It's hard to call that graffiti! Not with the three dimensional affect that he/they have achieved. Someday it will be the great art of this century... and you get to look at it for free!
Is THAT what was going on behind the plywood over there. That is the right spot, eh? Wasn't there another mural put up just two years ago in that same spot?
I've always preferred Keith Haring to Kenny Scharf, two street pop stars of my teenage years. On the other hand, nice to see he's still out there.
webb - Yes, I wish there were more spaces like this.
Frank, was there plywood? There have been several artists at work here, in succession, though how one paints over the other is hard to imagine. I guess someone else (not sure who sponsors this, will check)whites it out for them, first. But THAT I'd like to photograph. The whiting out...
Here's an interesting link (I've missed a lot on that wall!)that links to previous work, too.
The murals put up on that wall never last that long, they get intensely tagged. The last one was put up earlier this year, in April, made by Shepard Fairey and got covered up and vandalized in no time! (part of the mural was a giant target ... you can imagine the rest ...) They tried to fix it for a couple of weeks and then gave up.
Lambert, as I understand the sequence, the neon orange 2008 was the recreation of the Keith Haring wall (which he had originally painted on that spot!), then the Brazilians, Oz Gemeos, who seemed to have no taggers, then Fairey, who papered the wall - I wonder if the objections were to the paper? or to the fact that he went went mainstream by creating the famous Obama image?
this is totally off-topic but I think you may be the person to answer my question... in SA no one plants veggie gardens in raised beds (or do they, and I never noticed?) Why is it that that is how its done here in the States? Well, the ones I've noticed :) Do you know?
kbd, it's an interesting question on many levels, and I don't know. In cities it's done because of possible soil contaminants. Elsewhere perhaps because you can control what is in the raised bed without amending the soil beneath.
I also think sometimes it is simply cultural. People see everyone else doing it so why SAfricans do not, in general, not sure. Shall investigate farther.
The Shepard Fairley mural was "wallpapered" over a wood frame, meaning it didin't touch the actual wall. Maybe you have a point and street artists may not have liked the institutionalized, mainstream aspect of the mural, with all the hooplah, photographers and the 24/7 security guard in front of it.
Here's a link that shows the Houston wall mural chronology http://vanishingnewyork.blogspot.com/2010/04/houston-wall.html
I see Vanishing New York doesn't approve of the wall in the sense that it symbolizes gentrification. It's a tough one. I didn't like it either, at the time:
It's hard to call that graffiti! Not with the three dimensional affect that he/they have achieved. Someday it will be the great art of this century... and you get to look at it for free!
ReplyDeleteIs THAT what was going on behind the plywood over there. That is the right spot, eh? Wasn't there another mural put up just two years ago in that same spot?
ReplyDeleteI've always preferred Keith Haring to Kenny Scharf, two street pop stars of my teenage years. On the other hand, nice to see he's still out there.
webb - Yes, I wish there were more spaces like this.
ReplyDeleteFrank, was there plywood? There have been several artists at work here, in succession, though how one paints over the other is hard to imagine. I guess someone else (not sure who sponsors this, will check)whites it out for them, first. But THAT I'd like to photograph. The whiting out...
Here's an interesting link (I've missed a lot on that wall!)that links to previous work, too.
http://www.dnainfo.com/20101123/lower-east-side-east-village/new-graffiti-tribute-comes-houston-street-wall-but-briefly
The murals put up on that wall never last that long, they get intensely tagged.
ReplyDeleteThe last one was put up earlier this year, in April, made by Shepard Fairey and got covered up and vandalized in no time! (part of the mural was a giant target ... you can imagine the rest ...)
They tried to fix it for a couple of weeks and then gave up.
Thanks for the link:)
ReplyDeleteLambert, as I understand the sequence, the neon orange 2008 was the recreation of the Keith Haring wall (which he had originally painted on that spot!), then the Brazilians, Oz Gemeos, who seemed to have no taggers, then Fairey, who papered the wall - I wonder if the objections were to the paper? or to the fact that he went went mainstream by creating the famous Obama image?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dnainfo.com/20100701/manhattan/shepard-faireys-lower-east-side-mural-overtaken-by-vandalism
Ha, but this link above shows that they are not whitewashed, they are painted on frames, and I can see the Oz Gemeos underneath the Fairey!
Then came Barry McGee (which I stupidly did not photograph a few weeks ago)
More to read. Le fascinating.
this is totally off-topic but I think you may be the person to answer my question... in SA no one plants veggie gardens in raised beds (or do they, and I never noticed?) Why is it that that is how its done here in the States? Well, the ones I've noticed :) Do you know?
ReplyDeletethanks.. and great photo!
kbd, it's an interesting question on many levels, and I don't know. In cities it's done because of possible soil contaminants. Elsewhere perhaps because you can control what is in the raised bed without amending the soil beneath.
ReplyDeleteI also think sometimes it is simply cultural. People see everyone else doing it so why SAfricans do not, in general, not sure. Shall investigate farther.
The Shepard Fairley mural was "wallpapered" over a wood frame, meaning it didin't touch the actual wall.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you have a point and street artists may not have liked the institutionalized, mainstream aspect of the mural, with all the hooplah, photographers and the 24/7 security guard in front of it.
Here's a link that shows the Houston wall mural chronology
http://vanishingnewyork.blogspot.com/2010/04/houston-wall.html
Thanks, Lambert...
ReplyDeleteI see Vanishing New York doesn't approve of the wall in the sense that it symbolizes gentrification. It's a tough one. I didn't like it either, at the time:
http://66squarefeet.blogspot.com/2009/08/graffiti-wall-is-tamed.html
I may have changed my mind. A bit.