Exciting news! I was just featured on Station 16's blog! Station 16 is a creative print shop located in Montreal that acts as a "single destination where artists & designers from all over can see their projects come to life, printing on multiple surfaces such as fabric, canvas, paper, wood, and more". (Check them out here: http://www.station16shop.com/) Over the past couple of years, Station 16 has been working with "Street Artist" print editions and has represented artists such as Alex Produkt, Denial, Labrona, Hanksy and many more.
After my travels abroad, studying the various street art movements shaping countries' political histories, I spoke to the brains running this dynamic shop, and they enthusiastically wanted to profile my studies! This is an amazing opportunity and I want to thank all the creative minds at Station 16. Not only are you guys producing something totally rad, you are encouraging a level of social awareness demonstrated through these artists' work, something I deeply value and aspire to create.
My feature on Station 16's blog includes an excerpt from a much lengthier paper I wrote which engages in a comprensive analysis of the street art movements I experienced throughout my travels to India, Senegal and Argentina. If anyone is interested in reading my essay in full, I have attached the text below, accompanied by a range of photographs capturing the people, thought, emotion and environment contributing to these street art movements.
Check out Station 16's post right here!
Comparative Analysis Project:
Youth's Movement through the Streets
Youth's Movement through the Streets
Equity,
representation and freedom are only some of the many rights demanded by civil
society around the world. These globally shared aspirations have historically
and presently shaped people’s movements demanding a change within their social
and political climates. Through my international studies of four major global
cities; New York City, NY, Delhi, India, Dakar, Senegal and Buenos Aires,
Argentina, I had the opportunity to personally observe two major civil rights
movements. These movements included the mobilization of the people of Dakar
demanding a fair and free democracy in their 2012 elections, to the people of
Buenos Aires demanding access to equity by combating the effects of the 2001
economic crisis with alternative solutions. The efforts of these movements have
been captured on the streets, in the forms of graffiti and music, thus ensuring
a visibility of issues often ignored. These are the voices of today’s youth,
demanding a change for their future world. This voice is growing louder due to
the burgeoning technological age in which the creative uses of the Internet are
endless. It is through art and technology that one movement, in one city, can
enact global activism. As an established success of this conversation, French
graffiti artist, JR, created the ¨Inside Out¨ project, proving that through the
power of art and technology, the voice of the people can strengthen and unite.
By capitalizing on the connectivity of the Internet, I believe that the
movements of Dakar and Buenos Aires have the potential to inspire the youth of
cities such as New York City and Delhi, ultimately igniting an international
conversation encouraging a global youth movement demanding social and political
changes.
Through
a closer look at JR´s ¨Inside Out¨ project one can begin to understand the
success of this initiative and ask the question of how the movements of Dakar
and Buenos Aires can adapt JR´s framework and harness the power of art in order
to make visible their local initiatives. Through this project, participants are
challenged to photograph black and white portraits of their community’s members
in order to ¨reveal and share the untold stories and images of people around
the world¨[1].
These photos can then be digitally uploaded to the ¨Inside Out¨ website to be
made into posters and sent back to the project’s leaders for them to exhibit
throughout their own communities. There are no rules to the placement of these
photos. From a school window, to an abandoned factory, the point is to
reestablish agency within the members of a community, and challenge the youth
to reclaim the space as part of their identity.
A key aspect of this project
is that all exhibitions are documented, archived and viewable virtually. By
adding this key component of the virtual, JR has been able to expand this
project to over 8,000 cities around the world, representing countries such as
the United States, Brazil, Pakistan, Mexico, Thailand, France, South Africa,
Israel and others. On the project’s website, a statement boldly reads, ¨JR owns
the biggest art gallery in the world. He exhibits freely in the streets of the
world…¨[2].
JR does not own the biggest art gallery in the world because one person can
never own the streets of the world, they are owned by the people inhabiting
those streets. The street’s multiple voices must demand an international
conversation with multiple representatives. JR, as well as artists such as
Matador from Dakar and the crew, Vomito Attack from Buenos Aires, are ¨catching
the attention of people who are not the museum visitors…[their] work mixes art
and act, talks about commitment, freedom, identity and limit¨[3].
It is clear that the virtual is a pivotal aspect of JR´s project, and without
this aspect, ¨Inside Out¨ would not have been as successful. It takes more than
one successful project to initiate a global movement, but it is clear that
through projects such as ¨Inside Out¨, the power of street art and technology
are beginning to ignite a global conversation. In order to further encourage
this conversation amongst the youth, other international voices involved in
artistic movements must be represented.
Dakar, Senegal:
The Fight for Democracy
 |
| the cannons goree island, dakar, senegal film |
The movement in Dakar for a
democratic state birthed a generation of young street artists and musicians
demanding proper representation and political freedom. With sixty percent of
its population being eighteen years of age or younger, Senegal’s youth has
managed to create an effectively dominant voice through the use of the growing
hip-hop movement, crystallizing in the country’s capital city, Dakar. Matador,
a rapper and former graffiti artist who founded ¨Africulturban¨, an
organization that produces concerts and represents a wide range of Senegalese
artists, defined Senegal’s hip-hop movement as inclusive of multiple mediums of
expression, ¨the culture of hip-hop is not just rap, you do arts and crafts,
graffiti, dance¨[4].
Matador made it clear that although his organization was apolitical, and did
not identify with any particular party, all of his artists, including rappers,
slam poets, DJs, graffiti-ists, have a strong political voice.
This revolutionary hip-hop
movement originated from African-American artists such as Public Enemy and
Tupac, first influencing urban Senegal in the late 1980´s to 1990´s. Public
Enemy´s song entitled, ¨Fight the Power¨, was one of the largest mobilizing
factors at the crux of this shift in public expression and political dominance
at the turn of the century. The anti-authority, revolutionary and political
messages these American artists were conveying strongly appealed to the youth
of Senegal and came to spearhead the 2000 election of President Ababdoulaye
Wade. As this burgeoning hip-hop movement was at the forefront of the support
for Wade in 2000, it was also the largest opposition to his re-election in 2007
and his campaign in the 2012 elections. This movement’s deep emotional
investment in Wade vividly broadcasts the political angst and need for change
felt by the Senegalese youth. As stated by Senegalese rapper, DaBrains, ¨Wade
was a demigod, a messiah that was needed for the country to take off¨[5].
The youth had found their voice and means of political communication through
hip-hop, harnessing this power to originally elect Wade. The broader ¨coalition
that had brought Wade to power in 2000 swiftly fell apart. Its demise began
after the January 2001 referendum on the new constitution¨[6].
The problems that have been expressed through the lyrics and graffiti works of
these young hip-hop artists began to expand in political content immediately
after the referendum, ¨as Wade started to exhibit his desire to monopolize
power¨[7].
The street art employed a range of tactics, from promoting positive phrases in
boldly colored lettering stating, ¨No Violence¨, to the use of ¨ad-jamming¨,
where artists alter advertisements to distort their meanings, as seen through
the defacing of Wade´s campaign posters to include blood dripping from his
eyes. The fight for a free and fair democracy became a rallying point for the
hip-hop movement and artists such as Matador, started gaining popularity due to
his politically charged messages being played through the headphones of the
Senegalese youth and graffitied across the country’s capital city.
 |
| man laying dakar, senegal film |
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| boy swimming ile de madeleine, dakar, senegal film |
According to Docta, known as
the ¨pioneer of graffiti art¨ in Senegal, ¨graffiti artists are all inspired by
the same feeling and the same sense of duty. They are all living the same
difficulties, socially and politically¨[8].
With music and graffiti being a free canvas to work with, seeing that ¨…in
Senegal, you can do whatever you want¨[9],
the youth have mobilized around these mediums as a platform for their voices to
be heard. The ¨true role of graffiti artists in Senegal is to use their work as
a trampoline of communication between urban art and the population¨[10].
It is this attitude in which the idea of a global communication is fathomable.
Senegalese hip-hop artists have chosen artistic expression as their political
platform, uniting the voice of the youth within a country torn by power games.
Real change came from this unification; Macky Sall was elected president of
Senegal in the 2012 election. It has been made clear through these political
messages that the Senegalese youth will not allow for their democracy to
crumble. This honest voice has forced others to listen, mobilizing the citizens
of Senegal to fight for proper representation. If this movement’s strategies
were incorporated into a global discourse through the means of virtual
publication, Senegal’s movement may be able to provide the tools needed for the
silenced peoples of the world to use their voices, ultimately contributing to
the creation of a global youth movement demanding change.
 |
| drum circle goree island, dakar, senegal film |
Buenos Aires,
Argentina: Alternative Solutions to the Economic Crisis of 2001
 |
| aldea velatropa buenos aires, argentina film |
Due to the Argentinean
economic crisis of 2001, a movement demanding social and economic equity for
those marginalized by the crisis was born. These demands, expressed by the
city’s youth, were made visible through street art, as well as through the
creation of grassroots movements.
Between 1998 through 2002, Argentina experienced the worse
socio-economic crises in its history. Unemployment rates ¨reached over
twenty-five percent and in many working class neighborhoods, over fifty
percent¨[11]. As
the country was heavily indebted and the people deeply impoverished, ¨the
popular mood was moving toward a revolutionary uprising¨[12].
As these revolutionary attitudes grew stronger, the youth took to the streets,
demanding agency in their own futures and the future of their country. Rallying
behind the ideological themes of equity, representation and change, the young
revolutionaries demanded people’s attention by artistically dismantling the
ineffective governmental system.
 |
| placed shoes buenos aires, argentina film |
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| abandoned train car
buenos aires, argentina
film |
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| "to respect the other's art is self-respect" buenos aires, argentina film |
Vomito Attack is a collective
of graffiti artists who use urban art ¨as a platform for making scathing
commentary on political corruption and rampant consumerism, targeting both
government institutions and global corporations¨[13].
The group formed due to the economic crisis and their work is often heavily
satirical, employing the use of dark humor and ¨ad-jamming¨ (a shared tactic
used by the Senegalese youth during the 2012 elections). Some of these images
include Puma advertisements with bloodied bullets holes in the emblem, large
walls covered in stenciled kaleidoscope patters depicting famous peoples of
history, or the eyes of women in beauty ads, blackened and dripping color,
resembling President Ababdoulaye Wade campaign posters in Dakar.
Vomito Attack gained
popularity for running a fake political campaign under the slogan ¨Poder,
Corrupcion y Mentiras¨ (Power, Corruption and Lies). Through utilizing similar
tactics employed by political party activists, they advertised for this
fictitious PCM party by painting large, block letter messages alongside
highways and main roads. They covered
the ¨city walls with their propaganda posters to draw attention to the
outrageous levels of corruption in Argentine politics¨[14].
By acting within these governmental archetypes and using the same tactics
employed by political figures advocating for the capitalistic structure, these
Argentinean graffiti artists were able to satirically address the issues of
their society, demanding change of a system no longer serving the people. It is
through these same tactics of working within the capitalistic system in order
to create an alternative solution that many successful grassroots movements of
Buenos Aires began to emerge in response to the 2001 economic crisis.
 |
| sam in the parlor buenos aires, argentina film |
The Unemployed Workers
Movement (MTD), born in the La Matanza district, the poorest and most populated
district of Greater Buenos Aires, is a community based co-operative that
combated the effects of the economic crisis through creating community based
development projects that employ workers and families from the surrounding
neighborhood. Created by the unemployed workers and families of La Matanza, MTD
is a grassroots organization that has continued to ensure that local peoples of
the area are employed within this cooperative movement. By beginning as an
organization built by the people and for the people, MTD continues to ensure
that local needs are made a priority within the organization.
As
a response to the crisis of 2001 the Argentinean government began administering
subsidies to the unemployed people of the state. MTD has chosen to resist
accepting these subsidies on the grounds that they ¨are being paid with money
from the state that is originally the people’s because we are all the state¨[15].
Instead, MTD began work on development projects, in which some would turn a
profit, thus allowing for the movement to prosper. The projects include: a
cooperative bakery, a school (including kindergarten through 2nd
grade), a textile factory and a PC maintenance and programming course. Through
denying the subsidies given out by the Argentinean government, MTD refused to
¨become a hostage of the state¨[16]. By
monetarily profiting from their projects, MTD is using and working within the
capitalist framework (a tactic used by Vomito Attack) while also denying the
state agency, by refusing to accept governmental subsidies. This movement is
demanding ¨the reconstruction of a rights structure…[forming] collective action
aiming to secure accountability and the rule of law¨[17]. The people of this area have been marginalized by a
governmental structure that no longer fits their needs. By creating a structure
that does fit their needs, MTD has resisted a crisis by reclaiming the agency
of the people, ensuring a movement that ¨lives in freedom and promotes freedom¨[18].
 |
| a mural in the park buenos aires, argentina film |
 |
| grasping fist buenos aires, argentina film |
An Inspiration
for Other Cities: New York City, NY and Delhi, India
Through
the street art movement of the Argentinean youth and grassroots movements such
as the MTD, the people of Argentina have reclaimed agency, demanding a change
in the social system. It is by employing the tactics used through these
movements, and those of Dakar’s, that youth across the world can begin to
reclaim the people’s agency and demand change.
Through my studies of Delhi, India and New York City, NY, I see great
potential for these cities to mobilize their youth by borrowing and exchanging
ideas from the movements of Dakar and Buenos Aires. Through my study of Delhi’s
street art, I discovered the tag, ¨New Delhi Junglist Movement: BASSF¨,
scattered sparsely throughout the city.
This movement is a collection of DJs, producers and MCs promoting drum
and bass dubstep in Delhi. Formed in 2009, the artists of Bass Foundation
(BASSF) accompany their sound with ¨unique and uncompromising, politically
conscious lyrics reflecting the fiercely non-commercialist ethos of the crew¨[19]. According to the artists of the crew, BASSF
is ¨spreading the bass-heavy vibes from New Delhi to the World¨[20]. I
would like to challenge this statement. Seeing that I am an international youth
studying within Delhi, the presence of this movement was unknown to me, and
through interviews I conducted of Delhi youth, was unknown to them as well. As
stated by seventeen-year-old Tanya, ¨I don’t know of this group that you are
asking me¨, it is clear that this politically charged movement is not reaching
their domestic youth, and is certainly not reaching the youth of the world.
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| hauz khas alley new delhi, india film |
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| a boy on white new delhi, india film |
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| a boy and rugs new delhi, india film |
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| security measures new delhi, india film |
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| hauz khas wall new delhi, india film |
The
stifled mobilization of India’s youth may be due in part to the patriarchical
societal structure, deeply rooted in a history of religious contestation*, but
even in the United States, a secular society whose foundations were built on
the agency of the people, the youth have not yet mobilized as seen in Dakar or
Buenos Aires. It is not a question of whether the United States has issues
worthy of a youth movement as vibrant of those in Senegal and Argentina; it is
clear through the organization of ¨Occupy Wall Street¨ that there are major
issues of corruption and misrepresentation within the United States´
government. But the movement of ¨Occupy Wall Street¨ has a long way to go ¨to
emulate the success of the Argentine movements that rousted incumbent
presidents, blocked highways paralyzing production and circulation and imposed
a social agenda that prioritized production over finance, social consumption
over military expenditures¨[21]. The same theoretical ideas and demands of
representation, equity and freedom, are all common themes throughout my
research and are all shared wants by the youth of the world, but how do we get
the youth to mobilize around these basic rights?
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| uncle sam new york, new york film |
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| subliminal new york, new york film |
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| on the board walk coney island, brooklyn, new york film |
The Internet: A Tool of Connectivity to Ignite Action
We
must use the resources of today to connect in a way the past never thought
possible. Cities have shown me that by combining many types of peoples in a
single geographic area, a plethora of new ideas can be generated. This same
relationship can be seen through the emotionality of art and the Internet. By
capitalizing on art and technology, and the connectivity and belonging youth
feel when creating art or using the Internet, the ideologies and tactics of the
movements of Dakar and Buenos Aires can reach a larger youth demographic.
The
evolved human race is unlike any other species on the planet today. All of
Earth’s flora and fauna have their own respective place of survival,
corresponding to a specific geographic location. A lion of the African savannah
could never survive like the polar bear in the Arctic tundra, but a human from
Senegal can survive in the home of a human from Iceland. This nomadic ability
to survive anywhere in the world has birthed the inherent insecurities of
belonging within the human species. These insecurities have manifested in
today’s youth through art, such as graffiti and music, and the Internet. Both art and the Internet are built on the
concept of change, paralleling the nomadic personality of the human race, while
also allowing for a sense of belonging by creating an identity for oneself.
Through art and the Internet, youth can belong to multiple ideas, movements,
groups, etc., thus creating an identity of the artist or virtual consumer that
is ever changing.By capitalizing on this
inherent insecurity of belonging, manifested through art and the Internet, one
can inspire an international conversation by showing the youth that they can
belong to a global movement. Through exposing the politically charged graffiti
and music of cities around the world, successful projects inspiring the youth,
as seen through JR´s ¨Inside Out¨ project, can further encourage an
international discourse demanding global change.
[1] "FOOTAGE FROM THESTREETS." Inside Out Project. Web. 10 May 2012.
<http://www.insideoutproject.net/>.
[2] Ibid. Inside Out Project
[3] Ibid. Inside Out Project
[4] Interview with Matador
(Senegalese Rapper/Graffiti Artist) at Africulturban
[5] ¨African Underground:
Democracy in Dakar¨: Documentary Film
[6] Penda Mbow, ¨Senegal: The
Return of Personalism¨
[7] Ibid. Mbow
[8] "Graffiti Coming of
Age in Senegal | Africa | English." Voice
of America ®. Web. 10 May 2012.
<http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/Graffitis-Coming-of-Age-in-Senegal-122227489.html>.
[9] Interview with Souleymane
(Colobane, Dakar)
[10] "Graffiti Coming of
Age in Senegal | Africa | English." Voice
of America ®. Web. 10 May 2012.
<http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/Graffitis-Coming-of-Age-in-Senegal-122227489.html>.
[11] James Petras, ¨Argentina: Why
President Fernandez Wins and Obama Loses¨
[12] Ibid. Petras
[13] "Artists." Graffitimundo. Web. 10 May 2012.
<http://graffitimundo.com/artists/vomito-attack/>.
[14] Ibid. Graffitimundo
[15] Interview with Sylvia Flores: La Matanza, Argentina, Manager of La Matanza MTD
[16] Ibid. Flores
[17] Leonardo Avritzer ¨Civil
Society in Latin America: Uncivil, Liberal and Participatory Models¨
[18] Ibid. Flores
[19] "Http://www.bassfoundation.in." BASSFoundation. Web. 10 May 2012.
<http://www.bassfoundation.in/>.
[20] Ibid. BASSFoundation
[21] James Petras, ¨Argentina: Why President Fernandez Wins
and Obama Loses¨
*Of
which I would like to continue my research exploring.
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