one topic. five videos.
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2 votes)
Getting Up! Five Videos on Graffiti
Instead of hiding in an ivory tower, urban art embraces spaces that are seen by hundreds, if not thousands, of people each day. Billboards off multi-lane highways, busy intersections, and bus stops have become the new museums. By circumventing the closed art world street artists are able to communicate directly with a mass audience (not unlike the online video v. cinema thing). I don't know that graffiti will save the world, negate advertising, and/or teach us about design over commerce. Still, I love living in LA, spotting Visual Narcotics out the window of my car, or finding dope pieces in East LA.
That said, a quick disclaimer. I'm not an expert on graffiti, I kind of played around at tagging for a little while, but have no delusions about my talent or knowledge of the movement. The videos I've selected here illustrate the method/practice of writing, its political potential, humorous side, and technology. If you hate my list, think I'm a "toy," or know better write your own damn list.
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1
Time Lapse Graffiti Writing
As the maker says in the video description, he doesn't really do graffiti. Still, the time lapse does a lot to demonstrate how much work goes into these acts of vandalism. Next time someone tells you they hate that dang graffiti, you might remind them that most are artists who genuinely practice and plan their work. Also I have no interest in weighing in on the punk, hip hop, or rock debate... listen to what you want, paint what you want, move on. |
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2
Banksy on the wall between Israel and Palestine
Call me an idealist, but I really believe that graffiti makes urban space a lot prettier. This video, which is footage from the Channel 4 story on Banksy stenciling the wall between Israel and Palestine. The wall, as planned, will span 700 miles and create huge slabs of blank concrete-- perfect for graffiti artists. Banksy hopes that the wall will become "largest free speech zone in the world." This happened to the Berlin Wall too, by the time it came down in 1989 it was covered in art. |
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3
Graffiti Machine
So this is, technically, a little far away from "the street--" in a science lab, in fact. I really like this video of of a spray paint powered wall painter. While the commenters are right, this may not be a particularly practical application of technology, it does have a lot of potential. Not to mention, I like to imagine that this came about because some cool scientists wanted to paint on walls, but couldn't really draw. Might not be true, but it is what I think. |
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4
Lego Train Bombing
Even kids have to get in on the action! Actually, the more accurate statement might be that the responsible kid inside us, who wouldn't actually write on a wall but would spend hours playing with Legos, needs to get in on the action. This video is the reason I decided to dedicate my high-five to graffiti. |
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5
Visual Narcotics
This is just a personal/LA shout-out. I see the 20mg stuff everywhere and love it. You don't see this shape very much in the urban environment, so I always notice them and they always make me smile. |
