by Egyptian Street Artist Ganzeer, and you won’t miss the billboard of Jack Nicholson blowing an ‘O’ in a cloud of some serious smoke.
Pummeling that fine line between advertising and Street Art that has existed since troupes like the Billboard Liberation Front began taking over commercial space in the 70s and that artists like Ron English continued with his slick satire of major brands decades later, the new gen COMBO now marries it to the hashtag, D.I.Y., and the selfie. Like the JR campaign with a twist, you are encouraged to take a cellphone pic of yourself with a joint and send it to him he can wheat-paste it up on the street.
Given the current trend toward acceptance of weed that is happening legislatively and in popular culture, this campaign will most likely light up.
<<>>><><<>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
In the face of 21st Century misogyny and a general discomfort with public nipples of the female variety, a male street artist named COMBO just staged a high profile half naked protest with wheat-paste, brushes, and breasts in Paris on July 14. Reinterpreting the painter Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People that commemorated the July Revolution of 1830, COMBO brought the famous topless symbol of Liberty into the streets of 2013 by way of tribute to a brash new feminist movement that is appearing more often across Europe.
“By hijacking such an iconic piece of art,” says the twenty something art director cum Street Artist, “I want to denunciate the discrimination and other misogynistic behavior that women still suffer too often and to pay a tribute to the activists’ fight.” The activists in this case are people like Inna Shevshenko, the Gen Y leader of Femen, a theatrical and warrior-like group of women who advocate in public displays of power and bare chests to address issues like sexism, misogyny, homophobia, religious hypocrisy, and sex trafficking.
Sure, breasts of young women are naturally attention grabbers and they’ve been accused of cheap manipulation to sell an idea but they contend it is on par with the same objectification that is used to sell shampoo or cars and this time women are the decision makers regarding message.
“A woman’s naked body has always been the instrument of the patriarchy,” Shevshenko is quoted as saying in The Guardian, “they use it in the sex industry, the fashion industry, advertising, always in men’s hands.” Rather than presenting the allegorical goddess-figure of 19th century painters, these women are not striking a pleasant, pleasing and pliant pose, but rather one of power in their efforts to champion rights for women and girls.
It’s traditional for the President of France to unveil a new version of the heralded Marianne on July 15 to be used on an official stamp, and COMBO may have intended to upstage the unveiling by a day. And in a matter of uncanny timing, this little bit of wheat-pasting presaged the news that the actual inspiration for this years model was none other than Inna Shevshenko.
According to Reuters “A postage stamp depicting France’s cultural symbol Marianne has touched off a flurry of controversy after one of its creators revealed it was inspired by a topless feminist activist who hacked down a Christian cross in Kiev last year with a chainsaw.”
Which leads us back to the Street Art installation and photo op – COMBO tells us that his new piece stayed complete for only one day until it was smothered by graffiti.
Well, not the top half.
<<>>><><<>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
238
138
45
BROOKLYN STREET ART LOVES YOU MORE EVERY DAY
