From its outgrowth of the graffiti movement of the 1980s, contemporary street art comprises of many techniques and has since grown into a global movement. Often providing social and political commentary, street artists rejuvenate public spaces and initiate lively discussions on the democratization of art.
The artists featured below have all, in their own unique, unparalleled and vibrant ways, contributed to this important conversation by developing an artistic language capable of contextualizing their own distinct landscapes. While not a definitive list (nor claiming to be) on the current state of street art, I wanted to highlight both known and not so well-known artists working across a variety of mediums and locations. Accordingly, certain artists may appear conspicuously absent (e.g. Banksy, Shepard Fairey) in order to give way to a more expansive reading of the art form.
Due the number of artists featured, the column has been written in two parts. Today’s post will cover the first 10 artists, while tomorrow’s post will cover the rest. Lastly, be sure to click on the individual thumbnails in order to enlarge the displayed photographs.
1. Sam3
Country: Spain
Madrid’s-own Sam3 has been involved in street art since 1993. Known for pushing the boundaries of traditional street art aesthetic, his signature black silhouette murals can be found across Europe. In addition to the amazing photos of his work on display, Sam3 has also created several short animations. Check out “La Puerta” here.
[Click on thumbnails to enlarge]
2. JR
Country: France
Paris-based street artist and photographer JR plasters giant black-and-white wheatpasted photographs on buildings across the world. Known for his socially-conscious and moving work (e.g. Women Are Heroes, Face 2 Face), he was recently honoured with the 2011 TED prize. His thought-provoking talk titled “use art to turn the world inside out” can be viewed here.
3. Swoon
Country: United States
Queen of the x-acto knife, Swoon is a Brooklyn-based artist known for her highly detailed wheatpaste and wood block life-size character-based cutouts. The utterly stunning short film above (directed by Cat Solen), captures the construction of Swoon’s installation for MOCA’s “Art In The Streets” exhibition. Press play, it’s gorgeous.
4. Eine
Country: United Kingdom
London-based Eine has been writing graffiti since the early 1980s and is simultaneously known for his letters on shop shutters and for his meter-long murals of words like “Vandalism” or “Exciting.” Eine has recently left his indelible mark on a few of San Francisco’s buildings, which can be viewed here.
5. Blu
Country: Italy
Little is known of Blu, but what is known is that he started graffiti painting the walls of Bologna in the late 1990s. Since then, his large-scale murals, which are often politically charged, can be found across the world.
6. Maya Hayuk
Country: United States
- This could be your life & Diamond mandala, Monster Island NY (2009)
Brooklyn-based artist Maya Hayuk never fails to create eye-catching large-scale geometric installations. Having recently seen her exhibition (with Jen Stark) titled “Double Rainbow Rainbow” at Toronto’s Show & Tell, I left with the impression that no one does dazzling colour quite like Maya. Check out the latest mural she created for Toronto’s Drake Hotel.
7. Hyuro
Country: Argentina
Hyuro is an Argentinean-born and currently Valencia-based artist whose murals are nothing less than fluid and poetic. While she’s been creating art all of her life, she’s only been active in street art for the last few years. Her highly illustrative and introspective paintings are a welcome addition.
8. Fernando Chamarelli
Country: Brazil
Fernando Chamarelli is a Sao Paulo-based artist whose work includes geometric and mosaic elements that combine Brazilian popular culture and pre-Columbian Indigenous art. Take a look at a few examples of his wonderfully rich colour palette.
9. Faith47
Country: South Africa
Graffiti artist Faith47 creates evocative and metaphor-laden images in and around Cape Town. A short film directed by Rowan Pybus captures one of her most beautiful and socially conscious projects titled “The Freedom Charter,” which draws attention to South Africa’s statement of core principles. The video can be viewed here.
10. Faile
Country: United States
- Fashion Chimps NYC, 25 colour screenprint, 36 x 47.5 (2011)
Faile is a Brooklyn-based artist collective formed in 1999 by founding members Patrick Miller, Patrick McNeil and Aiko Nakagawa (Aiko left in 2006 to pursue a solo career). Initially known for wheatpasting screen-printed posters around New York, Faile’s highly textured, juxtaposed, and detailed pop cultural images have progressed to thematically-driven exhibitions around the world. Images from Faile’s 10-year retrospective at Post No Bills in Venice, California can be viewed here.
(Images c/o 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
