Art or a crime? Intersting new downtown grafitti.

[1KielsonDrive]

Hmmm, lawfulness may not be the best barometer of art.

1) This piece of art is attractive, interesting and stimulated discussion and debate. Probably unlawful, but beautiful.

2) Penske's acre of concrete on Belle Isle is lawful. It's just ugly, cutting into the landscaping of another, better work of art. It just happens to have been done with permission and is therefore lawful, though ugly as sin.

Good analogy. When they first began pouring that concrete on Belle Isle I thought they were moving City Airport over there.

[Det_ard]

I'm gonna go tag it. That MY art.

[Lt. Dan Bassett]

Woodward, south of Alexandrine, west side. A detail of what appears to be a multi-colored stencil. Captured by a tourist who wasn't chased away by graf. Never authorized. Embraced by the building owner.
You can't stop the Spring.

Where's my portable jigsaw? I want it. Now.

[Lt. Dan Bassett]

http://detroit.figmentproject.org/figment-detroit-2011/

authorized fun on the street this summer on Belle Isle. Participate. Donate. Don't be late.

[1KielsonDrive]

I'm gonna go tag it. That MY art.

The Belle Isle Airport????

[cmubryan]

If the owner of the wall did not give permission to paint this then this is wrong and the person responsible for the painting should face punishment. Where do you draw the line?

[Orthophonic]

If the owner of the wall did not give permission to paint this then this is wrong and the person responsible for the painting should face punishment. Where do you draw the line?

Can't disagree that it is in principle the wrong thing to do to decorate/vandalize/alter somebody else's "thing". But also look at a few other examples - Dequindre Cut and Heidelberg Project, both of which are celebrated now. It appears that what was once wrong can come to be seen as right and in fact merit corporate and/or government sponsorship.

[warsaw7]

I am just going to stay out of this one again.............

http://www.primaryflight.com/

[justanotherboy]

It is no different than tagging someones car with your keys who park too close to you. That is art too.

[Django]

A perfectly symmetrical vertical vivisection of a human could arguably have artistic merit.
The gravity of the situation however, bars examination of any possible artistic merit.

Its been done. I saw this show in Brooklyn NY.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/gall/0,8542,669680,00.html

[Lt. Dan Bassett]

If the owner of the wall did not give permission to paint this then this is wrong and the person responsible for the painting should face punishment. Where do you draw the line?

We would not have a country if George Washington and the founders followed the rules.
Seems the line that wants to be drawn here is whether commerce has occurred. When money has not changed hands relating to property [[in or out of court) the activity is immediately suspect. Must admit that all street art does not command respect for aesthetic/transcendent qualities, but some, ahhhh some street vandals deliver pure gifts that contribute to making life more engaging and meaningful.

[Thruster315]

If the owner of the wall did not give permission to paint this then this is wrong and the person responsible for the painting should face punishment. Where do you draw the line?

I think there are "legitimate" taggers who have respect for people's private property and they only have the unsaid code of tagging empty buildings. I'm not sure but some of this other street art is done by wanna-be's who have no code of conduct.

[wolverine]

I just find it interesting people continue to complain about this while the real crime is the downtown smelling like piss with buildings continuing to rot away and fall apart. Maybe some people won't find it cool, but at least it's something interesting to look at. Notice the wreck of a building behind it. Detroiter's should embrace this distraction and be embarassed by what's behind it.

[hermousefriday]

Nice try on making street pasteups equivalent to mass rape.
This is the high emotion/demonizing of one regime against another that occurs within the heat of battle. Some others might say giant paid-for billboards by a certain local radio station that depict a plump lady with two faces tatted on her rump is rape of their eyeballs.

Where you see blight, others see brightness and hope.

Well said!! That radio station has some of the nastiest, trashiest billboards. I personally would like to see more of this art, and less of butt cracks on billboards.

[hermousefriday]

Agreed, and well-put, Wolverine. This looks similar to a painting I saw in the projects off of I-75--same artist maybe? It was a big lion with bunny ears--pretty cool. I don't know if it was the mural, or today's beautiful weather, but the projects looked more pleasant than its usual creepiness. I see such potential in that area!

[Carey]

Hermouse: Just as I read your post, a friend directed me to this link, which shows the "big lion with bunny ears." It's on a building in the Brewster Douglas projects.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...&type=1&ref=nf

Anybody have other sightings?

[davewindsor]

It's decent and art, but because they didn't follow the rules it needs to be torn down or painted over.

I just don't get it though. The Hygenic Dress League has gotten permission to paint a bunch of boarded up abandoned building like the GAR building. How hard would it be for this artist to simply pick up the phone and get permission from the city like them? It's such a waste of time and talent to have to have it removed, but the by-laws are there for a reason and the city is more than willing to accommodate artists like the HDL in downtown, so doing it without permission is completely unacceptable and I don't see any good reason for the city condoning it by leaving it up there.

[Lt. Dan Bassett]

so much for HDL on the GAR. That was painted over long ago. The squab on royal red piece they did needed to go because some arbiter of culture decided it was an eyesore? A case of right hand not knowing what left hand is doing in city? If HDL was authorized to paint the GAR facing Grand River, and I believe they were, how come it's gone to taupe?

[davewindsor]

so much for HDL on the GAR. That was painted over long ago. The squab on royal red piece they did needed to go because some arbiter of culture decided it was an eyesore? A case of right hand not knowing what left hand is doing in city? If HDL was authorized to paint the GAR facing Grand River, and I believe they were, how come it's gone to taupe?

The HDL artwork got vandalized. They didn't want to fix it so it got painted over. Here's the mural on Park avenue that had yellow and red paint thrown at it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/imagen_detroit/4582345589/

Here's the before it was vandalized shot http://info.detnews.com/apps/blogs/l...php?blogid=220

But, I'm sure the artwork had lasted a lot longer than the one on the theatre will because HDL got authorization..

[majohnson]

I thought the HDL work was really cool.

I think a certain number of people under 45 like to see tasteful work like what HDL produced.
The Moth story hour is held at Cliff Bells on the first Thursday of each month at 7:30pm.
I think the work on Park Avenue was large and continous enought that it gave the eye-level blight across from Cliff Bells a refreshing look. A look that reduces blight but yet is edgy.
I know a number of the Moth attendees were from Ann Arbor, I think someone from Ann Arbor is less desensitized to blight than many Detroiters. So the artwork really did a service to the situation.

It is sad someone decided to deface their art.
Speaks volumes about the importance of not defacing public property.
Graffiti vandals claim to be legitimate artist, defacing the paint-based art of others undermines their cliam.

[Richard]

Mindfield also has not lost its focus on renovating the Grand Army of the Republic [[GAR) Building at Grand River Avenue and Adams Street in downtown. The 19th Century structure [[it looks like a castle) used to serve as a sort of club house for Civil War veterans, and has been vacant for a number of years.


http://www.modeldmedia.com/startupne...oit052411.aspx

[Lt. Dan Bassett]

I thought the HDL work was really cool.

I think a certain number of people under 45 like to see tasteful work like what HDL produced.
The Moth story hour is held at Cliff Bells on the first Thursday of each month at 7:30pm.
I think the work on Park Avenue was large and continous enought that it gave the eye-level blight across from Cliff Bells a refreshing look. A look that reduces blight but yet is edgy.
I know a number of the Moth attendees were from Ann Arbor, I think someone from Ann Arbor is less desensitized to blight than many Detroiters. So the artwork really did a service to the situation.

It is sad someone decided to deface their art.
Speaks volumes about the importance of not defacing public property.
Graffiti vandals claim to be legitimate artist, defacing the paint-based art of others undermines their cliam.

Surprisingly, there are some rules on the street. The code says you're not supposed to buff [[paint over) the work of another artist unless you are ready to take a beatdown or can outdo what they've done. Risky biznes to engage in either option. Unfortunately there is always a toy [[inexperienced/untalented fool) who will piddle in the punch bowl. Sorry to see HDL on the GAR gone. Something new there ATM. Paintballers snuffed the couple on Park Ave. RIP. Really likin' that shit-brown roll over though.

[1KielsonDrive]

I have a privately owned and completely legal facade on a public road if someone would like to make a few bucks and create some art/graffitti. 1kielsondrive@live.com

[1KielsonDrive]

Or even a few people maybe working in collaboration on an art/graffiti project.