Module: Theory and History for Senior Students Course Code: AVI 4M ‘Street’ artists attempt to have their work communicate with everyday people about socially relevant themes. Whereas traditional artists have primarily used free-hand aerosol paints to produce their works, "" encompasses many other media and techniques.

Street art is a label often adopted by artists who wish to keep their work unaffiliated and strongly political. Street artists AND STREET ART are those whose work is still largely done without official Street art is any art developed in public spaces and usually approval in public areas. It is sometimes considered "post- refers to unsanctioned art. The term can include traditional graffiti" and sometimes even "neo-graffiti." Street art can be graffiti artwork, sculpture, graffiti, , wheat found around the world and street artists often travel to other pasting and , video projection, art intervention, countries foreign to them so they can spread their designs. , flash mobbing and street installations. Typically, the term street art or the more specific post-graffiti is used to *main source for biographies and art movements is distinguish contemporary public-space artwork from territorial http://en.wikipedia.org/ graffiti, vandalism, and corporate art.

a Banksy tag.

Because I'm Worthless. Banksy, aka Robin Gunningham. BANKSY (1974 - ) Banksy is the pseudonym for an England-based graffiti artist, political activist, film director, and painter. A British newspaper claims that Banksy’s real name is Robin Gunningham. His satirical street art combines irreverent dark humour done in a distinctive stencilling technique. His political and social com- mentary have been featured on streets, walls, and bridges of cities throughout the world. Banksy was born in 1974 and raised in Bristol, England. He became involved in graffiti during the great Bristol aerosol boom of the late 1980s. Observers have noted that his style is similar to , who began to work with in 1981 in . Banksy displays his art on public surfaces such as walls even going as far as to build physical prop pieces. Banksy does not sell photos of street graffiti himself; however, art auctioneers have been known to attempt to sell his street art on location. Banksy's first film, "ExitThrough the Gift Shop" made its debut at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. In 2011, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documen- tary. Banksy began as a freehand graffiti artist in 1990–1994. From the start he used stencils as elements of his freehand pieces but by 2000 he had turned to the art of stencilling to save time. He claims he changed to stencilling hiding from the police under a garbage truck and noticed the stencilled serial number.

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Banksy. "I Love New York". Graffiti in New York. 2010 In August 2004, Banksy produced a quantity of fake British £10 notes substituting the picture of the Queen's head with Diana and changing the text to "Banksy of England". The individual notes have since been selling on eBay for about £200 each. A limited run of 50 signed posters containing ten uncut notes were also produced one selling for £24,000. On a trip to the Palestinian territories, Banksy created nine images on the Israeli West Bank wall and in 2006 he held an exhibition in Los Angeles. The exhibition featured a live "elephant in a room," painted in a pink and gold wallpaper pattern to draw attention to the issue of world poverty. In late August 2008, marking the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina Banksy produced a series of works in New Orleans. His exhibition in New York, the "Village Pet Store And Charcoal Grill," opened in 2008. Animatronic pets in the store window included a mother hen watching over her baby Chicken Mc- Nuggets as they peck at a barbecue sauce packet. In early May 2010, seven new Banksy pieces appeared in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, though most have been subsequently painted over or removed. BANKSY MATURE PERIOD | 2000 -

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Blek Le Rat. Graffiti in London. 2008 Blek Le Rat [1952 – ] Blek le Rat, born Xavier Prou in Paris in 1952, was one of the first graffiti artists in Paris, and has been described as the “Father of ". He began his artwork in 1981, painting stencils of rats on the street walls of Paris.His name originates from a childhood cartoon "Blek le Roc", using "rat" as an anagram for "art". Initially influenced by the early graffiti art of New York City after a visit in 1971, he chose a style which he felt better suited Paris. He is credited with being the inventor of the life-sized stencil, as well as the first to transform stencil from basic lettering into pictorial art. Blek's identity was revealed to French authorities in 1991. He has had a great influence on today's graffiti art and "guerilla art" movements, the main motivation of his work being social consciousness and the desire to bring art to the people. In October 2006, Blek le Rat had his first solo U.K. exhibition in London. He participated in the Cans Festival in 2008, which featured outdoor street stencil painting in. His American gallery debut took place in Los Angeles in 2008. It included paintings, silkscreen and three-dimensional artwork, and photography from his wife. Blek also had an exhibition in December 2009 in Melbourne Australia entitled; "Le Ciel Est Bleu, La Vie Est Belle" featuring wooden panels, canvas, screen-print and photographs. Blek le Rat has expressed preference for the streets over galleries, stating the integrity of an artist is to be seen by as many people as possible, not being sold or recognized in a museum. BLEK LE RAT'S STYLE Subject Matter:

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Blu, Graffiti in Milan. 2009 Blu [19?? – ] Blu is the pseudonym of an Italian artist who conceals his real identity. He lives in Bologna and has been active in street art since 1999. Blu’s fame began in 1999, thanks to a series of illicit graffiti painted in Bologna. In the early years of his career his technique was limited to the use of spray paint. Starting in 2004, some art galleries noticed Blu’s artistic value and invited him to take part in one- man shows. Throughout his entire career Blu has limited his presence in the official art world. His nomadic spirit reached its peak in 2005 when Blu spent most of his time in traveling. He collaborated with several artists from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras. On that occasion he painted a wall called Hombre Banano (Banana Man), referring to the protest of the workers on banana plantations. The following year he returned to Central and South America for a series of in Mexico City, Guatemala City, Managua, San José (Costa Rica), and Buenos Aires. From the Fall of 2007 to the Spring of 2008, he lived in Buenos Aires, devoting all his efforts to the creation of a video called Muto (Silent). It received many international awards, and has been seen by 7 million-plus viewers on YouTube. This video is composed of hundreds of paintings on walls, made throughout many streets of Buenos Aires and, frame by frame, creates more than seven minutes of an animated . Italy more than any other country, has the majority of Blu’s graffiti. Italian cities where Blu has left his mark are Bologna, Milan, Prato, Florence, Turin, Ancona, Rovereto, Verona and Pesaro. Besides draw- ing and painting Blu makes use of digital media. His income comes from the sale of multiples, like silk- screen prints, in those few galleries which represent him, or through the sale of self-made editions. BLU'S MATURE STYLE Subject Matter:

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