Street Art

DESCRIPTION

In the last few decades, art has moved from the museums and art galleries to the streets. Visionary artists, gifted with breath- taking expressiveness, have utilized featureless and abandoned spaces of everyday life and converted them into a new artistic palette for expressing their ideas. In this context, this new art breaks the mold and speaks directly to a now- global audience without intermediaries or filters. Social themes, political criticism, and poetry materialize on a bridge, on the facade of an old building or between the railings of a courtyard.

Chris Versteeg provides a detailed historical introduction to street art and graffiti, from its origins to the main trends through which it is expressed: from graffiti to sticker art, from tagging to character, and including stencil art. Thanks to the interviews by Alessandra Mattanza, the reader is provided access to twenty of the most representative exponents of the latest street-art scene. These artists tell their story and introduce the readers to the rationale and the ideas from which they draw inspiration.

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REVIEWS

Mattanza (My New York: Celebrities Talk About the City) interviews 20 international street artists, including Banksy, Shepard Fairey, David Choe, Becca, and Alex Vau. Graphic designer and street artist Chris Versteeg’s introduction provides a historical overview of the art form. Through the interviews, Mattanza captures the artists’ vision and inspiration to confront political and social issues. For example, the work of NUNCA, a Brazilian artist, examines indigenous Brazilian culture and contemporary society. Canada-born Fauxreel addresses societal issues such as homelessness, unemployment, and race relations. M-City, a Polish artist, believes art should be accessible to everyone and that it can change the world. This volume provides insight, understanding, and appreciation of street art through interviews with the creators. The color photographs of each creator’s work complement the interviews. VERDICT Art students, scholars, and anyone with a general interest in art will enjoy this informative and inspiring volume, as will people interested in art’s impact on political and social justice issues. A fine addition to any art lover’s collection.
Tina Chan, MIT Libs., Cambridge, Library Journal

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AUTHOR BIO

Alessandra Mattanza is an author, screenwriter and fine-art photographer who has lived in New York and Los Angeles for a number of years. She currently works as a foreign correspondent, contributor and editor for several publishers and magazines. Chris Versteeg lives and works in Rotterdam as a graphic designer and illustrator at Projekt C (www.projektc.nl). Chief-editor and publisher of SAM Magazine (www.streetandmore. com), she is a co-founder of the Lastplak collective (www.lastplak. com). After attending the Grafisch Lyceum and later the Willem de Kooning Academie, she decided to focus on graphic design, illustration and painting.