Art: Banksy and Street Art
So yesterday it was all about Romanticism and savage nature - therefore I found it fitting to turn to post-modernism and a very clear urban setting.
I have a bit of a thing for Street Art, and a rather large crush on the images of the artist Banksy.
No one really knows who Banksy is, but it is possible that his name is Robert Banks, and that he was born near Bristol UK in 1974. But since Banksy himself and the people close to him are very silent about these things nobody knows for sure.
Guard
His street art, which combines graffiti with a distinctive stencilling technique, has appeared in London and in cities around the world.
The Jungel book
There are several things I like about Street Art. A main thing is it's pop-cultural references. Not only do I like the cheekyness of using Star Wars or Disney figures in images like these, but I also LOVE how the pop-cultural references makes the images that more accessible. In opposition to a lot of modern art you don't need vast amounts of art knowledge to get the point of the images. The symbols and references in the pictures are instead taken from everyday life and thereby extremely accessible. It's art with a point and a rather sharp satirical edge - and yet it never gives the viewer the feeling he/she is dumb and clueless.
I am your father!
Another thing I love is how the art is out on the streets and in public spaces. It is not tucked away in a gallery, only watched by a small group of specialists. Again this helps make the art more accessible.
Police Search, Glastonbury
Being out in the urban landscape also allows for rather interesting, and sometimes disturbing, interaction between urban life and the images. IMO this only heightens the effect of the images.
Maid sweeping
Working with stencils allows Banksy to replicate his images rather easily, and this again allows the images to appear on different location. Each location adding to the image...
...and expanding it. The multiplication process is also interesting since the idea of originality is central in the art world. None of Banksy's works can be said to be the original and thereby a whole classification apparatus becomes meaningless. Yet most people within the art world would be hard pressed to that claim Banksy's works are not art, and the result is a conclusion that art must be more than originality and single works of greatness.
True, Andy Warhol has challenged this notion before - but just because one person has made a good argument, doesn't mean the argument shouldn't be repeated.
Altered Paris Hilton Promotion Poster
I also have an evil and mean side, and therefore I love the fact that Banksy is often rude.
Queen Victoria
Um...I have no words for this really. Go Queen Vic?
Soldiers in the dark
And sometimes he is rude and extremely political. I like that as well.
Petrol head
And sometimes all of this is mixed with a surreal sense of humour - which I love.
I have a bit of a thing for Street Art, and a rather large crush on the images of the artist Banksy.
No one really knows who Banksy is, but it is possible that his name is Robert Banks, and that he was born near Bristol UK in 1974. But since Banksy himself and the people close to him are very silent about these things nobody knows for sure.
Guard
His street art, which combines graffiti with a distinctive stencilling technique, has appeared in London and in cities around the world.
The Jungel book
There are several things I like about Street Art. A main thing is it's pop-cultural references. Not only do I like the cheekyness of using Star Wars or Disney figures in images like these, but I also LOVE how the pop-cultural references makes the images that more accessible. In opposition to a lot of modern art you don't need vast amounts of art knowledge to get the point of the images. The symbols and references in the pictures are instead taken from everyday life and thereby extremely accessible. It's art with a point and a rather sharp satirical edge - and yet it never gives the viewer the feeling he/she is dumb and clueless.
I am your father!
Another thing I love is how the art is out on the streets and in public spaces. It is not tucked away in a gallery, only watched by a small group of specialists. Again this helps make the art more accessible.
Police Search, Glastonbury
Being out in the urban landscape also allows for rather interesting, and sometimes disturbing, interaction between urban life and the images. IMO this only heightens the effect of the images.
Maid sweeping
Working with stencils allows Banksy to replicate his images rather easily, and this again allows the images to appear on different location. Each location adding to the image...
...and expanding it. The multiplication process is also interesting since the idea of originality is central in the art world. None of Banksy's works can be said to be the original and thereby a whole classification apparatus becomes meaningless. Yet most people within the art world would be hard pressed to that claim Banksy's works are not art, and the result is a conclusion that art must be more than originality and single works of greatness.
True, Andy Warhol has challenged this notion before - but just because one person has made a good argument, doesn't mean the argument shouldn't be repeated.
Altered Paris Hilton Promotion Poster
I also have an evil and mean side, and therefore I love the fact that Banksy is often rude.
Queen Victoria
Um...I have no words for this really. Go Queen Vic?
Soldiers in the dark
And sometimes he is rude and extremely political. I like that as well.
Petrol head
And sometimes all of this is mixed with a surreal sense of humour - which I love.