A while back I expressed the opinion that street art (graffiti) was the new avant garde. Well it was and in a way still is, but it's become so entrenched in it's own values and emulations, that it has become just one more mainstream genre. On top of that, street artists and academically trained artists have so cross-informed each other that, except for location, the distinction between the two is becoming quite blurry at times.
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.The blog Arrested Motion made note of the fact that the famous street artists Banksy, Faile and Ryan McGinness were included in the Southey's London Contemporary Day Sale (on June 26). The works of these three blended seamlessly with the other contemporary artists hanging on the walls. No graffiti here.
Where I did find graffiti was in the street art auction by Artcurial. Now this was news. You'll want to check out the 4 pages of offerings which include a wide range of oeuvres. Work (below) by SKKI caught my eye and researching him took me for a very fascinating ride.
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. All of that brought me to the TAG exhibit at the Grand Palais this spring, where they featured examples of graffiti from 300 street artists. You'll find more fotos from their site here and there's a boat load of images from that show on Edwin Bartlett's flickr page.
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In this image from the TAG Exhibition, SKKI's piece is second from the bottom, on the right. You'll find a much better picture of it on Ed Bartlett's link listed above.
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What's ironic about all this is that on the one hand tagging is a crime and a scourge; on the other hand, galleries are recognizing the talent and embracing this art with the hopes of bringing them in from the cold. But one of the hurdles for these artists is their street cred and notoriety. And regardless of how many do forsake the old ways and join the ranks of gallery-exhibiting artists, there will always be new taggers to take their place
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