Jose Fonte
Introduce Your Genre
- Identify your tentative “underappreciated” genre (or subgenre)
Street Art
- What is interesting to you about this genre? Or, why might it be significant or otherwise worth paying attention to?
Street art, in its purest form, is done for the sole purpose of expression, whether it’s for aesthetic purposes or wanting to convey a message or idea. Street artist aren’t compensated for their street art. In fact they are often arrested because it is illegal, which is why most street artists are masked and unknown.
- Tentatively, define/describe your corpus (collection of texts/examples)
I will attempt to show street art in a more non-conventional way. For example, street art is usually though of as graffiti and spray paint, but street art has far more categories like street installation and wheat pasting. However, spray painting is a big part of street art and should not be forgotten.
- Provide links (and/or titles) of five samples. (Try to gather samples from more than one “place” [or type] in order to obtain a diverse and accurate representation of the genre. For now, choose samples without significant deviations).
Describe the Context
- Setting: Where (in what context or medium) does the genre appear? How and when is it used? With what other genres does this genre interact? How?
Spray paint, Wheat pasting/posters, Stickers, Street installation. Street art can translate to the world of gallery art and mural art, which is a legal place where street artists can make money.
- Subject: What topics, issues, ideas, etc. are common to this genre? When people use this genre, what are they communicating about?
Social statement, political issues, vandalism vs street art, absurdism, aesthetics
- Writers: Who writes the texts in this genre? Are multiple writers possible? What roles do they perform? What characteristics must writers of this genre possess? Under what circumstances do writers write the genre (e.g., in teams, on a computer, in a rush, for their profession? for fun?)?
The writers of street art are the artist themselves. Multiple writers are possible, especially for big projects. In fact, some artist belongs to groups. The writers in this genre write for the pure love of it. They need to find a good spot to place their work, preferably one that visible by many people but also not under constant surveillance. Then need to work in a rush to not get caught by authorities. They mostly go out in the deep of the night in order to minimize the chances of getting caught. In fact, harsh weather conditions like snow storms are an advantage because there will certainly be no one outside.
- Readers: Who reads the texts in this genre? Is there more than one type of reader for this genre? What roles do they perform? What characteristics must readers of this genre possess? Under what circumstances do readers read the genre (e.g., at their leisure, on the run, in waiting rooms)?
There are two types of readers. The first is the casual person who is walking to his/her’s destination. This person becomes a reader when the art work in question captures the person’s attention. Then there’s the person who seeks these artworks. This person while typically be searching for a piece by a famous street artist or viewing in an area where there is know to be street art
- Exigency/Purpose(s): Why do writers write this genre, and why do readers read it? What purposes does the genre fulfill for the people who use it?
The artist produce the art for the love of art and/or because he/she has something important to say. The actively seek viewers of street art view street art for the same reason.
This is a very niche topic and you raised some good points! There are so many creative people out there who make street art simply for others to enjoy and some who make it a way to share their message on societal issues. I would love to see how someone like Banksy has changed the way the average person views street art.
I would love to read a paper on this topic. Street art is more or less seen a a nuisance, to many that don’t think that artistic expression is beautiful. There are many ways that expression can be seen through street art, not only through written language, but through imagery. Even something as simple as writing your name, can be seen as an expression of someones feelings. I think that talking about the restrictions of this genre would be interesting.
But isn’t “pure” self-expression different than wanting to convey a message?
One is emoting; the other is argument… I think. 🙂