July 23, 2006
DOUBLE-TAKE ADVERTISING AND THE BEAUTY OF SUBTLE GRAF
Side-of-the-bus ads have been the norm in NYC for the last decade or so. It's a good source of revenue for the city and while some bitch that it over-commercializes urban life, well, those people need a hobby. I was walking down 2nd Ave. two weeks ago and saw this on the side of a bus:
Here's a larger version. What was it about this ubiquitous bus-side adver that made me stop dead in my tracks? Yeah yeah, hot chick, scantily clad, blah blah blah. I can see that without turning my head in NYC. But is that a nipple in a bus-side ad? WTF?! Let's look closer:
We've come a long way since Giuliani-Time! OK, perhaps I'm overinterested in boobs, but I was gonna get to the bottom of this, aside from just taking pictures. I examined the side of the bus, not believing that the MTA would authorize this type of advertising on a city vehicle. Upon examination, I found that this was very subtle grafitti.
I hate grafitti. I think its practitioners are insecure adolescents with ego problems--whatever their ages--who should be pilloried publicly. This, however, is freaking ART! There's no ego whatsoever. It's simply the beauty of the public doing a double-take. In my case, documenting it beyond reasonable expectation. Whoever the artist was in this case: Well done my friend; well done.
UPDATE: My comments are currently disabled, but certain VIPs (i.e. hot, smart women) get theirs posted:
Graf artists are real artists. Don't be so naive to
[some spellchecks made in the original to account for the late hour of posting; any solecisms are mine -Lexiphane]
say they aren't. Spray is a valid medium and the
canvas and more importantly its audience are NOT to be
underestimated. it just so happens that the public
nature of graf or tag art allows you visual to a lot
of the untalent taggers as well. if every artist got
to hang his work in the Met, the NEA would not exist.
bitch. -Belle
RESPONSE: The reason I hate graf is that the MAJORITY of its practitioners are untalented hacks, who offer little artistic merit. The medium also involves defacing private property and I've stopped and talked with supers and building owners early in the morning as they scrubbed away at their shops and buildings trying to get rid of some idiot's "art"; they were not pleased patrons. Here's a pic I took this spring down in DC at a show documenting the art and practice of graf. Here's more useful graf being employeed as a neighborhood PSA. I'm a big fan of artist James De La Vega, whose primary medium is storefronts and buildings in NYC.
UPDATE II: Reader Belle responds in kind:
okay see... that first link was excellent. badass. the
second was not funny david. im being serious, bitch.
(but if you like your own link) you need to see the
book about Katrina New Orleans Refridgerators. Its
great!
back to the point... I am very serious about graf
artists. I think you should post an apology. because,
and I RE_ITERATE, most artists who try to paint SUCK
and dont make it in the Met. and most singers and
guitarist are fucking terrible and don't make it
anywhere except the local coffee shop and dive bars,
where I sometimes have to listen to their miserable
dribblle in my head!! something I definately consider
a violation of my private property, but I dont say
anything. I do try to scrub it out, but I can't
usually.
I'm not talking to you till you make me feel like you
love Graf.
RESPONSE II: I agree completely that most graf artists suck; they are very bad untalented hacks who will never come close to having their pieces shown in a museum. I'm glad we've found some common ground. Does their mediocrity or complete lack of talent give them the right to shove their crappy art in my face by defacing private property? One is often forced to listen to bad musicians warble or strum away--don't even get me started on poets--at open mic nights, but that's different from them inviting themselves into your living room at 3am and forcing you to listen to shitty ballads about ex-girlfriends. I think you'd be able to ask them to leave in that case; in fact, I think you'd probably be able to shoot them and face few legal repercussions.
So, are you getting an apology Belle? Hells No! I am a HUGE fan of public art, and if someone wants to commission an artist to decorate the side of his or her building in spray paint, marker, or Play-Doh, I say power to them. If one is an untalented fool, however, who couldn't get their work exhibited in a mental ward on his best day, that's no excuse to use private property as your own personal canvas without the owner's permission.
Still feel like not talking to me? Bring that shit babe. Or . . . don't bring it. Whatever! You know I'm right.
Tagged:Posted by Lexiphane at July 23, 2006 12:05 AM
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