Street ArtStreet art is an art form as old as time. Even before there were streets, people were using pigments and anything else that would stick to rock to express political and social issues of the day.
The fast-paced 21st Century global society is no exception. The modern-day has seen street art legitimized in the eyes of culture as a medium filled with modern-day social commentary prophets and using spray paint to say the things most people can’t bring themselves to think about.
In Iran, a street artist known as ehsa 50, stenciled his (or her) take on evolution – four figures – man evolving from ape into soldier carrying an assault rifle.
The Wooster Collective (a blog based in the SoHo area of New York City) veteran street artist Blek Le Rat’s recent stencil shows a young girl in pink tutu and blue tights half-heartedly aiming two revolvers at a street artist dressed in black, wearing a gas mask, and clutching his spray paint.
Now well-known British street artist Banksy, remains pseudo-anonymous, though he has even achieved some commercial success for his art. His precision free-hand style and phenomenal work with stencils make him difficult to ignore.
Banksy’s more well-known forays into political and social commentary on the streets of London include the following:
• At Bristol Zoo, he painted the message 'I want out. This place is too cold. Keeper smells. Boring, boring, boring.' in the elephant enclosure.
• In May 2005 Banksy's version of a primitive cave painting depicting a human figure hunting wildlife whilst pushing a shopping trolley was found hanging in the British Museum, London. When it was discovered, the museum added it to their permanent collection.
Banksy has also placed subverted pieces of his work into major museums around the world including the Tate Modern in London, Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Brooklyn Museum, and the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He even traveled all the way to Chiapas, Mexico to leave his mark in solidarity with the Zapatista movement for indigenous people of Chiapas.
And the list goes on.
Other street artists who’ve garnered global attention for their talent and socio-political commentary include SPACE INVADER, Swoon, Twist, Zevs, 108, ORB, Ellis Gallagher, Judith Supine, Neckface, PunkSinatra and Os Gemeos.
Some street artists who’ve been commercially successful include Shepard Fairey, Faile, Kaws and Buffmonster.
Look into your local street artists. The subject matter is as compelling as the artistic techniques used by these innovative people.
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