Daily Bread

The Inaugural daily selection of favorites from the day

The Artist's Canvas

How is social media interacting with and affecting the evolution of street art? It would be easier to consider how street artists interact with social media.  This question is harder.  My answer is that social media changes the intention.  It changes, or can change, the purpose of the action.  I won't bore you with a dialogue about "what is street art" or the even less interesting debate about "graffiti versus street art".  But I will give you a series of vignettes that might spark your own train of thought.  

Part One: I was walking the trail one brisk morning when a poster of a photo caught my eye. 

I noticed it because I love anything on an abandoned piece of furniture.  Flash back to my piece with Nufevah all over a sideboard, and other furniture enhancements.  The poster had a blog address.  I made a note to look it up.  The blog referenced to a notion of the street as an artist's canvas.  It linked me to a photographer's page.   I am advertising him today.  

Part Two:  I was walking the trail on any given day.  Using my incredible powers of detective genius I stumbled across a new crop of work, sighed/smiled/said 'yay', took a photo, uploaded it to facebook where legions of fans 'liked' it.  Okay that's the dream sequence recollection.  But the part about seeing the art, saying yay, and posting it is true.   I raced home (dream sequence the Parkour), uploaded it to Flickr and Picasa, and ruminated for a day before blogging about it.  The artist themselves "favourited" the photograph on Flickr, "Liked" it on Facebook, and tagged themselves so friends could see.  They commented on my blog with a post to their blog.

Part Three: It was 1980 something.  There was no Internet.  I was the "disaffected youth".  With a black texta and feint smell of dope I scrawled on a concrete wall "Get Grugged" and drew a simple image of Grugg.  In 1985 photographer Rennie Ellis wrote a book called Australian Graffiti, and there was Grugg. Years away from its creation and miles from my intention.  I am now promoting Rennie's blog.  Blogs were not even a glint in the Internet's eye when Rennie wrote the book. 

Post Script: I do know the artist who did that, but I am definitely too young to be said artist! 

Know your Fruit and Vegetables

Something strange has been happening lately. At first I thought it was just me, but no, it's you! You've gone all whimsical. Random photos, cute animals, tongue in cheek paste ups. I am grateful for the informative posters about vegetables - my menu planning has been easy. And thank you to the person with the crazy cardboard eyes, I have had a great thrill with each new discovery. What next?

This one goes out to the one I love

To the beautiful one who said goodbye to someone good, funny, witty and strong. To the one who loved someone as awesome as she is. And to anyone who knows what that feels like. Life and death, it all boils down to love and moments.

Rone

I have resisted blogging about this giant because like a lot of people I am in awe. Rone, if you read this blog I will be totally stoked, but for now I will assume that you won't, so that I can tell this story. It happened three mornings ago. I was wrenched from a l daydream. I was winding up for the morning feeling certain I had just experienced yet another unsuccessful winter harvest. I was doing a 'just in case' scour down a not particularly popular laneway when a blonde in a trolley, wearing grey undies scared the shit out of me. Reeling back in an instant I surmised the set up and grabbed my phone, chuckling at the absurdity of the scene and my own reaction. Beyond the dummy framed perfectly, two of Rone's finest. That is why Rone is the best in the business. That was my little reminder.

Winter Blues

Where is everybody? The cold air has sorted out the 'boys from the men' and those remaining are keeping me drip fed with cheeky paste ups, exquisite photography, colour and cleverness. Captain and the Skipper buoyed me for a day, a great tonic curing the winter blues. I want more!!!

The Spirit of Tommy Dorsey

I am loving crazy at the moment. Crazy and Old. My version of "smelling the roses" on these frosty days is pausing in front of old stencils and fading paste ups, partly because it's too bloody cold for new Art, but mainly because if you study the old greats for long enough you can almost see the artists standing in front of the wall, furiously working against time.

Written

This blog is for a wordsmith that I know. It's about words that are put together so that they read melodically. It's about words that create an emotional response that can express the zeitgeist of the times, pick at the fabric of prejudice, and hit a spot inside us that stories never can. There are many poets in our midst: Melbourne Poetry Project, Precious Little and anonymous boffins with black textas and the confidence of alcohol. I invite you, and particularly my wordsmith, to read the words and hear their rhythm...