I have been loathe to comment on what's been happening lately in Fitzroy because I never want to discourage anyone's creativity. I always maintain that art is an action. So whether good, bad or indifferent the act of doing street art IS art to me. Graff in tall places, clever placement, mass bombing: these all make me look twice.
Unfortunately lately there has been some slacking off of standards. I won't name names, nor pass judgment on anyone reading this who may feel this is directed at them. I therefore will not attach photos either. But PLEEEAAAASE people. Fitzroy built it's reputation as a street art Mecca on the back of hard work. Exacting work. Think, among hundreds of others, of HaHa, Everfresh, Awol, Aeon, Tres, iKool, TV Crew, Ghost Patrol and Miso, Lister. These people are Giants. They made our reputation.
So with apologies for my arrogant opinion, condescension and paternalistic take, I implore every enthusiastic participant in the New World Order to:
1. Stop pasting over other people's work - be it throw ups, pieces, or legendary stickers such as Ghost Patrol. It pisses everyone off.
2. Use good wheatpaste. No-one wants to look at creases or watch a paste up half hanging on a wall.
3. Only put your good stuff up. Say something, reflect, opine. Give something.
4. Look at a wall before tagging it to determine if any respect is due.
5. Learn the history and context your work, today, is positioned within.
Thanks for allowing this self indulgent community announcement. I have said it and now I will move on. I still live to observe everything new that comes along. I embrace the evolution of Fitzroy. I just fear it's demise!
Unfortunately lately there has been some slacking off of standards. I won't name names, nor pass judgment on anyone reading this who may feel this is directed at them. I therefore will not attach photos either. But PLEEEAAAASE people. Fitzroy built it's reputation as a street art Mecca on the back of hard work. Exacting work. Think, among hundreds of others, of HaHa, Everfresh, Awol, Aeon, Tres, iKool, TV Crew, Ghost Patrol and Miso, Lister. These people are Giants. They made our reputation.
So with apologies for my arrogant opinion, condescension and paternalistic take, I implore every enthusiastic participant in the New World Order to:
1. Stop pasting over other people's work - be it throw ups, pieces, or legendary stickers such as Ghost Patrol. It pisses everyone off.
2. Use good wheatpaste. No-one wants to look at creases or watch a paste up half hanging on a wall.
3. Only put your good stuff up. Say something, reflect, opine. Give something.
4. Look at a wall before tagging it to determine if any respect is due.
5. Learn the history and context your work, today, is positioned within.
Thanks for allowing this self indulgent community announcement. I have said it and now I will move on. I still live to observe everything new that comes along. I embrace the evolution of Fitzroy. I just fear it's demise!
thats street art.. its not a gallery its ment to be like this..
ReplyDelete1. people dont read "how to do paste ups with obey"before they go out and do paste ups.. they just go and do it and learnt from there mistakes..if you want to buy the glue and giv it out to the kids for better improvments for your eyes then do that..
2.. when people go over each other it makes it fresh, new ,exciting,, it allows change for new things to come and go... if it didnt then it would be boring and old.. but yes i do agree that some respect should be given to certian pieces/people.. but kids are kids
3.only put your good stuff up?? what.. well i think alot of so and so s shit sucks but who am i to say? maybe some one eles likes it..
didnt you post photos of kaffine and some one eles capping a throw up? why didnt you say oh wait those writters mite get pissed off?? maybe thats why certian people are ruining things..
evolution keeps evolving
ReplyDeletewell said!
ReplyDeleteRe anonymous reply, You make a solid point. I agree with you and sense you are probably, or definitely, not in the category to which I refer. A HB pencil sketch of a sleeping dog or bunch of flowers crudely coloured in, ripped out of a book and stuck on top of good writing, for example, i dont get excited about. I think everyone out there actually doing there own thing and experimenting, whatever skill level, is giving it a red hot go....apart from a small few who I don't think are actually street artists or graffers at all, and i kinda reached a point where i had to blurt,because i walk past shit like that everyday and think, oh christ, not again wtf!!! I also concede I do give a bit of air time to some fans and I apologise for that !!! Arghh I really am conflicted, who the fuck am I to say? But I suspect if you had the images I have in my head, when I wrote that, you might agree a little bit maybe??? It's easy for me to say in the comfort of my lounge room, and yes, who am I to judge? Thanks for your thoughts in a much needed conversation!
ReplyDeleteHaha and I meant some favs not some fans, but hopefully the people I obsess about are my fans too !
ReplyDeletei definately agree on some points but also like other fledgling writers who voice the same opinion, sometimes its hard to see every wall swallowed up by super talented artists and then not being able to use that wall for bombing anymore or tagging over for fear of retribution, i think this is what happened recently with the wall outside judy rollers by the if crew.
ReplyDeletebut the malicious black pen thats going over some of the everfresh murals and other dope pieces is kind of base but in the other mind is just a sign of the times. everyone gets a say.
It also shows the changing face of Fitzroy, seems to be a of a state of adjustment at the moment.
good topic anyway.
Yeah I know what you mean, and I also get pissed off sometimes when a wall is suddenly "commissioned" so everyone has to watch it get covered over and suck it up. There definitely needs to be room for everyone, not just the stars, or we will end up with a really vanilla and sterile city. Cheers!
ReplyDelete