#streetartreviews

[afikasi]

Ricasso. 2017. Artist: Richard Ricasso. Medium: Human being. As I head outside for a cigarette on Saturday night, a giant canvas traversing the sidewalk caught my attention. "It's not every day you see a canvas with legs!" I declared. The canvas stopped in its tracks, turned and drew near. "I'm glad you like it! This is my home!" "Your home?" I enquired of the now apparent man behind the canvas. "Yes! But it's a work in progress, you see. I draw a few flowers every day and then set them alight so as to set the paint." "Your home?" I repeated, unsure how to correctly respond. He lay his house down on the pavement and gave me a tour. "This lake is where I would like to live one day. These flowers and trees will be my garden, and this cabin. Do you see the cabin?" "Yes, I see the cabin." "This cabin is where I would like to live one day. When I'm not homeless that is. But for now this canvas provides cover when it rains, and in that sense, the cabin is already my home." I was spellbound. "Let me show you how I make my flowers! You can film it too if you like." I insisted he wait whilst I fetched my camera capable phone and a few beers. We talked as old friends on the sidewalk as he showed me his art. A woman was drawn with coal, hairspray was set on fire and Ricasso (as he called himself) kept informing a man who appeared to be talking in cyclical yet incomplete sentences to "Go away and come back after our business meeting has finished." Afterward I pondered how to review actual street art. Actual art, made by a person on the street, who owned nothing but his art. Even to the point of living in and under it. Ricasso himself, I posited, was the art. His works merely an extension of the masterpiece of his persona. Enveloped in his passion, he appears to have forsaken anything but. Possibly flawed, yet absolutely beautiful. I cannot bring myself to satirise our encounter. It was magic without illusion. #streetartreviews #streetart #street #art #ricasso #ladbrokegrove #nottinghill #homeless #homelessness #human #humanbeing #london #2017 #portobelloroad (at Portobello Road, Notting Hill, London.)

[afikasi]

A beautiful reader submission. Artist unknown. Complex issues displayed with such simplicity. An eye opening piece. #streetartreviews #street #art #streetart #freemarketeconomy #consumerism #happiness #london #ectomorph

[afikasi]

Conolialism. 2016. Artist unknown. Medium: Painted traffic cone beside traffic sign. The humble traffic cone has been promoted beyond its typical orange hue and has received decorative white brandings to demonstrate its authority. Beside it, a message has been placed advising of non thoroughfare, however given the position of the arrow below the aforementioned imperative, it appears that the messages intended target is is our protagonist, the cone. Despite the goal of hindering access beyond this point so that the powers that be may go about their exploitative activities, our conical friend has in doing so, hindered itself. Is this hindrance a result of being too orange? Is it from being too white? Perhaps it is neither and only exists within the mind of our thermoplastic hero due to societal conditioning. I must say, I am a fan of the broody poetic undertones of this piece, however I do feel as if it is lacks with regard to cohesion and leaves us with more questions than I would care to ponder. A simple elegant piece, yet falls a little flat on execution. #streetartreviews #street #art #cone #traffic #sign

[afikasi]

The atheist. 2017. Artist unknown. Medium: Mop and bucket in a canal. The famous phrase of cleanliness being next to godliness was first popularised in a 1778 sermon by John Wesley. Here, the artist takes this idea and attempts to apply it in an opposite sense, showing the defenestration of attempts at godliness by way of a bucket and mop cast into a reflective pool of buildings. Symbolic of human ambition and achievement, the buildings appear intentionally skewed as if to show that our carnal and worldly efforts are only a mirage of what god has in store for his chosen lambs. The red, being a warning signal in nature and also a colour symbolic of sexual arousal, both beckons those who may fall by the wayside whilst simultaneously remonstrating those who remain faithful. Inversion of all of this works individual properties, cleaning supplies and skyline, indicate the the artists view of opposing ideals between the just and heathen. Whatever your own personal philosophy regarding where we all come from and where we are to go, it does seem that we rarely see such religious pieces as this in the modern era, and it is always a wonderful treat to see such emotive thought on display. A masterful use of environmental minimalism. #streetartreviews #streetart #streetartistry #streetartlondon #street #art #london #mop #bucket #atheist #atheism #reflection #review #minimalism

[afikasi]

Existential crisis. 2017. Artist unknown. Medium: Balloon on sidewalk. Whilst I am typically a fan of subtlety, I have to say that I enjoy the artists brash depictions in this piece. A half deflated balloon draws a picture in the audience's psyche of one defeated by life's burdens. Once shining in its own reflective brilliance, it is now discarded haphazardly upon the sidewalk smelling faintly of urine. In a time gone by, the words expressed were optimistic about things to come, new opportunities and possible growth, however through drifting on the wind or perhaps even purposeful placement on the ground by one more powerful than itself it has lost purpose, been folded, remoulded and now only declares "Ha Birth" as if to say it's very existence were merely a joke, despite its prior joviality. It is said that comedy is born from tragedy, but here the artist casts aside homages to these old ideas an suggests neither comedy nor tragedy is a thing without a birth first occurring. But is one able to choose which of the two one will become? And if so, does it really even matter given the inextricable link between the two? One can only hope that, given the artistic potential clearly displayed here, the artist is able to overcome their inner turmoil and continue creating such riveting works, and I am personally glad they survived 2016. An engagingly honest piece. #streetartreviews #balloon #ha #birth #happybirthday #happy #birthday #sidewalk #pavement #art #street #streetart #london #review #artistswhosurvived2016

[afikasi]

From whence we came. 2016. Artist unknown. Medium: Permanent marker on painted cinder block. Despite the belief differences between evolutionists and creationists, one thing that does share common ground is the concept of paternity, be it the doctrine of God as a Heavenly Father or the biology involved in the formation of a zygote. It is interesting that the artist has chosen to leave the phallus shadowed as it is, with merely a simple explosive shape denoting ejaculation, being exposed to the light. One might assume this shows the artists favouritism toward the evolutionist argument, given the star shape's light exposure, creating in the mind of the viewer the image of the illumination that is born from stars, as are we in this sense, but also the mental illumination we have acquired as a collective to understand such theories. Carl Sagan is oft quoted as saying "We're made of star stuff", yet here the artist demonstrates that the "We" Sagan speaks of, is not merely the human race, but all life on Earth. At this point the absence of an obvious maternal figure becomes quite clear. The mother has been present all along. She is the canvas itself, strong and unassuming, with the capacity to bare all that is required of her, if not more. Finally, the presence of skeletal sperm reminds us of life's frailties, human, shark or otherwise. This piece does invoke ideation of unity amongst species and I would have to say is one of the most influential I have encountered in 2016. Undoubtedly, a remarkable work. #streetartreviews (at Brisbane, Australia)

[afikasi]

Red. 2016. Artist unknown. Medium: Spraypaint on fence. Given our insistence on calling the modern era "the age of information", the artist takes time out to explore the rampant disinformation present in many of the respected voices today's society. At first glance, we notice the nonchalant, unassuming word "RED", purposefully capitalised to draw our attention to the importance of the intended message. We inspect the word, and upon initial analysis, it is indeed red. However, and this is where the artist has made a particularly engaging choice, once we are able to delve deeper and inspect this work during the light of day, we are able to notice that it is, in fact a shade of maroon. A brilliant yet subtle way of using the surrounding environment to demonstrate our fallibility to half truths such as this. With one simple word, the artist asks us "When is enough analysis of the facts enough? How much homework is really needed to know the truth?" Perhaps we can never truly know. Truly an endearing piece. #streetartreviews

[afikasi]

Terror firma. ca 2000-2014. Artist unknown. Medium: Ceramic tile on concrete table in bush. With the ever increasing worry surrounding global warming and the environmental impacts caused by a sprawling human race enjoying the fruits of globalisation and capitalism, the artist begins with a simple round table, exemplary in itself of the earth as our main, if not only workspace. The exposed concrete provides a very simple depiction of a J G Ballard type dystopian future where the only function given to form, is that which will aid in the progress of currency accumulation for the bourgeoisie. The tiles themselves, reminiscent of the beauty mankind is capable of, covers half of the table slightly raised, as if an ode to mans talent, yet it is fractured and divided, and no two pieces are the same. It is not completely evident if this is either a good or bad thing, however it does lend a lovely juxtaposition to the yin of the concretes yang. The entire piece itself has been placed, almost haphazardly into a bush. Perhaps this is merely the artists way of advising that, when all is said is done and all efforts of man, corporate or artisanal, have vanished, nature itself will continue with tenacity to swallow all that has been made, and all will be reset and everything will come full circle. An excellent piece indeed. #streetartreviews

[afikasi]

Reader submission. ❤️. Artist unknown. Medium: Spraypaint on tile. The concept of love has undergone many overhauls over the last century and the artist is not afraid to explore many of these new concepts with this moving piece. The high school girl font type used here demonstrates a wealth of understanding of the age where one might begin voicing their attractions, coupled with the name mollie (sic) creating in the mind of the viewer a possible quasi lesbian love story in bloom. The intentional exclusion of a capital M, reflects the rejection of a formerly judgemental form of love which was once thought to begin with the almighty Him, before being dispersed to mankind via specific rules for life, such as not eating shellfish or or killing those with different beliefs. The selection of the name mollie itself is a purposeful decision, being the street name (this piece is on the street after all) of ecstasy, demonstrating not only an acceptance of various forms of love between individuals, but also of love no longer being an ethereal experience, but of something tangible, a cognitive function resulting from chemical stimulation. Whilst one might assume that "mandy" may have been an acceptable substitute, "mandy" does not provide us with a shortened slang for the word "molecule", a specific point which the artist is trying to convey. Finally, the usage of a heart for love, and a "u", show that the artist is referring to love during the modern era, perhaps as a jibe or wink to the tinder generation. Finally, the lack of full stop tells us that this exploratory journey is not yet complete, because love is not a sentence. #streetartreviews (at Queen Street, Auckland)

[afikasi]

St dickolass. 2016. Artist unknown. Medium: Christmas decor on apartment. The artist explores many popular social constructs familiar within the common zeitgeist. What one would assume to be a family home, a stereotypical icon associated with maternity and the female gender, is undergoing a siege by an army of Santas, a predominantly male centric character we are conditioned as children to adore, whose effigy is based on the actual exploits of a prostitute frequenter. The subtlety of an ingrained misogynist culture the artist is trying to portray is however lost in this piece with the addition of two brazen phalluses, centre, disguised as reindeer. #streetartreviews