DRAWER

DRAWER EDIÇÃO ESPECIAL

FICHA TÉCNICA Design Identitário Manuel Costa Design Editorial Manuel Costa Paginação e Revisão Manuel Costa Autores Farah Andrews Sabrina DeTurk José Marmeleira JR Jori Finkel Pedro Alonzo The Art Story Urban Spree Stazer Janeiro, 2021 Design de Edição, DC, FBAUL

ÍNDICE EDITORIAL PAG. 2 O IMPACTO DA ARTE URBANA PAG. 4 Banksy: o ícone da arte urbana PAG. 5 The Banksy Effect PAG. 6 The Banksy Effect no Médio Oriente CARTAZ COMO MEDIUM PAG. 9 The poster as a communication medium PAG. 12 O cartaz ainda é uma arma? PAG. 14 JR - Inside Out Project PAG. 18 Shepard Fairey GRAFFITI Beginnings of Contemporary Graffiti PAG. 24 Martha Cooper x 1UP crew PAG. 26 Stazer, BSD PAG. 30 1

EDITORIAL O que arte urbana tem que o design (ainda) não tem? A Drawer explora o design segundo a perspetiva artística dentro do contexto da arte urbana. Procura-se encontrar as características que dotam a ocupação do espaço urbano na forma de arte urbana na maneira funcional de partilha de informação com que esta opera: o desenvolvimento da revista funciona como um exercício da compreensão e reflexão destas características para que se possam estabelecer estratégias conceptuais e formais aplicáveis ao design. Para cada número será convidado um artista, que em articulação com a equipa irá dirigir todo o processo: desde a escolha de conteúdos à edição da revista. Convidamos o artista People47 para nos acompanhar numa abordagem ao trabalho de vários artistas de arte urbana como Banksy, Shepard Fairy, JR, 1UP e Stazer. 2

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The “Banksy Effect” and Street Art in the Middle East o impacto da arte urbana Zayed University, College of Arts and Creative Enterprises Places and None Places O IMPACTO DA ARTE URBANA BANKSY: o ícone da arte urbana Once relegated to subway trains, abandoned buildings, and seemingly inaccessible areas of the urban landscape, street art has emerged in recent years as a critical element in political commentary on current events. This is in no small part due to the unprecedented rise of Banksy, a “writer” from the English city of Bristol whose anonymity, ubiquity and creativity have garnered him an international following among the art establishment and the general public. Banksy’s visual commentary on contemporary social and political concerns has taken many forms and his fame, public validation, and commercial success have helped pave the way for other street artists to emerge as key players in the global art market the so called “Banksy e ect.”This increased publicity and market for street art can be seen as a positive result of the Bansky e ect, but critics have argued that the popularity of Banksy’s work encourages the adoption of a similar visual style and has led to an over commercialization of the genre. This article summarizes the concept of the Banksy e ect, positions the term as a tool for critical discourse about street art, and uses the concept as a lens through which to analyze 22 three examples in the Middle East and North Africa: street art in the Palestinian territories; street art produced in Cairo during and after the revolution of 2011; and the Djerbahood project in Tunisia. The conclusion of this analysis is that the Banksy effect can be felt in both positive and negative ways in the rise of street art in the MENA region. The Banksy Effect The English street artist known as Banksy has in recent years become an important gure in the contemporary art world, garnering both critical acclaim and commercial success with his work. The “Banksy e ect” is a term coined to describe the increased interest in street art that has emerged in the wake of Banksy’s popularity. Although the Banksy e ect is not univer- 4

o impacto da arte urbana sally applauded, it o ers a useful lens through which to consider the emergence of street art as a means of popular expression in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. This paper considers three places in which street art has been intention- ally deployed as a vehicle of political protest or as a means to generate tourism in the face of political unrest: street art in the Palestinian territories; street art in Egypt, particularly Cairo; and the Djerbahood project in Tunisia. A brief discussion of the way in which street art is created and received in each particular area is provided, followed by some observations on how the Banksy e ect may be at play in that particular context. The paper concludes that the idea of the Banksy e ect has relevance in discussions of street art in the MENA region and that both the positive and negative aspects of the Banksy e ect are seen in the region. The pseudonymous English street artist Banksy has become a cultural phenomenon in the two decades or so since he emerged onto the art scene in the 1990s. His well crafted, stenciled works of street art provide satirical commentary on contemporary politics and social issues, or just on life itself, ways that are somewhat enigmatic, leaving the viewer to complete the meaning. In addition to his street works, Banksy also gained notoriety for the museum interventions that he performed occasionally for several years, beginning in 2003 with his insertion into a gallery of the Tate Britain an altered painting of an English landscape which he titled Crimewatch UK has Ruined the Countryside for All of Us. These incursions into the museum space share themes with his street art in their tongue in cheek questioning of authority, presentation of multiple avenues for interpretation and their subversion of popular expectations for images and text. By both utilizing and destabilizing of the museum environment, these works call into question a speciffic kind of authority: that of the art establishment itself. Banksy continually walks the line between joinning and rejecting that establishment. His choice of the street as the primary location for his imagery and the sarcasm he displays toward cultural authority suggest wholesale rejection of the ‘white box’ the gallery persuade to push acception of the audiences in the context of the Fine Arts. 5

o impacto da arte urbana The Banksy Effet no Médio Oriente Intervenção na Palestina From murals on the walls of destroyed family homes in Gaza to a hotel in Bethlehem, giant stencilled pieces on the Segregation Wall and an ironic travel campaign, elusive British street artist Banksy is no stranger to creating work in and about Palestine. Since the mid-2000s, identifiable pieces by the artist have been spotted in Gaza and the West Bank, with collections of his paintings dubbed ‘West Banksy’.The street artist rarely makes spoken statements, choosing instead to speak through his work. He is behind The Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem, located metres away from the West Bank barrier. Through the website’s FAQ section and gift shop, you get a clear sense of the artist’s political and ethical stance. “Just in case you weren’t sure what Banksy thinks about the wall (not a fan) his latest range of ‘souvenir collectables’ anticipate the day the concrete menace has been defeated and feral youth scribble on its skeletal remains,” the gift shop’s description reads. In the physical shop, you can buy a collection of ‘Defeated’ wall replicas. “For those of you concerned that making glorified tourist tat from military oppression is ethically dubious - there is at least the solace that each wall is lovingly hand-painted by craftspeople in the local area,” the website continues. His work often spotlights military oppression, with an Israeli solder asking a donkey for its ID in one piece, and a small Palestinian girl frisking a solider in another. In 2015, he released a tourism video about Gaza. “Make this the year you discover a new destination,” the caption sarcastically reads. “Welcome to Gaza.” “The locals like it so much they never leave,” the video goes on to say, showing footage of young children on a street, “because they’re not allowed to,” cutting to scenes of Israeli military. The tourism campaign is interspersed with facts about the occupation, and it shows the back of Banksy painting on a destroyed door. It also includes quotes from a Palestinian man, who draws attention to one of the paintings, a cat wearing a pink bow, saying: “This cat tells the whole world that she is missing joy in her life. The cat found something to play with. What about our children?”. The sub-two-minute film ends with a quote, spray-painted on a wall, which reads: 6

o impacto da arte urbana The Mild Wild West Banksy mural in Brooklyn, New York, about police and governamental repression Watch-tower Banksy street artwork in Palestine. This painting was done in Gaza Strip Wall. The artwork represents the astonishing normality that the western world looks to the war and its precedents The Cat Banksy street artwork in Palestine. This painting was done in the urban wreckage from recently destroyed house, close to Gaza Strip. 7



By C Tovar Samanez, 1987 cartaz como medium The poster as a communication medium The poster as a medium of communication serves to transmit a message by means of a graphical synthesis. It elicits attention by its originality, contrast, and focus on the center of interest. The poster is effective if the images and slogans can be identified easily. Its visual attractiveness is also essential. The understanding of the message is the function of the cultural characteristics of the public with symbols, metaphors, gestures, and detailed description. The appeal of the message allows the public to accept it on sensorial, emotional, social, intellectual, and economical levels. Adverse motivations should not be confused with the positive appeal (prejudice, preconceived ideas, and bias). Confusion and ambiguity can carry conflicting messages, therefore negative examples should be avoided. The force of the message targets the memory carrying conviction and calling to action. The target group and objective must be defined as to age, occupation, location, and sex. The message also has to be defined precisely for the target audience. It is in the analysis of the context whereby the poster is received as to notions of the target topic, alternative attitudes relative to the promotion of the message, obstacles that are encountered in the mentality of the target, and cultural characteristics of the target audience. The text of the slogan must be given before drawing the poster. The designing of the poster should be creative with association of ideas, metaphors and symbols, descriptive images, fusion of symbolic and descriptive forms, humor, the fusion of graphics with letters, and the fusion of letters with images. Completed forms of the poster use illustration, photography, typography, calligraphy, and photo montage. The turn page is presented The Barack Obama “Hope” poster is an image of Barack Obama designed by artist Shepard Fairey, which was widely described as iconic and came to represent his 2008 presidential campaign. It consists of a stylized stencil portrait of Obama in solid red, beige and blue, with the word “progress”, “hope” or “change” below. The design was created in one day and printed first as a street poster. It was then more widely distributed both as a digital image and other paraphernalia-during the 2008 election season, initially independent of, but with the approval from, the official Obama campaign. 9





cartaz como medium By José Marmeleira O cartaz ainda é uma arma? É um ricochete silencioso entre símbolos, corpos e rostos: Lenine, Che, Otelo, Nixon, Bush, Obama... Exposição “Ombro a Ombro: Retratos Políticos”, Mude, Lisboa. Esse diálogo suscita perguntas. Como esta: porque é que a política portuguesa não produz um cartaz com o impacto icónico daquele – o rosto de Obama – da autoria de Shepard Fairey? Os “outdoors” andam nas auto- estradas, as máquinas eleitorais preparam as campanhas e os políticos treinam para convencer o eleitorado. Estamos em ano de eleições (uma já passou, duas vêm a caminho) e, com sentido de oportunidade, o Mude - Museu do Design e da Moda, em Lisboa, recebe, até 13 de Setembro, uma imensa galeria de cartazes: “Ombro a Ombro: Retratos Políticos” (exposição comissariada por Christian Brändle, director do Museu de Design de Zurique). Estão lá Che, Lenine, Mussolini, Hitler, Mário Soares, Otelo, Barack Obama ou George W. Bush. Encenados por artistas, designers, propagandistas, com e sem assinatura. Os formatos, os estilos e os objectivos das imagens são diversos. Umas fazem o culto da personalidade, outra servem a campanha eleitoral clássica ou a simples propaganda. Todas, porém, permitem um reencontro do visitante com o passado e o presente da vida política. Uma parte de “Ombro a Ombro” também inclui retratos anódinos, limpos, esquecíveis, em particular os portugueses e aqueles produzidos pela publicidade política contemporânea, o que leva a perguntar: há qualidades estéticas no cartaz político? Ou este é necessariamente pouco criativo? “Têm sido muito raros os cartazes políticos dos últimos anos que dão vontade de pendurar em casa. Se um cartaz representar uma força de política de modo demasiado evidente arrisca-se então a que aliene indecisos e pessoas de outros partidos políticos. 12

cartaz como medium Por isso, são cada vez mais graficamente neutros e semelhantes entre si. Neste contexto, onde as orientações são pelo marketing e a publicidade, os designers pouco podem fazer: “Limitam-se a fazer o arranjo final da fotografia e do slogan sobre o papel. ContaM-se pelos dedos as que se apoiam sobre uma ideia gráfica”. Em Portugal, a criatividade no poster político teve o seu período áureo logo após o 25 de Abril. Mas a chegada do marketing, político alterou o cenário: “Nos finais dos anos 70, os partidos que em Portugal acabariam por dominar a cena política já tinham alguma empresarialização, mas era muito pequena. Foi com as candidaturas do presidente e Ramalho Eanes e a consolidação da democracia que a profissionalização na propaganda política se concretizou no país”. Apareceram as agências que de comunicação e a publicidade e a sua utilização aumentou numa dinâmica inversamente proporcional à militância partidária. A realidade alterara-se: “Os partidos não eram os mesmos de há 30, 40 anos quando eram partidos de militantes.” Determinado como um meio específico, neutro, esvaziado de ideologia, o cartaz político, feito de papel, para estar na rua, tem hoje uma presença mais modesta na actividade política. Para Mário Moura, onde os designers têm maior liberdade para trabalhar com os cartazes “é nos partidos pequenos e nas outras causas mais independentes”. As imagens criadas são menos eficazes, “mas a longo prazo podem tornar ícones poderosos que são frequentemente apropriados por diferentes grupos, ideologias e partidos ou produtos. Os cartazes baseados na figura de Che são um bom exemplo”. Em suma, o cartaz ainda é uma arma. Mais discreta ou eficaz, com poder de fogo diminuído, continua a existir nos “outdoors”, internet, nas caravanas partidárias. 13

cartaz como medium About InsideOut Project By JR, 2011 INSIDE OUT PROJECT JR exhibits freely in the streets of the world, catching the attention of people who are not typical museum visitors. In 2006, he created Portrait of a Generation, portraits of suburban “thugs” that he posted, in huge formats, in the bourgeois districts of Paris. This illegal project became “official” when the Paris City Hall wrapped its building with JR’s photos. In 2007, with Marco, he made Face 2 Face, the biggest illegal exhibition ever. JR posted huge portraits of Israelis and Palestinians face to face in eight Palestinian and Israeli cities. In 2008, he embarked on a long international trip for Women Are Heroes, in which he underlines the dignity of women who are often the targets of conflicts, and created The Wrinkles of the City. In 2010, his film Women Are Heroes was presented at Cannes. In 2011 he received the TED Prize, after which he created Inside Out, an international participatory art project that allows people worldwide to get their picture taken and paste it to support an idea and share their experience. He has since created the Unframed project where images that exhibit the past of a neighborhood or city are interpreted and re-contextualized in present day through JR’s pastings. In 2013, his film based off his project, Inside Out: The People’s Art Project premiered at Tribeca FIlm Festival. Inside Out continued to grow with Photobooth trucks bringing the process directly to the streets in locations such as New York, Amsterdam, London, and Paris. As of April 2014, nearly 200,000 people from more than 112 countries have participated. In 2014, he collaborated with the New York City Ballet for their Art Series, and choreographed his own ballet based off his beginnings. As he remains anonymous and doesn’t explain his huge full-frame portraits of people making faces, JR leaves the space empty for an encounter between the subject/protagonist and the passer-by/interpreter. That is what JR’s work is about, raising questions… 14

cartaz como medium On March 2, 2011, JR won the TED prize at the TED Conference in Long Beach, California, and called for the creation of a global participatory art project with the potential to change the world. This project is called INSIDE OUT. Inspired by JR’s large format street \"pastings\", INSIDE OUT gives everyone the opportunity to share their portrait and make a statement for what they stand for. It is a global platform for people to share their untold stories and transform messages of personal identity into works of public art. Each INSIDE OUT group action around the world is documented, archived and exhibited online. Over 260,000 people have participated in 129 countries. The INSIDE OUT project has traveled from Ecuador to Nepal, from Mexico to Palestine, inspiring group actions on varied themes such as hope, diversity, gender-based violence, climate change... RESISTANCE - TEHRAN, IRAN 1st of 6 Portraits - 2011 STATEMENT The inalienable human right to spiritual freedom. 15

cartaz como medium Inside Out Project Onten Iran Intervention - Brooklyn, USA While Saman Arbabi was trying to work on a video report about JR’s Inside Out Project for “OnTen,” a weekly Persian language political satire show, he learned that even though thousands of the people worldwide have participated in JR’s project, only one of them was from Iran. So Saman decided that the best way to illustrate his story, which aired on the day of the Iranian elections, was to create his own version of JR’s street art. Saman and the OnTen production team used pictures of 40 of people who were killed in the uprisings following the Iranian presidential elections in 2009. The images occupy a 20-foot by 50-foot area on the well known Bushwick Art Park in Brooklyn. Wanting to give these images a different treatment than the other Inside Out images, colored television bars were used enliven the black and white photos of the deceased. It’s presented a part of the photografies used in the course of the JR and Saman Arbabi’s project. 16

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cartaz como medium SHEPARD FAIREY By Jori Finkel, 2017 DAMAGE exposition By just about any measure, it’s been a long time since the street artist Shepard Fairey managed to capture the optimism of Barack Obama’s candidacy in his “Hope” poster, the stylized portrait in red, white and blue tones that easily ranks as the most famous, also ubiquitous, artwork of 2008. Mr. Fairey’s oldest daughter, then 2 years old, is now almost a teenager. The “Hope” image became the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit by The Associated Press that was both expensive and embarrassing for the artist. Mr. Fairey, who is 47, has since gone on to create art for activist movements like Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter and the Women’s March. And now “Damaged” - his biggest gallery show yet, with about 200 new paintings, prints and illustrations made since 2015 - is set to open on Nov. 11 in a Chinatown warehouse, the same day a documentary on the artist has its premiere on Hulu. The mood of the exhibition: what happens when hope gets trampled but not killed. “Our approach to the knowned environment is damaged, our political system is damaged and our communication with each other, especially through social media that is deteriorating,” Mr. Fairey said, ticking off themes in his new work. “But this show is not all about me being angry and apocalyptic; I’m trying to diagnose problems and move forward.” His own sense of injustice has shaped many of his new, politically loaded artworks. Some take on the current administration’s efforts to restrict the flow of immigrants from certain countries. Others focus on what he sees as continuing Wall Street excesses and destructive environmental policies. He has also produced a newspaper for the show called “The Damaged Times,” containing his own art 18

cartaz como medium and fake ads, alongside articles he commissioned. The logo looks like it’s been sliced with a razor blade. Still, much of the new work looks surprisingly friendly. Some mixed media paintings use rich blue and gold colors, not just his previous, propaganda-style palette of red and black. They incorporate floral patterns, not just news clippings. And they feature stylized or idealized images of women: African, Mexican American, Asian American or Middle Eastern, that he hopes will drive home the point of the show. As his mainstream popularity has grown, his reputation within the street art community has suffered. “Shepard has had rock star success, and part of the community that prides itself as indie, counterculture and anti-establishment feels betrayed that he’s become so successful,” said Pedro Alonzo, who co-curated the artist’s 2009 retrospective for the ICA Boston. “I’m doing things that I feel are ethically consistent with the issues I care about. I’m working hard to support the right causes.” 19

cartaz como medium By Shepard Fairey, 2020 Hug Bombs and Drop Babies (right page) Hug Bombs and Drop Babies make sense, yet people follow the words of the President. is a clever poster that contains With his Obey logo, he is two sets of phrases that are explaining to people that while ironic yet create a sense of they most likely obey Bush, ambiguity. The set of phrases his words may not make any in smaller font at the top sense at all, such as a case of describes the irony between doublethink. He desires that the government’s struggle to people become critical thinkers continue to maintain global and analyze information wisely supremacy and their political before digesting it. The other slogans referencing their vain set of phrases refer to Bush’s acts of hugging babies to offensive campaign in the demonstrate their care for Middle East. The poster also people. They claim that they demonstrates although one want to keep the United States may have a good reason to go strong internationally in order to war, fighting the war itself to care for the youth. Yet the will cause even more problems, government needs to use and will ultimately reverse any children to fight in battle and progress towards to achieving possibly die in order to protect the original purpose. Thus, war this global supremacy. This is essentially needless. counter-intuitive logic does not The Arab Woman (turn page) Shepard Fairey created this evoking a humanizing effect image of an Arab woman on a group of people that three years after the start are often misrepresented as of the second Gulf War. The threatening. The artist intends work is a response to the to stimulate humanity and extreme anti-Islamic rhetoric compassion, that can challenge of the time. With this piece, preconceived notions about Fairey confronts the notion Muslims, otherwise perceived of collective blame directed as the enemy. The floral design against all Arabs. Fairey portrays of Turkish origin is intended to her as a characteristically strong subconsciously evoke a unified woman, who looks directly at appreciation of beauty and the viewer, confidently but no function as a bridge between menacingly. Her countenance the West and the Middle East, is appealing and relatable, that brings us all together. 20







graffti Dondi,New York, 1980 Born in New York, Dondi White is a legend of the graffiti world. Original from Brooklyn, Donald Joseph White his real name, was considered one of the most influencial urban artists in history. Photography by Martha Cooper, whose been registanting various New York subcultues since the 70’s decade. 24

graffti From tThe Art Story, 2020 Beginnings of Contemporary Graffiti Contemporary graffiti dates to the late 1960s, generally said to have arisen from the Black and Latino neighborhoods of New York City alongside hip-hop music and street subcultures, and catalyzed by the invention of the aerosol spray can. Early graffiti artists were commonly called \"writers\" or \"taggers\" (individuals who write simple \"tags,\" or their stylized signatures, with the goal of tagging as many locations as possible.) Indeed, the fundamental underlying principle of graffiti practice was the intention to \"get up,\" to have one's work seen by as many people as possible, in as many places as possible. The exact geographical location of the first \"tagger\" is difficult to pinpoint. Some sources identify New York (specifically taggers Julio 204 and Taki 183 of the Washington Heights area), and others identify Philadelphia (with tagger Corn Bread) as the point of origin. Yet, it goes more or less undisputed that New York \"is where graffiti culture blossomed, matured, and most clearly distinguished itself from all prior forms of graffiti,\" as Eric Felisbret, former graffiti artist and lecturer, explains. Soon after graffiti began appearing on city surfaces, subway cars and trains became major targets for New York City’s early graffiti writers and taggers, as these vehicles traveled great distances, allowing the writer’s name to be seen by a wider audience. The subway rapidly became the most popular place to write, with many graffiti artists looking down upon those who wrote on walls. Sociologist Richard Lachmann notes how the added element of movement made graffiti a uniquely dynamic art form. He writes, “Much of the best graffiti was meant to be appreciated in motion, as it passed through dark and dingy stations or on elevated tracks. Photos and graffiti canvases cannot convey the energy and aura of giant artwork in motion.” Graffiti on subway cars began as crude, simple tags, but as tagging became increasingly popular, writers had to find new ways to make their names stand out. Over the next few years, new calligraphic styles were developed and tags turned into large, colorful, elaborate pieces, aided by the realization that different spray can nozzles (also referred to as “caps”) from other household aerosol products (like oven cleaner) could be used on spray paint cans to create varying effects and line widths. It did not take long for the crude tags to grow in size, and to develop into artistic, colorful pieces that took up the length of entire subway cars. 251

graffti From The Bridge of Graffiti, 2020 MARTHA COOPER x 1UP CREW One Week With 1UP Martha Cooper is a documentary photographer who has specialized in shooting graffiti and street art for over thirty-five years. Her books include Subway Art, a collaboration with Henry Chalfant, R.I.P.: Memorial Wall Art, Hip Hop Files 1980-1984, We B*Girlz, Street Play, New York State of Mind, Tag Town, Going Postal, and Tokyo Tattoo 1970. She lives in Manhattan but can frequently be found at street art festivals worldwide. In 1978 I was one of 15 staff photographer of the New York Post, a daily newspaper located in a building in lower Manhattan. We cruised around in cars waiting to be sent out on assignment through 2-way radios which connected to the photo editor as mobile phones weren’t available. In addition to the ever-breaking news stories, we were supposed to look for random feature photos called “weather” shots. As I headed back to the Post each day to develop my film, I began to take a route through Alphabet City, Avenues A, B, C, and D to see if I could find anything interesting. At the time this neighbourhood was full of vacant lots and abandoned buildings, forbidding to adults but enticing to kids. I began taking photos of children playing creatively, often with toys they fashioned from trash. One day a boy showed me a notebook with sketches and explained that he had been practicing to paint his name, on walls. That was the first time I understood that the graffiti letters I saw everywhere were actually nicknames. I was fascinated by the idea that kids were designing their names before writing them in public. He3 offered to introduce me to a king and the king turned out to be Dondi. Dondi allowed me to enter the fascinating world of graffiti. In 1980, I quit my well-paying, union job in order to spend more time trying to photograph freshly painted trains. Some people thought I was crazy but it’s a decision I’ve never regretted. 26 Dondi in yard (silhouette), 1980

graffti One Week With 1UP: the exhibition Smile painted with an extinguisher in metro tunnel by 1UP CREW, Germany, 2017 One Week with 1UP is a unique photographic There is also an impressive wall sculpture & art project involving the legendary NYC compression (« Letters of Power 2.0 ») which is photographer Martha Cooper, the Berlin-based made of thousands of used-in-action spray cans, photographer Ninja K. and the Berlin-based, cut with high pressure water for 24 hours, and world-famous vandal graffiti crew 1UP. covered with thick layers of resin. There are only The book and the exhibition One Week with 1UP, two similar pieces ever made by the crew: one is forge a unique bond between the most-known on display at the Urban Nation museum in Berlin documentary photographer of the graffiti and hip and the other at Urban Spree Galerie. hop scenes since the late 1970s and the world’s The exhibition « One Week with 1UP » represents largest and fearless crew of the 21st century. a unique chance for collectors to acquire original While the show predominantly exhibits the works as well as a historic series of photographs. photographs, it also shows for the first time art The book One Week with 1UP is a unique, behind- installations and paintings from the crew. the-scenes document in a well representation of Among these, we can mention a stunning triptych the graffiti scene in Germany. painted in situ with a fire extinguisher filled with black acrylic paint – one of the crew’s outdoor 27 signature tools.

From URBAN SPREE, 2018 graffti 1UP esculture, with smashed graffiti cans, ensembled with epoxy 1UP, painted on canvas 28

graffti 1UP graffiti, painted on 3 subway cars 1UP extinguisher, painted on canvas The One Week With 1UP exhibition explores various ways to explain and represent graffiti with an adaptation of a language that aproximates the work of the crew to the gallery scene. Sculpture, paintings on canvas and photografy are the principal mediuns used to explain the subculture through all the exhibition. 29

graffti

graffti STAZER, BSD Interview Staze In the year of 2000 the whole city got buffed - BSD (crew), 12S (crew), Parisian. that was a major setback to us. It was terrible I choose the name Staze because I was looking to see the work of 3-4 generations get buffed. for a name with a good sound a good letter They washed away a piece of our history - a combination. piece of our culture. The whole city ended up boring with nothing to look at when you were For me, graffiti is primarily a game - a very walking around or sitting on the bus looking out addictive game- painting different types of the windows. I pay attention to the buff more surfaces, a feeling only other writers can now - using ink that is harder to buff. I don’t care understand. Bombing a truck with a 15 millimeter about the costs of removing graffiti from the mop, feeling the nib sliding across the metal is walls of the city. With the advertisements put up an incredible feeling. The adrenaline rush from all around the city, they can afford getting rid of doing something illegal, it’s a way to fuck the the graffiti in Paris if they want. Even politicians system and to feel free. A way to be outside of use wheat paste posters for their campaigns. society. We are told that graffiti is bad, when all it really is is paint on a surface. I started writing I try to paint at least one time per week. Both graffiti in 1995. A few years ago, I had a crisis, day and night time. If not paint for 10 days or want to do illegal graft, climbing to reach new more, my fingers get itchy, but it happens rarely walls and hide from police, before it’s too late. that I’m not out getting up. Quantity or quality? You got to respect quantity, but without any I’m not consciously trying to cover the whole kind of quality, it’s kinda bullshit. You need at city district by district. Bombing just became least some kind of style. Quality before quantity. a basic need for me. I paint some in central My eyes don’t rest on to much legal graffiti and Paris, mostly when foreigners are visiting, but I commissioned work. I’m not into wild style, a lot prefer to paint in the suburbs. Spots will not get of colours, effects, gradients and complicated buffed as quick as in the inner city. I don’t sketch backgrounds. I like rough styles with a lot of too much, so to be effective I have a simple impact, simple lettering and not too many style. A basic style with some small add-ons for colours. Illegal graffiti is the essence of graffiti. throw-ups and pieces. There’s a lot of surfaces to enjoy yourself on in Paris. It’s a dirty city. Not Graffiti on the internet? There’s always been getting cleaned as much as in let’s say Tokyo fanzines. So you could follow what was going on and London. Sometimes I see a dirty rusty gate abroad. With Instagram, Tumblr and Youtube, that I put tog on. Then gets buffed, a rectangle you get all new gaff in real time - it’s hard to of paint over it, leaving all the dirt around tag. keep your work to yourself. I’m not really taking During some periods of time there’s more buff, a part of what everyone is commenting on but if you go hard, you will be able to be really forums, feeds and such - it’s usually 90% hate up in about six months. from jealous people. Nothing constructive. People at home, sitting around doing nothing I paint both daytime a nd during the night - solo but wasting time criticizing other peoples work. or with someone. Usually, people that pass by Something I never understood. It’s a new era. wont mind that you paint, but sometimes people We used to have to get out in the street to look get angry and start talking to you - asking you at graffiti. Finding a nice piece or a throw was questions: Why are you doing this? What does like a much in the face. As it is now, you’ve got it say? And if it’s the police only thing you can everything available on your computer or phone hope for is luck. Usually, that happens when and when you see something on the street, the we’re more people out bombing. Sometimes chances are big that you’ve already seen it. they charge you for a tag, but sometimes they let you off the hook after painting throw ups on three trucks. 31





graffti From Tags and Throws Series, 2016 I’ve painted in Asia - Thailand and Laos. In Bangkok there’s almost no buff. You know that your tags and throws will be up for years. That shit is deadly. In addition to that, there’s so many roll downs to paint. It looks like it was made for graffiti. And the cans are one euro each. It’s a fresh graffiti scene that’s been growing the last couple of years. I’ve painted a little in Lisbon, Portugal and in Italy. The way Naples is killed made me want to go back again soon. There’s a lot of places I want to visit to paint - New York of course - the Mecca of graffiti. Besides that, I would like to go to South America, especially Chile - I want to paint Valparaiso. I like to paint spots that are seen. Easy access. A wall, a gate, a truck - a quick feel of the situation and then bam - it’s painted! And first and foremost - it will be seen. At least for a longer time than a subway or a long distance train. It’s a bigger risk going into the yards. A lot of risk for a piece that might only be in traffic for a day. Whilst if you do a throw in the streets and it get’s buffed in one day - you’re really unlucky. One of my best nights out was in Bangkok during martial law. Curfew between 10pm and 5pm. No one outside. I was with Druide and Quest BSD. Big up to them. Bangkok burned that night. We could’ve walked around there with a shopping cart filled with cans. Staze made part of the MONOCHROME project. MONOCHROME project is a series of graffiti videos, all with a black-and-chrome feeling, by Spraydaily.com. Simple short videos featuring one writer and three cans in each episode. One chrome piece on one clean wall by one selected graffiti writer for each episode. The registration of graffiti with a solid base or starting point such as MONOCHROME offers, can function as an archive that show us an horizontal, but very positive perspective of graffiti. Through all the videos we spot a pattern of conception, what puts them in a spectrum that can help us understand, compare and evaluate different styles and influences of graffiti. 34