In recent times, there’s been talk about a post-graffiti movement. New approaches beyond traditional graffiti forms have taken off. Two of the most popular contemporary approaches are stencils and stickers. Both tend to be preferred for their simplicity. At times too, they tend to carry a more politically charged message than their classic counterparts, whose essential political message did not go much beyond the realm of defacing of public property.

Stencil art still resorts to paintbrushes or spray-cans but the painting is done through a template. More discreet in nature than stencil works and larger pieces, stickers face a size constraint, yet they are becoming increasingly popular. Among the new names standing out in this terrain are Shepard Fairey, now famous for his “Obey Giant” campaign and Britain’s most famous graffiti artist, Bansky.

Along with the new approaches, some graffiti artists have turned to new media, occasionally becoming highly respected artists and graphic designers. Early examples of this switch are Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat, both of whom found their niches in the contemporary art world after a few years in the streets.

Other early New York taggers have evolved and turned to alternate forms of expression, such as the case of SEEN, one of the most famous pioneering graffiti artists. Reinventing himself as a tattoo artist in the mid-eighties, he is now into the vinyl toy world.

6 Responses to “Post-graffiti: off of the street, into new media”

  1. Maximus Says:

    I would like to see a continuation of the topic

  2. tom Says:

    I gobbled up the mountains et the sky and drank the sea. Until I was the Universe the Universe was me.

  3. tom Says:

    Free canvas.

  4. tom Says:

    On e time I got a huma.

  5. fabio Says:

    eu amu os grafitis do post sou eniçiado mas vou chegar la


  6. [...] wie hem niet kent: KAWS is een van de meest bekende ‘post-grafitti’ kunstenaars van het moment. Begonnen halverwege de 90’s met het bewerken van billboards en [...]

Leave a Reply