Artistic Street Essay Example

Street artists have increased in the last decade which has increased the number of artist work in the streets such as graffiti and murals. An encounter with a street art inspires the feeling of delight, surprise, and amusement but a more in-depth analysis can help one to identify the connection between urban street art and the local cultural heritage (Bates, 2014). Previously, street art such as graffiti was viewed as vandalism, but there has been an increase in a positive critique on the work of Banksy and other modern artists who have increasingly led to the recognition of street art and artists. This paper will assess Banksy mural in the corner of Houston Street and Bowery in New York which aimed at protesting the arrest and imprisonment of Kurdish artist Zehra Dogan.

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The 70-foot mural is the largest is a political protest against the imprisonment of Zehra Dogan, a Kurdish journalist who is also a journalist (Miller, 2018). The mural can be considered as an art because it possesses color, shape, space, form, value, and two dimensional. Apart from having the essential elements that are synonymous in artwork the mural also meets the principles of art by possessing rhythm, balance, proportion, and gradation that makes it a mural. In the mural, white is used in the background, and black strokes are used to depict the jail bars. White presents the lightest value, and the imitation of the jails are drawn using a dark color to emphasize the meaning of the mural. Banksy uses gradation to further place emphasis on the role of the mural as a protest against the artist imprisonment. In the mural, dark strokes in the surrounding jails cross the jail bar rails which does not have an occupant and the change in this pattern is what specifically indicates Zohra imprisonment.

Although the mural lacks any words inside the woman behind bars shows that the artist is referring to a woman prisoner. The function of the mural is the emphasis on the need for media freedom and call for authorities to respect the rights and privileges of journalists and artists. The painting is created using spray paint using a white spray paint background and black color to draw the mural. The primary message of the mural is a protest against Zehra Dogan, but it can be interpreted as a protest against prejudice towards women in the society. The symbol of a woman and the bars postulates the denial of women equal rights in a society which pushes women to stay at home instead of participating in nation-building activities (Tunnacliffe, 2016). The bars represent the negative culture that imprisons women at home especially in the middle east where the Islamic religion puts men in a more prestigious position in society compared to women. The art makes me feel sorry and sorrowful due to the plight of women as well as journalists persecution. The art adds beauty to the surrounding area, and the building and its big size easily catch the attention of people passing by building. Besides, the mural is strategically located to be visible to the public.

Conclusion

In conclusion, street art has a special place today as a means of not only beautifying the streets but also for greater ideals like in the case of Banksy mural in the corner of Houston Street and Bowery which is protesting against the imprisonment of a Kurdish artist and journalist in Turkey. The mural is a depiction of the important role of street art today in the society and the changing perception of street art as a form of vandalism.

References

Bates, L. (2014). Bombing, Tagging, Writing: An Analysis of the Significance of Graffiti and Street Art. Retrieved from https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1552&context=hp_theses

Miller, J. H. (2018, August 09). Banksy brings his street art social critique to New York. Retrieved from https://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/banksy-brings-his-street-art-social-critique-to-new-york

Tunnacliffe, C. (2016). The Power of Urban Street Art in Re-naturing Urban Imaginations & Experiences (No. 182). DPU Working Paper. Retrieved from https://www.ucl.ac.uk/bartlett/development/sites/bartlett/files/migrated-files/WP_182_Claire_Malaika_T_June_0.pdf