Street Speak was an effort for artists to open visual conversation with the public.Street art has emerged as a way for artists to publicly display their work through unauthorized measures. Even though graffiti is against the law in the United States, menial punishments allow street art to be worth the risk. The opportunity to display artwork to such an extensive audience has empowered artists to publish their opinions on a large scale. While at times graffiti art supports activism and subversion, the goal for this project is to encourage self-expression and open communication. The moment an image is displayed in a public space, the opportunity for dialogue simultaneously arises in another's ability to cover, alter, or add to the original.
We have asked American artists to submit original two-dimensional artwork that reflects their cultural identity. The submissions have been publicly displayed in Denver, via impermanent graffiti methods*.
* Impermanent Graffiti Methods: Designs were printed in different sizes (between 2 ft and 4 ft) onto thin white paper. The designs were then trimmed to the desired size/shape. These images were glued to buildings using wheat paste.
Wheat Paste Recipe:Prepare 1 cup (2.4 dl) of very hot water. Make a thin mixture of 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of white flour and cold water (just enough to wet all the flour and make it liquid enough to pour). Pour the cold mixture slowly into the hot water while stirring constantly. Bring to a boil. When it thickens, allow to cool. Smear on like any other glue. For slightly better strength, add 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of sugar after the glue is thickened. After using a portion, reheat the remaining in a covered jar or container to sterilize it for storage or keep refrigerated. If wheat flour is not available, other flours will work.
Here we have tried to localize Marie & Matthew's project,"Street Speak", which has a brilliant idea. In Tehran, there is the slimmest chance of receiving a graphical answer in this case, and probably any case at all. We decided to put some posters on a wall* and see how people would react to them.
Removing the posters was the most expected reaction, as well as the most primitive shape of a dialogue. We decided to provide a few posters with different values on them. The yellow poster has a religious motif on it. The blue one says "Water is life, don't waste it", and the red one has a transitional meaning between the two.
Would people remove the ones which are less important to them and let the ones with more important messages to stay on the wall for a few more days? probably.See the result for yourself.
*The Wall is located in Vali e Asr street, near Mellat Park.