So I guess this is more of a weekly thing, I hope you all don't mind.

[Sixten piece]



Let's Dive Into Graffiti Perspectives Shall We?



Castleman’s work was obviously built on by Austin. I am still searching for a piece of writing, criticism, analysis that does not fall into the trap of fame. This is not a David Bowie song. I have some faith in MacDonalds work, but she still approaches it as a wide sprung glorified youth fad. What about the reclaim the streets movement? That is just a bunch of hippies shutting down blocks for hours at a time. Burning cars is more productive than writing?

I found an interesting piece today. It was simply scrawl, no style…all it said was: “No one reads graffiti” The deadpan of it all was delicious. Why doesn’t anyone look into the legitimate protests? Why do the most ridiculous idiots get all the coverage? Why does all the scholarly coverage take a dive deeper? Does this work even exist in this city? All our authorized pieces fall…well kind of flat…I mean what is with the giant penis at the corner of Front and Bay? Is it a beached whale? Our contemporary artists are doing beautiful things, now if they could only take it into the streets. But perhaps this is a sour reflection on the way we run the city.

I met a kid a few months ago, stuck paying a ticket with his student loan. I asked him what the story was and he said he never even finished the piece. It is a battle. I don’t doubt it, but maybe the authorities would be more welcoming if we had some decent work that wasn’t just an acid trip into NYC circa 1980...

Give me some suggestion, because I'm losing my faith in graffiti. Toronto-wise anyway. This guy's fucking awesome.