YOMO 03-11

Art & CULTURE MAGAZINE MARCH 11

ART & REALITY Also in this issue Art from South Korea and Singapore: Introducing the works of Nami Kim and Speak Cryptic

How Art Saves Sniffy from Serpent Death What to do if your country`s government decides to quit ?

Modern Art and its Exciting Deviations

2

YOMO Art Gallery

Support your local hero.

Designed by Aminta Rother Cover by Nick Lu

3

4

09 12 19 23 26

The Romantic Encounter of Art and Reality Part 1: Art Saves Sniffy from Serpent Death

By Jim Muir

YOMO March Exhibition: Introducing Nami Kim and Speak Cryptic

Explore the infamous world of Graffiti in one of Canada’s most pulsating cities: The Toronto Graffiti Walk

By Monisha Sharma

What to do if your county’s government decides to quit?

“Is there a Pilot in Belgium?”

by Emmanuelle Lambert

Deviations in Contemporary Art

By Maiteree Mann

5

07 6

First things first.

HERE IT IS, IT’S FINALLY DONE. AFTER COUNTLESS SLEEPLESS NIGHTS, THE VERY FIRST ISSUE OF YOMO IS OUT. I’M ALREADY VERY EXCITED TO RECEIVE FEEDBACK…POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE. AS MOST OF YOU KNOW, THE YOMO PROJECT STARTED IN JANAUARY OF THIS YEAR WITH A BUNCH OF VERY INTERESTING AND TALENTED ARTISTS. I DECIDED TO CREATE A BI-­‐MONTHLY MAGAZINE IN ORDER TO NOT ONLY INTRODUCE SOME OF THE ARTISTS FEATURED ON THE WEBSITE BUT ALSO TO DISCUSS CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN THE ART SCENE.

ONE OF MY FAVORITE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE IS “THE ROMANTIC ENCOUNTER OF ART AND REALITY.” THIS IS THE FIRST PART OF A SERIES THAT WILL EXPLORE THE EXCITING BUT NOT ALWAYS EASY RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONTEMPORARY ART AND REALITY.

ALSO GET ADVICE ON WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR GOVERNMENT DECIDES TO QUIT AND DISCOVER HOW THIS COULD RESULT IN AN UNUSUALLY ARTISTIC REVOLUTION.

WELL I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS ISSUE OF YOMO…

Aminta 7

THE ROMANTIC ENCOUNTERS OF ART AND REALITY Part 1: Art Saves Sniffy from Serpent Death

by Jim Muir

THROUGH A SERIES OF ARTICLES I AM GOING TO TELL YOU THE STORY OF A WILY CHAMELEON WHO HAS BEEN COVERTLY CREEPING INTO YOUR REALITY. HIS NAME IS ‘ARTHUR’, ‘ART’ FOR SHORT. ART HAS A WIFE NAMED 'ELIZABETH', WHOM HE AFFECTIONATELY REFERS TO AS

'ELI'. THEIR LAST NAME, OF COURSE, IS 'TIST'. THEY HAVE BEEN MARRIED A LONG, LONG TIME -­‐ CENTURIES, MAYBE EVEN MILLENNIA. FOR EONS THEY WENT QUIETLY ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS, LIVING IN GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS, SUPPORTED IN THEIR ENDEAVORS BY THE STATE AND WEALTHY CONNOISSEURS. THEY NEVER REALLY GOT INTO ANYBODY ELSE'S BUSINESS, SO PEOPLE PRETTY MUCH LEFT THEM ALONE. BUT THEN SOMETHING HAPPENED. SOMEWHERE AROUND THE MIDDLE OF THE LAST CENTURY A GERMAN PROPHET NAMED JOSEPH BEUYS HAD A VISION. HE SAID THAT ART SHOULD GET OUT OF HIS CASTLE, AND CIRCULATE AMONGST THE MASSES. HE SAID THAT EVERYONE SHOULD BE MORE LIKE ART. THE PEOPLE, FOR THEIR PART, WERE DUBIOUS. EVEN MANY OF ART'S CLOSEST FRIENDS WERE SKEPTICAL, BUT ART TOOK BEUYS' WORDS TO HEART. HE STARTED DISGUISING HIMSELF, AND GOING OUT INTO REALITY, WANDERING AMONGST THE PUBLIC. ART REDEFINED HIMSELF TO SUCH AN EXTENT OVER THE YEARS THAT HE EVENTUALLY DEFIED DEFINITION. HE BECAME UTTERLY UNRECOGNIZABLE. OFTEN WHEN HE DID IDENTIFY HIMSELF, UNBELIEVERS WOULD CRY OUT, "THAT'S NOT ART!" TO WHICH HE WOULD REPLY, "YES, MY FRIEND, IT IS. I WALK AMIDST YOU NOW. I AM A PART OF YOU, AND YOU ARE A PART OF ME." …

“Gibson advertised that on a particular day, at a particular time and place, he was going to set Sniffy between two canvases and squash him with a concrete block to create a diptych.”

8

In this photo: Jim Muir

EVEN MORE SURREPTITIOUSLY, ART WOULD OFTEN CLOAK HIMSELF AS REALITY ITSELF, SO THAT WHEN

SAID THIS, ART'S EYES LIT UP. IT WAS JUST AS THE

THE PEOPLE THOUGHT THEY WERE OBSERVING

SAID, "SHOULD BE A REAL MEANS, IN DAILY LIFE,

REALITY, THEY WERE ACTUALLY ABSORBING

ART

TO GO IN AND TRANSFORM THE POWER FIELDS OF

INTO THEIR LIVES. LIKE MEDICINE SLIPPED INTO A

SOCIETY." I SUPPOSE IT ALL STARTED COMING TO

CHILD'S CUP OF HOT COCOA.

A HEAD IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LAST CENTURY,

ART AND ELI WILL ALWAYS LOVE AND SUPPORT EACH OTHER, BUT THEY HAVE BEEN GROWING APART. ART HAS BEEN STEPPING OUT ON HER. THEY ARE CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A TRIAL SEPARATION, AND A DIVORCE MAY BE IN THE WORKS. AS ELI SAID, "IT'S NOT JUST THAT HE HAS MOVED OUT OF THE GALLERY. HE IS ACTUALLY STARTING TO BELIEVE THAT HE IS PART OF REALITY! HE SEEMS TO THINK HE HOLDS SOME SWAY OVER SOCIETY!" WHEN ELI

WHEN

PROPHET HAD ENVISIONED! "ART," BEUYS HAD

ART

STARTED

DOING

HIS

LITTLE

PERFORMANCE PIECES. I REMEMBER THE FIRST PUBLIC PERFORMANCE

I

ENCOUNTERED.

IT

STOPPED ME IN MY TRACKS AND CHANGED EVERY IDEA I HAD ABOUT WHAT ART WAS, OR WHAT HE COULD BE. IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I PERSONALLY WITNESSED ART AND REALITY KISS.

IT

WAS IN

WHEN

ART

VANCOUVER (CANADA)

IN

TOOK THE PSEUDONYM

1990 'RICK

9

GIBSON'. GIBSON ‘RENTED’

A RAT FROM A

PUBLIC INDIGNATION IN A WORLD SO FULL OF

‘SNIFFY’.

POINTLESS DEATH AND DESTRUCTION? ART

SNIFFY’S FATE AT THE PET SHOP WAS TO BE SOLD AS SNAKE FOOD. GIBSON ADVERTISED THAT ON A PARTICULAR DAY, AT A PARTICULAR TIME AND PLACE, HE WAS GOING TO SET SNIFFY

PENETRATED REALITY AND GOT PEOPLE

LOCAL PET SHOP AND NAMED HIM

BETWEEN TWO CANVASES AND SQUASH HIM WITH A CONCRETE BLOCK TO CREATE A DIPTYCH.

THE PUBLIC OUTCRY WAS ENORMOUS. IT WAS ON THE LATE NIGHT NEWS, AND IN THE NEWSPAPERS. ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS GOT INVOLVED. EVERYONE WAS TALKING ABOUT IT. THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IT WAS, BUT THEY WERE SURE IT WASN'T ART! AT THE DESIGNATED TIME AND PLACE HUNDREDS OF ANGRY PROTESTERS SHOWED UP. THE POLICE WERE CALLED IN AS THE MOB ATTACKED GIBSON SPECIFICALLY, AND

ART

GENERALLY.

BOTH WERE GENUINELY AFRAID FOR THEIR LIFE. SNIFFY WAS NOWHERE TO BE FOUND. GIBSON HAD ALREADY RETURNED SNIFFY TO THE PET SHOP, AND ONE OF THE ANIMAL RIGHTS GROUPS LATER ADOPTED HIM. THE ANIMAL RIGHTS GROUP TOOK CREDIT FOR SAVING SNIFFY, BUT REALLY IT WAS ART WHO HAD SNATCHED SNIFFY FROM THE JAWS OF SERPENT DEATH! GIBSON NEVER ACTUALLY INTENDED TO SQUISH SNIFFY. UNLIKE HIS COUSIN CY ANTS, ART WOULD

THINKING.

THE SNIFFY CAPER CROSSED A LINE SOMEWHERE. WAS IT ABOUT ART, OR WAS IT ABOUT REALITY? IT WAS CERTAINLY ABOUT HYPOCRISY, AND IT WAS ABOUT LIFE AND DEATH. THERE ISN'T MUCH MORE REAL THAN THAT. IT AFFECTED ALMOST EVERYONE IN THE CITY; IT WENT WAY BEYOND ART'S NORMAL CONFINES. IT WAS, FOR ME AT THE TIME, A NEW PARADIGM OF WHAT ART COULD BE. ART, I THOUGHT, CAN BE A PART OF EVERYDAY REALITY, AND A MEANS TO TRANSFORM SOCIETY. THE SNIFFY SAGA IS JUST AN INKLING OF WHAT ART HAS BEEN UP TO SINCE HE STARTED MESSING AROUND WITH REALITY. I KNOW

ART

FEELS SOME

REMORSE ABOUT THE DAMAGE DONE TO HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH ELI, BUT I REALLY THINK HE IS ON THE RIGHT TRACK. ART’S ROMANTIC ENCOUNTERS WITH REALITY ARE BRINGING THEM CLOSER AND CLOSER TOGETHER ALL THE TIME. 

NEVER HARM AN ANIMAL FOR HIS OWN PURPOSES.

THE

PERFORMANCE WAS OVER, BUT THE

DIALOGUE HAD JUST BEGUN. FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE BECAME MORE LIKE ART. THEIR REALITY WAS JARRED SLIGHTLY ASKEW AS THEY PONDERED WHAT TRYING TO GET ACROSS.

ART WAS

THOUSANDS

OF

HUMANS DIE EVERY DAY FROM WAR AND STARVATION, DISEASE AND NEGLECT. RATS ARE SNAPPED INTO DEATH BY RATTRAPS AND PET REPTILES ALL THE TIME, LET ALONE CRAZY CY

ANTS’

EXPERIMENTS.

PROTESTERS

FOR

WHERE THESE

ARE ALL THE EVERYDAY

OCCURRENCES? HOW CAN ONE RAT'S DEMISE ATTRACT SO MUCH MEDIA ATTENTION AND

Read Part 2 of

this series in the

next issue of YOMO

1 0

YOMOartists

1 1

NAMI KIM ARTIST. PRINT MAKER. GRAPHIC DESIGNER. NAMI WAS BORN IN 1979 IN SOUTH KOREA, HOWEVER SHE HAS LIVED IN SAN FRANCISCO, NEW YORK, THE PHILLIPINES, THE MALDIVES, AND IN CHICAGO. THE EVENTS AND OBJECTS FROM THESE PLACES AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO HER PERSONAL HISTORY FASCINATE HER.

DURING THE PROCESS OF CREATING NEW ART PIECES, SHE RECONNECTS WITH THESE PLACES AND EXPERIENCES, AND SHE CONTINUES TO HOLD THE MEMORY AND TANGIBLE FEELINGS SHE ENCOUNTERED IN THESE VERY MOMENTS.

HER RECENT WORKS, INCLUDING MAKING SILKSCREEN PRINTS, HAS BEEN A REAL TURNING POINT FOR HER. SHE IS INTERESTED IN IMAGES DERIVED FROM POP CULTURES AND PERSONAL EXPERIENCES. NAMI’S WORKS HAVE RECENTLY BEEN SELECTED FOR THE KOREAN AMERICAN DAY ART EXHIBITION AND HAVE BEEN DISPLAYED AT THE

CHICAGO DOWNTOWN CENTER IN JANUARY ’11 Exclusive Interview with Nami Kim

People always wonder of how others grew up and what influenced them to take certain paths in their lives. Could you tell us a little more about yourself?

I grew up in South Korea and had a big family. I lived with my parents, older sister, younger sister, grandmother, aunts and a dog.

I was a middle child and always tried to get attention, so I acted weird sometimes. For example, I cut my hair by myself looking funny or took my sisters’ stuffed animals and destroyed them. I was a troublemaker, but I loved to draw and paint. I got lots of awards when I was in elementary school. I really miss my childhood.

1 2

So, then when exactly did you first realize you wanted to become an artist?

When I turned 9, I won the first prize in a drawing contest in my elementary school. I still remember the feeling when people clapped their hands in front of me…such a good feeling.

Did you also have any idols when growing up?

YES, I do. “New kids on the Block” -­‐ They are my idols and my turning point. When I listened to their music at age 13, they changed my life.

I learned English really hard. I sent fan letters and gifts to my favorite “New Kids” member, Danny Wood.

I joined a fan club and had pen pals from 10 different counties. They were all “New Kids” fans. My pure American dream started.

The works you create are very unique, interesting, strange, and funny at the same time. Where do you get the inspiration for your art?

I traveled a lot during the last 10 years and have lived in four different countries.

New people, exotic places, food and culture inspire me.

I am fascinated by the events and objects from these places and their connection to my personal history.

Like a Virgin by Nami Kim

1 3

What is it that you want to express or achieve with your art?

Mainly, I want to make viewer laugh and smile. At the same time however, I want to make the observers think and let them try to figure out what I want to express, like a puzzle. I hope my art forces discussion and reaction from the viewer. Whether positive or negative, love or hate, a conversation emerges.

When you decided to me part of the YOMO project, you also decided to donate part of your profits from art sales to a charity organization.

Why did you choose to support the Betty Wood Breast Cancer Foundation?

Betty wood is mom of Danny Wood from “New Kids on the Block.”

She died of breast cancer and Danny created the Betty Wood Breast Cancer foundation, remembering his mom. I want to support them, because, he changed my life. That little Asian girl who lived in Korea finally came to America, making art and following her dream.

Danny made me who I am now. I really appreciate that. Now, it is my turn to give back. 

CHECK OUT SOME OF NAMI KIM’S ARTWORKS IN THE CURRENT YOMO EXHIBITION AT WWW.YOMOART.ORG/ARTWORKS THE PRNTS ARE NOW UP FOR SALE AND 10% OF THE PROFITS WILL BE DONATED TO THE BETTY WOOD BREAT CANCER FOUNDATION.

1 4

“Let It Be…” by Nami Kim -­‐ silkscreen on paper

1 5

SPEAK CRYPTIC

“SPEAK CRYPTIC” IS THE MONIKER OF FARIZWAN FAJARI, AN ARTIST AND ILLUSTRATOR WORKING AND LIVING IN SINGAPORE. HE GRADUATED FROM THE LASALLE COLLEGE OF THE ARTS IN 2007 WITH A BACHELORS DEGREE IN FINE ART, MAJORING IN PAINTING. EXCLUSIVELY FOR YOMO, FARISWAN CREATED THREE ILLUSTRATIONS THAT ARE UP FOR SALE IN THE CURRENT YOMO EXHIBITION SUPPORTING THE GIRL EFFECT CHARITY ORGANIZATION.

"THESE ILLUSTRATIONS ARE BASED UPON VARIOUS REACTIONS TOWARDS DIFFERENT SITUATIONS THAT HAS TRANSPIRED WITHIN MY IMMEDIATE ENVIRONMENT. IT COULD BE BEST DESCRIBED AS VISUAL DIARY OF A SINGLE INSTANCE.

THE NARRATIVE HOWEVER, IS PERSONAL TO THE ARTIST BUT HE HOPES THAT CERTAIN SIGNS THAT EXISTS WITHIN THE IMAGE WILL ACT AS A CATALYST TO TRIGGER OFF THE VIEWER'S OWN INTERPRETATION OF THAT INSTANCE."

-­‐SPEAK CRYPTIC  1 6

“The Movie Channel” by Speak Cryptic

1 7

1 8

IS THERE A PILOT IN BELGIUM?

by Emmanuelle Lambert

IMAGINE A SMALL COUNTRY IN WESTERN EUROPE. THIS SMALL COUNTRY IS DIVIDED INTO THREE REGIONS, ONE SOUTH, ONE NORTH, AND A THIRD REGION IN THE MIDDLE, WHICH HAPPENS TO BE THE CAPITAL. NORTH AND SOUTH SPEAK DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, AND MIDDLE SPEAKS A BIT OF BOTH.

LET’S TAKE IT FURTHER: IMAGINE THAT GENERAL

RATIFY A STATE BUDGET, TO NO AVAIL. SINCE

ELECTIONS TOOK PLACE IN THIS SMALL COUNTRY

FAR AS TO SAY THAT SUCH SITUATION IS

IN JUNE LAST YEAR. A RIGHT-­‐WING SEPARATIST

IMPOSSIBLE!

NORTH, THEREFORE CLAIMING MORE AUTONOMY. A LEFT-­‐WING SOCIALIST PARTY WON IN THE SOUTH. AND IN THE MIDDLE, BOTH A LIBERAL RIGHT-­‐OF-­‐CENTER PARTY AND THE LEFT-­‐WING SOCIALIST PARTY WON.

IMAGINE THAT SINCE THEN, ALL THESE PARTIES

WELL, WELCOME TO BELGIUM.

S URREALISM AT ITS B EST TENSIONS BETWEEN DUTCH-­‐SPEAKING FLANDERS IN THE NORTH AND FRENCH-­‐SPEAKING WALLOOUNIA IN THE SOUTH HAVE ALWAYS EXISTED, MOSTLY COMING FROM THEIR AUTHORITIES. HOWEVER THEY HAVE REACHED A WHOLE NEW LEVEL OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS,

PARTY WON IN THE

HAVE BEEN NEGOTIATING TO FORM A GOVERNMENT ABLE TO CARRY OUT THE NECESSARY INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS AND

THEN, THE PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT THAT HAD RESIGNED THUS CAUSING THE JUNE ELECTIONS, IS ACTING AS CARETAKER GOVERNMENT TO HANDLE CURRENT AFFAIRS.

NOW

ADD THE SECRET

INGREDIENT TO THE ABOVE RECIPE: THE SMALL COUNTRY IS A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE

EUROPEAN UNION. HARD TO IMAGINE, RIGHT? YOU MIGHT GO AS

1 9

MOSTLY OVER BRUSSELS, THE CAPITAL.

PROPER GOVERNMENT IS IN OFFICE.

SURREALISM IS A WELL-­‐KNOWN BELGIAN TRAIT,

SURREALISTIC AS IT MAY SEEM, THE CALL HAS

TRANSPIRING IN THE POLITICAL ARENA AT THE

LED TO A TREMENDOUS RESPONSE SO FAR.

MOMENT.

A COMMUNICATION AGENCY HAS FOLLOWED SUIT WITH A WEBSITE, FEATURING PORTRAITS OF BEARDED PEOPLE (YES, EVEN VERY CREATIVE WOMEN!).

WILL THESE INITIATIVES HAVE A TRUE IMPACT ON THE DECISION-­‐MAKING PROCESS? IT IS HARD TO TELL AT THIS STAGE. IF IT DOESN’T, THE BELGIANS WILL FIND OTHER WICKED

A P EOPLE ’S R EACT ION THE BELGIANS HAD ACCEPTED THE

SITUATION,

UNTIL YET ANOTHER SERIES OF NEGOTIATIONS FAILED MID-­‐JANUARY. THEY ARE NOW STARTING TO REACT IN THEIR PACIFIST AND SOMEWHAT FUNNY WAY.

EVERYTHING STARTED WHEN KRIS JANSSENS, A YOUNG FLEMISH JOURNALIST, POSTED A VIDEO OF HIMSELF ON YOUTUBE VOICING HIS FRUSTRATION

AS

WAYS OF EXPRESSING THEMSELVES AND GETTING THEIR POINT ACROSS, YOU CAN BET YOUR BEARD ON THAT! 

AND ANGER AT THE INCAPACITY OF POLITICIANS TO END THE DEADLOCK. THIS VIDEO HAS SINCE THEN SPARKED A WHOLE RANGE OF INITIATIVES, SUCH AS THE “SHAME” MARCH SUPPORTED BY A WEBSITE (HTTP://WWW.230111.BE/) IN THREE LANGUAGES, LAUNCHED BY THREE STUDENTS FROM

VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT BRUSSEL. THE MARCH RD TOOK PLACE ON JANUARY 23 AND GATHERED OVER 34 000 PEOPLE.

LESS CLASSICAL INITIATIVES INCLUDE THE CAMPING16.BE WEBSITE, WHERE YOU CAN PLANT A VIRTUAL TENT IN FRONT OF THE PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE ON 16 RUE DE LA LOI IN BRUSSELS, UNTIL A GOVERNMENT IS FORMED. THE IDEA SEEMS CRAZY, BUT TO THIS DAY AROUND 144 000 PEOPLE HAVE JOINED THE PROTEST CAMP.

HOWEVER THE MOST TYPICAL BELGIAN REACTION CAME FROM BELGIUM’S BEST-­‐KNOWN ACTOR, BENOIT POELVOORDE OF MAN BITES DOG FAME. IN AN INTERVIEW ON JANUARY 12, POELVOORDE URGED BELGIAN CITIZENS NOT TO SHAVE UNTIL A THE

Watch Kris Janssens’ video with English subtitles at: http://universalsubtitles.org/en/vid eos/mQMJiwWDtPAG/

Check out all the beards at WWW.BEARDFORBELGIUM.BE

2 0

Does this mess with your eyes??

2 1

Photos by Monisha Sharma

2 2

THE TORONTO GRAFFITI WALK

by Monisha Sharma OFF THE TORONTO FASHION DISTRICT BY CHINA TOWN, IS A KILOMETRE OF UNADULTERATED ARTISTIC EXPRESSION. THERE, I FOUND MYSELF BATTLING SNOW ON A COLD, WINTRY SUNDAY AFTERNOON, IN THE MIDST OF A SPECTACULAR COLOUR EXPLOSION. EVEN IN THE SNOWSTORM SEVERAL OTHER GRAFFITI ENTHUSIASTS HAD DRAGGED THEMSELVES OUT OF THEIR WARM ABODES TO WITNESS ART TAKE OVER THE CITY.

THEY COULD NOT BE FAULTED FOR THEIR EAGERNESS. THROUGH LAYERS OF SYMBOLISM OR JUST CAMPY HUMOUR, GRAFFITI PAINTERS OR WRITERS AS THEY LIKE TO BE CALLED, MAKE THE WALLS OF THE CITY COME ALIVE. I’M DRAWN IN BY A TREASURE MAP THAT IN TRUE GRAF STYLE IS PLACED NEXT TO AN EXPLODING, CRIMSON-­‐RED, LARGER THAN LIFE SCORPION CREATURE. FURTHER ALONG THE ALLEY, REFERENCES TO “STYLE IN PROGRESS” – AN ANNUAL LEGALIZED GRAFFITI EVENT, OR THE UNPOPULAR G20 SUMMIT RECENTLY HELD IN TORONTO

“GRAFFITI HAS EVOLVED INTO A CULT OR SUBCULTURE OF ITS OWN WITH AN INTRICATE SET OF RULES”

COVER THE WALLS.

FROM

THE WHIMSICAL TO THE

STAUNCHLY POLITICAL, GRAFFITI ARTISTS SUCH AS SKAM,

KANE, MIKE GIANT AND REVOK PRESENT AN OPINIONATED COMMENTARY ON OUR LIVES IN TORONTO. THE ART OF GRAFFITI HAS EXISTED EVER SINCE MAN HAS KNOWN HOW TO EXPRESS HIMSELF ON WALLS; FROM CAVEMAN ETCHINGS MORE THAN THIRTY THOUSAND YEARS AGO TO EXTRAORDINARY SPRAY PAINT CREATIONS ON CITY WALLS TODAY.

THESE

SKETCHES FIRST ORIGINATED AS A

MEANS OF COMMUNICATION OR CENTREPIECES FOR CEREMONIES AND PLAYED A BIG PART IN RELIGION. IN MANY WAYS, GRAFFITI HAS EVOLVED INTO A CULT OR SUBCULTURE OF ITS OWN WITH AN INTRICATE SET OF RULES. MODERN GRAFFITI BEGAN AS A REBELLIOUS OUTCRY AND HAS BEEN CLOSELY ALIGNED WITH PROPAGANDA, REVOLUTIONARY AND

2 3

ANARCHIST SLOGANS. IT BECAME THE VOICE OF ANTI ESTABLISHMENT SENTIMENTS OF THE COMMON MAN, MOST FAMOUSLY THROUGH DEPICTIONS ON THE BERLIN WALL AND THE WEST BANK WALL.

GRAFFITI CONTINUES TO BE ILLEGAL IN MOST COUNTRIES. THE LIFESTYLE OF A GRAFFITI WRITER IS PRECARIOUS AND THE RISKS FACED ARE FAR GREATER THAN THE NON-­‐ATTAINMENT OF ARTISTIC VISION.

GRAFFITI ARTISTS ARE ALWAYS ON THE RUN FROM THE POLICE, COMPETING CREWS OR EVEN GANGS. HARSH FINES AND EVEN JAIL TIME IS NOT RARE. THE CHANCES OF YOUR WORK REMAINING ON DISPLAY FOREVER ARE MINISCULE AS IT IS BEING PERFORMED ON A STOLEN CANVAS. SOME HAVE REFERRED TO GRAFFITI AS BEING THE FINE ART EQUIVALENT OF IMPROVISATIONAL THEATRE. THE JOY OF CREATION IS AT THE CORE OF THE PROCESS AND THE BIGGEST PLEASURE LIES IN THE ACTUAL ACTIVITY RATHER THAN THE OUTCOME. THIS UNPREDICTABLE QUALITY MAKES THE RESULTING ARTWORK MORE BREATHTAKING, AS IT IS ONLY THERE TO BE CHERISHED FOR A SHORT WHILE. THE WALLS OF A GRAFFITI FILLED ALLEY, JUST LIKE LIFE, ARE DEFINED BY CHANGE.

TWO BLOCKS INTO THE ALLEY LIES AN ENCHANTING NATIVE INDIAN INSPIRED GRAFFITI PORTRAIT OF A WOLF, YOUNG GIRL AND AN EAGLE AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF A GRITTY, INDUSTRIAL CITY. THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE POWERFUL COOL BLUES AND WHITES OF THE WOLF TO THE STOIC DETERMINATION OF THE GIRL IS CAPTIVATING. HOWEVER, WHAT DOMINATES THE WALL ON THE SIDE IS A WARRING CONVERSATION BETWEEN TWO COMPETING GRAF WRITERS. IT IS APPARENT THAT THE ORIGINAL WOLF GRAFFITI WAS WIDER ON THE LEFT THAN WHAT REMAINS ON THE WALL.

ANOTHER ARTIST HAD STAKED HIS CLAIM TO THE WALL BY PARTIALLY PAINTING OVER THE ORIGINAL ART WORK. NOT TO BE OUTDONE, THE ORIGINAL ARTIST CAME BACK TO PAINT A THIRD IMAGE ON TOP AND LEFT A MESSAGE FOR THE OFFENDING ENCROACHMENT: “TIT FOR TAT... JUST LIKE THAT... TOY”. THE

“TOY” REFERS TO AN INEXPERIENCED OR DISRESPECTFUL GRAFFITI WRITER. GRAFFITI TODAY IS MORE MAINSTREAM AND COMMERCIALIZED, EVEN USED EXTENSIVELY IN ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS SUCH AS IBM, SONY AND MICROSOFT. MANY GRAFFITI ARTISTS HAVE TAKEN THE LEAP FROM PAINTING ON WALLS TO DESIGNING SKATEBOARDS, CLOTHING APPAREL AND SHOES. EVEN SO, THE HEART OF GRAFFITI IS STILL ABOUT MAKING STATEMENTS. THE HAUNTING LOOK UNDERNEATH AN “AUTHORIZED PARKING ONLY” SIGN OR TERM

THE CAREFREE BLISSFUL IMAGE ACCOMPANIED WITH THE DECLARATION THAT

“I’M JUST WALKING MY DOG, SINGING MY SONG” BOTH DEMAND ATTENTION AND ELICIT AWE. THE VIVID COLOURS, VISCERAL AND UNAPOLOGETIC IMAGES IN A SNOWED IN DULL GRAY CITY, TRANSFORMED A GENERIC ALLEY AND SHOWCASED THE NEED FOR MORE GRAFFITI IN OUR LIVES. 

2 4

Yup.

2 5

Illustration by Elena Asimar

2 6

DEVIANT ART (don’t worry, this is not about the website)

by Maiteree Mann

IF YOU ARE AN ART ENTHUSIAST AND GRAPPLING, WITH THE HUGE DIMENSIONS OF THE CONTEMPORARY ART WORLD TODAY, LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT THE VOLATILE DIMENSIONS OF WHAT WE KNOW AS ART AND HOW THE CONSTANT DEVIATIONS IN ART HAVE CHANGED THE FACE OF CONTEMPORARY ART. IN RECENT TIMES THE ART FRATERNITY WORLD WIDE WAS JOSTLED BY THIS NEWS: “ON 11 AUGUST 2010, THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION DECIDED THAT A VIDEO INSTALLATION SHOULD BE CLASSIFIED AS DVD PLAYERS AND PROJECTORS, AND A LIGHT INSTALLATION AS LIGHT FITTINGS.” BASED ON THIS NEWS, AS PER EU LEGISLATION, WORKS OF ART THAT USE LIGHT AND VIDEO INSTALLATIONS DO NOT COME UNDER THE PERIPHERY OF WHAT CAN BE TERMED AS ART. THEREFORE, WORKS SUCH AS THOSE BILL VIOLA'S "ISOLDE'S ASCENSION (THE SHAPE OF LIGHT IN SPACE AFTER DEATH)", 2005, CANNOT BE CLASSIFIED AS ART PER SE. WHILE THE DECISION HAS BEEN WIDELY COMMENTED ON AND HEAVILY CRITICIZED, IT BRINGS US TO THE QUESTION OF WHAT REALLY IS THE DEFINITION OF ART? THERE HAS BEEN MUCH DEBATE RECENTLY ABOUT WHAT WE PERCEIVE AS ART. THIS IS PRIMARILY BECAUSE ART TODAY IS NO LONGER CONFINED TO THE CANVAS OR THE OIL PAINT AND WATER COLORS. GOING THROUGH HISTORY, ONE MIGHT RECOLLECT THAT THE ERA BEFORE THE 1960’S SAW ART AS VERY TRADITIONAL FORM OF PAINTING. DURING THOSE TIMES, ART WAS MUCH MORE CATEGORIZED AND PERHAPS EASIER TO LOOK AT AND UNDERSTAND. ART WAS THEN CLASSIFIED INTO MOVEMENTS AND STYLES SUCH AS ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM, SURREALISM, ETC. IT WAS DEFINED BY THE USE OF MEDIUM, BRUSH STROKES, COLORS, TECHNIQUES, AND CANVAS UPON WHICH IT WAS PAINTED. IN STRIKING CONTRAST, TODAY’S CONTEMPORARY ART MIGHT NOT HAVE EITHER THE CANVAS OR A BRUSH AND YET BE A VERY CREATIVE FORM OF ART EXPRESSION. THIS HAS IN FACT OPENED BOUNDARIES AND GIVEN RISE TO EXCITING NEW WAYS WORKS THAT MIGHT NEVER EVEN HAVE BEEN IMAGINED POSSIBLE BEFORE. BEGINNING WITH PROJECTS LIKE ‘9 EVENINGS: THEATRE & ENGINEERING’. EXPERIMENTS IN ART AND TECHNOLOGY (E.A.T.), WHERE 10 NEW YORK ARTISTS COLLABORATED WITH 30 ENGINEERS AND SCIENTISTS FROM BELL TELEPHONE LABORATORIES, TO CREATE HISTORY, CONTEMPORARY ART HAS INDEED COME A LONG WAY.

CONTEMPORARY ART OF TODAY CAN BE BEST CATEGORIZED AS A MIXED MEDIA COLLAGE LIKE FORM THAT IS OFTEN BROUGHT TOGETHER THOUGH PAPER, EMBELLISHMENTS, PAINT, MUSIC, COLOR, VIDEOS, GRAPHICS AND VARIOUS OTHER MEDIUMS THAT ONE MIGHT HAVE NEVER ASSOCIATED WITH ART BEFORE. THOUGH SOMETIMES MARKED AS MURKIER AND DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND, CONTEMPORARY ART AIMS AT BECOMING MORE ACCESSIBLE AND IN TRYING TO DEFINE TODAY’S PSYCHE MORE THAN TRADITIONAL ART PERHAPS EVER HAS

2 7

POST MODERN ART IN GENERAL AND CONTEMPORARY ART IN PARTICULAR SPEAK OF PLURALISM AND ECLECTICISM. A LACK OF A UNIFORM ORGANIZING PRINCIPLE OR IDEOLOGY IS WHAT CHARACTERIZES THE PRESENT DAY ART FORM.

SOON AFTER THE MULTIMEDIA EXPERIMENTS IN THE 1970S, ART SAW A WIDESPREAD USE OF TECHNOLOGY-­‐BASED MEDIA: AMALGAMATION OF SOUND, LIVE PERFORMANCES, FILM CLIPS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ETC. THE WORKS OF ARTIST’S LIKE KRUGER, WITH HIS WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGES, AS WELL AS KIEFER’S PHOTOGRAPHIC COLLAGES ARE EXAMPLES OF TODAY’S ART WORK. CONTINUING AND DEFINING THIS VERY TREND IS THE DECLARATION OF SUSAN PHILIPSZ AS THIS YEAR'S WINNER FOR THE TURNER PRIZE. THE TURNER PRIZE IS THE BIGGEST ANNUAL AWARD GIVEN FOR AN ARTIST IN BRITAIN.

THE GUARDIAN REPORTS: “SHE IS THE FIRST PERSON IN THE HISTORY OF THE AWARD TO HAVE CREATED NOTHING YOU CAN SEE OR TOUCH."

THE FACT THAT PHILIPSZ'S ART IS DEVOID OF VISUALS IS PERHAPS A STATEMENT THAT ART TODAY IS TRULY MULTI DIMENSIONAL AND EVOLVING IN REGIONS ONE HAD NEVER DREAMT OF. MUCH OF THE RECENT PAST AND THE COMING YEARS SHALL PERHAPS SEE THE AMALGAMATION OF ART WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIAL NETWORKING IN THE PROMOTION OF SUCH ART, ONE MIGHT ASK, WHY NOT? IT NOT ONLY HELPS ARTISTS EXPERIMENT WITH THEIR CREATIVITY BUT ALSO HELPS MAKE ART MUCH MORE AFFORDABLE. WHILE THERE ARE MANY WHO PREFER THEIR ART WORK TO BE REMAIN WITHIN THE FRAMES OF A CANVAS, ONE HAS THE FEELING THAT ASSEMBLAGE ART IS HERE TO STAY. PERHAPS, A SUCCESS FOR ART AND ITS FUTURE WOULD BE BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN THE ADVENTUROUS WITH THAT OF THE TRADITIONAL. A SPACE WHERE ART GALLERIES WORLD WIDE ARE NOT FILLED WITH ONLY EXPERIMENTAL ART AND GIVE AS MUCH CREDENCE TO THE TRADITIONAL AS THAT OF FLUID CONTEMPORARY ART. 

2 8

29 2 9

3 0

IMPRESSUM Aminta Rother 1-20-21-301 Tabata Kita-ku, Tokyo JP – 114-0014 E-Mail: aminta@yomoart.org www.yomoart.org 3 1