What is street art? Street art and architecture: the most high-profile projects

Ministry of Education of the Republic of Karelia

State Autonomous Professional Educational Institution

Republic of Karelia "Sortavala College"

research project

"Street art: vandalism or art?"

The work was carried out by students of group 711 “Construction and operation of buildings and structures” Dubrovskaya Anna Vasilievna and Galaktionova Diana Maksimovna

Supervisor:

Egorova Vilena Zikrulaevna,

teacher of the highest qualification category

Sortavala, 2016

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………...3

Theoretical part………………………………………………………5

Chapter I. History of the development of street art………………………………………………………5

1.1. Origins………………………………………………………………………………..5

1.2. 1970s……………………………………………………………..5

1.3. 1980s……………………………………………………………..6

1.4. 1990s……………………………………………………………..6

1.5. 2000s……………………………………………………………..6

Chapter II. Street art is the “language” of the city……………………………………………..8

Chapter III. The influence of street art on various aspects of human cultural life…………………………………………………………………………………..10

Practical part………………………………………………………......12

1.Survey……………………………………………………………………………….12

2. Analysis of the survey…………………………………….12

Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………….15

List of sources used………………………………………………………………16

Introduction

Street art - a direction in contemporary fine art, the distinctive feature of which is a pronounced urban character. The main part of street art is graffiti, but one cannot assume that street art is graffiti. Street art also includes posters, stencils, various sculptural installations, etc. The artist creates his own stylized logo - a “unique sign” and depicts it in areas of the urban landscape. The most important thing in street art is not to appropriate territory, but to involve the viewer in a dialogue and show a different plot program.

Relevance: The topic of street art has become relevant for critics, reviewers, and specialists in the design of the city’s cultural environment from the very beginning of its existence (1960–1970s). It is still relevant today. But the greatest spread occurred in the early 2000s. a certain freedom appeared in many areas of life, including street art that gained its niche in the urban environment.

The relevance of our work lies in the fact that street art is becoming increasingly popular, but some people see it as art, while others are of the opinion that it is vandalism.

Target: comprehend the meaning of street art in modern society.

Tasks:

Study the literature on this issue;

Conduct a survey among Internet users to identify their attitude to this problem.

Fundamental question: Does street art have prospects for development in contemporary art and architecture?

Research methods: literature study, collection of Internet resources, questionnaires, analysis of the information received.

Object of study: Street art.

Subject of study: public opinion about street art.

Hypothesis: Perhaps street art is art if it serves to achieve noble goals, otherwise it is vandalism.

Theoretical part

Chapter I . History of the development of street art

1.1 Origins

2. New literary review.Street art in the context of modern urban culture. com /? p =1050

6. Eleven-story residential building “40 BondStreet”. [Electronic resource]. Access form: –

7. University Library in Cottbus. [Electronic resource]. Access form: –

8. World 24.Graffiti and street art: how the language of the ghetto penetrated into museums.[Electronic resource]. Access form:

Review

for a research projectStreet art: art or vandalism?

students of group 711 of the first year of specialty training

Construction and operation of buildings and structures

Dubrovskaya Anna Vasilievna and Galaktionova Diana Maksimovna,

Head Egorova V.Z., teacher of the highest qualification category

The research project is devoted to the current topic of gaining widespread popularity of a movement in contemporary fine art - Street art.

The purpose of the work is clearly formulated and justified. The research plan includes all the necessary steps to achieve the goal.

The research project has a logically correct structure. It consists of an introduction, a theoretical part, a practical part, a conclusion, and a list of information sources used when writing the project. The work is well done. It contains a large amount of illustrative material, which makes it possible to more clearly reveal its main results.

The theme of the project is fully disclosed. The descriptive (theoretical) part reveals the historical stages of the formation of Street art, the history of its development, and the cultural phenomenon of this phenomenon. The authors competently analyzed a large amount of literature on a given topic. The theoretical part is designed in accordance with the requirements for abstract work and deserves high praise.

The project is research, therefore it contributes to the development of cognitive interest, analytical abilities, various ways of perceiving and processing information.

In the practical part, a survey and our own research were carried out. The results obtained are summarized, a conclusion is given, and confirmation of the hypothesis is found.

Throughout the entire period of work on the project, students developed the necessary skills and competencies.

As a result of working on the project, a presentation was developed that clearly illustrates the topic. The product fully complies with quality requirements, is easy to use, and meets the goals of the project.

This project can be used as didactic material for classroom work with study groups in the discipline Project activity, Computer Science, as well as for extracurricular work: conducting elective classes, class hours.

Reviewer: ______________ Stepanova N.V.,

teacher of the highest qualification category

Graffiti often gets a bad rap, but when real artists take over, it turns the city into an absolutely stunning modern place. Graffiti and street art aren't always legal, but that rarely stops street artists from showing off their work.

In recent years, high-quality street art has become one of the trends that attracts tourists from all over the world. Street art can tell a whole story about culture and life without a single word. More and more communities are incorporating street art and graffiti into their design concepts for modern neighborhoods and districts of their cities.

Take a look at the best street art works from around the world:

BERLIN | GERMANY

You can find street art literally everywhere in the German capital. Three guys from the Mentalgassi team are considered one of the main street art teams in Berlin, who have some of the best and unique street art work in the city.

NEW YORK | USA

For many years now, this city has been gathering an incredible number of talented people from all over the world. Thanks to this, the history and culture of New York is unlike any other city.

In recent years, New York City street art artists have been flocking to Bushwick, a Brooklyn neighborhood famous for its hipster culture. Here you can find many world-famous street art works: from pink drawings of Buff Monster to incredibly realistic portraits on the walls of buildings.

MEXICO CITY | MEXICO

Mexico's capital is home to some truly incredible street art. The city became even more colorful with the advent of the All City Canvas street movement, which included 9 talented street art artists. Most of the team's works were created with the support of the Mexico City city government.

VALPARAISO | CHILE

Street art in Valparaiso can be seen in some of the city's safest tourist areas - Cerro Alegre and Cerro Concepcion.

LONDON | GREAT BRITAIN

Street art in London can be found in many places and in different forms: from bright graffiti on walls to giant statues like the blue rooster located in Trafalgar Square. To truly immerse yourself in London street-art culture, you should definitely visit the Shoreditch area of ​​the city. A walking tour is also a great option. Alternative London Walking Tours is one of London's longest street art walking tours.

PRAGUE | CZECH

The streets of Prague are simply strewn with various designs. Graffiti in this city is already like a part of culture and one of the main ways of self-expression for young street art artists.

LISBON | PORTUGAL

In 2011, the Crono Project was created in the Portuguese capital, the purpose of which was to decorate abandoned buildings. The best local street art artists got to work.

| BRAZIL

Street art in Rio is more than just paintings on walls. For some crime-ridden areas, colorful walls have helped attract more interest from tourists and, as a result, more attention from city officials.

MELBOURNE | AUSTRALIA

Street art in Melbourne gained its popularity back in the 70s and 80s. In those years, inspired by the graffiti culture of New York, local youth literally revolutionized Australian street art.

LODZ | POLAND

PARIS | FRANCE

BARCELONA | SPAIN

STAVANGER | NORWAY

OZ | FRANCE

The emergence of street art, the transformation of its style

Street artists are representatives of graffiti culture, which formed in the West as a subcultural movement and has now reached the status of one of the forms of modern art. However, it should be noted that the majority of Russians still tend to consider street art, mostly graffiti, vandalism and hooliganism, while street artists in the West have long moved away from such clichés and cliches in their address and have even gained worldwide fame . Even a person far from contemporary art probably knows the works of the world-famous street artist Banksy. If we talk about the state of Russian street art, there is a common opinion that it is “lagging behind, catching up,” since graffiti culture appeared in our country not so long ago, with the beginning of perestroika - on the wave of penetration of Western mass culture that swept Russia at the end of the 80s -s, early 90s.

Street art, according to most, arose in the 1970s-90s, and its prehistory began back in the Second World War. According to legend, the history of graffiti begins in 1942, during World War II, when worker Kilroy began writing “Kilroy was here” on every box of bombs being produced at a factory in Detroit. Soldiers in Europe reproduce this phrase on walls that survived the bombings. This first manifestation is later joined by Cornbread's signatures in Philadelphia in the 1950s and 1960s. Together with Cool Erl and Top Cat, they create graffiti, giving rise to this movement in a true sense.

From Philadelphia, the movement in the late 1960s came to New York, to the Washington Heights quarter in Manhattan, and it was from there that in the 70s of the 20th century the “tag” spread everywhere, covering the walls of subway cars. Julio 204 was the first to put his street number next to his nickname. The first graffiti artist recognized outside his own neighborhood was Taki 183. He leaves traces of his presence in many urban places, becoming a kind of “arsonist” and provoking a wave of imitations among many graffiti artists.

From New York in the 80s. XX century graffiti, as a special subculture, began to spread throughout the world. This subculture has taken root especially well in poor areas of Latin America, where even earlier their own tradition arose - “mural”, i.e. drawings on houses. By the 90s, artists appeared who largely moved away from graffiti (writing letters, names) and completely switched to creating images or direct messages, using a variety of techniques for this. Here we cannot fail to mention Blek le Rat, which, having become acquainted with the street art of New York, takes this idea back to its homeland, to Paris. There he departs from the standards of signatures and begins to use a stencil, which over time became one of the main tools of all artists. Blek le Rat becomes a fundamental figure in the art of street art; according to the most famous representative of street painting, Banksy, it was he who became the father of modern trends.

By the mid-1970s, more mature graffiti appeared on the streets of New York, painted by the first true street artists: Lee Quinones and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Quiñones painted entire subway trains in his native New York and ended up at the first street art exhibition in the history of Washington, DC, in 1981. At the same time, Batiscia is one of the very first recognized street artists, whose works can currently be purchased for $14 million or more.
The case with Batischia became rather extraordinary for the culture of street art, and he himself soon moved further and further away from hooligan painting and joined neo-expressionism. Street art, meanwhile, moved on and became more and more daring and defiant. The turning point was the 1990s, when more and more artists began to abandon “standard” graffiti (which has now almost ceased to be associated with street art) and, already in the 1990s, following stencils, they began to use posters and stickers, video art and even arrange installations. This time became the time of a new generation of artists for street art - Banksy, Shepard Fairey, Ces53, Space Invader, 108, Ash and many others.

Particularly significant for modern street art culture is the mysterious personality of Banksy, who is one of the most influential and sought-after figures in contemporary art. But his identity has not yet been established. All this time he manages to hide his face behind masks and hoods. This English graffiti artist began painting on the streets of his native Bristol back in 1993 and for quite a long time acted as an ordinary graffiti artist as part of his team, but over time, in order to have time to paint and not be caught by the police, he began to use stencil technology, like the French street artist Bleck le Rat, who painted the London Underground in the late 1970s. Banksy gained worldwide fame thanks to his stencil drawings on sensitive socio-political topics and ridicule of popular culture.

According to the artist himself, “Graffiti is one of the few means of self-expression that you can afford, even if you have nothing.”

Two traditions of street art.

There are two traditions in street art, different in origin and character, although generally conventional. They are usually referred to as “French” street art and “Anglo-American”.

In the English-speaking world, street art grew out of poverty, from “bad areas”, working-class suburbs and largely from the black subculture. He gave rise to the street art movement, having a strong influence on Latin America and continental Europe.

“Anglo-American” street art was initially of a protest nature, created mainly by people of proletarian origin. It is still quite sensitive to any fact of cooperation between colleagues and commercial organizations. At the same time, this tradition is not alien to some lightness, irony and frivolity, and vandalism is often seen as pure pleasure from destruction and breaking the rules.

However, although European artists were inspired by New York graffiti, they soon created their own tradition. “French” street art positions itself as “serious art.” Almost all artists have higher education and connect their artistic ideas with philosophical reflections. The idea of ​​French street art is to serve the community and try to fit into the urban landscape without distorting or destroying the environment. It should also be noted that French street art was quickly included in the system of museums and galleries - most of the now famous authors quickly gained access to exhibitions. The latter circumstance forces one to consider a significant part of this tradition not as street art, but as something else (pop art, glam art...). At the same time, modern French street artists speak rather skeptically about other traditions (for example, in the article “The Age of Developed Vandalism” from the Kommersant - Power magazine), the French artist Zevs says: “I respect Banksy, but what he does is... these are, in essence, caricatures").

If we look for the underlying reasons for the differences between the two traditions of street art, then probably the main one is that the Anglo-Saxon tradition of graffiti and street art are firmly rooted and see their basis in the primitive, territorial beginning of man - street art as pure pleasure from the destruction of boundaries, as the ability to “mark” territory, not so much one’s own, but of some group. The French tradition sees its goal as creating additional meanings in a visual message, not destruction.

It is curious that the difference between these two traditions also correlates with the ability of artists to reflect. It is noted that the works of French street artists turn out to be hyper-reflexive; the messages they convey in objects of art are filled with meaning. At the same time, according to the biographies of the authors, it is noticeable that representatives of the Aglo-Saxon tradition are mainly people from the lower social classes, while in the second tradition there is a significant number of professional artists and designers with one or two educations (often artistic plus humanitarian).

After describing the features of European and Anglo-Saxon graffiti art, it is necessary to trace the path of graffiti in Russia and its features.

The process of origin and development of street art in Russia

The formation of Russian street art, like most other varieties of Western culture, has been happening in Russia since the beginning of perestroika. Around 1985, a fashion for Western values ​​and Western culture began to take shape in Russia, including hip-hop and rap becoming popular. Since citizens of the Soviet Union did not have wide access to information about Western cultural phenomena, information had to be collected “bit by bit... from Western magazines, films and musical products brought by the lucky ones.” That is why there has been a persistent stereotype that the hip-hop style consists of three directions: break-dance, rap and graffiti. This cliché is still popular in modern Russian society, although in fact this is not entirely true. After the collapse of the USSR, a wave of hip-hop culture rushed into Russia, rap and hip-hop dance and music schools appeared, and numerous festivals began to be held. At the same time, the first rappers and breakers were at the same time the first graffiti artists, decorating in this style the decorations of their concert and rehearsal venues, the interiors of their clubs, premises, etc. Among the first representatives of Russian graffiti in those days were: Rat, Basket and Max-Navigator .

Russian street art is formed along the Western path of development and arises from the graffiti direction; this transition has been actively taking place since 2000. Such names as Code and Fet, Make, Who and others appear in the Russian street art arena. In 2003, the first Russian street art events "Don"t Copy me" and "Access" took place, and, starting this year, Russian street art festivals and street art shows are held in Russia regularly. As a result, Russian street art is moving to a new level, instead of hooligan attacks, it turns into a new type of art. However, most modern street art researchers and even the artists themselves often criticize Russian street art, calling it a faceless imitation of the Western school. But, nevertheless, many note positive dynamics development of Russian street art. What are the reasons for the slow development of original Russian street art? The main reason is the obvious centralization of the Russian school of street art: most teams, individual artists and street art centers are concentrated in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Such geographical crowding negatively affects the development of Russian street art, often leaving provincial street artists unnoticed.Another reason for the dominance of Western templates in Russian street art is the use by most street artists of the Latin alphabet, with inscriptions most often in English. In the entire Russian street art space, there is only one notable street art team using Russian as the main language. This is the interregional “Why” team.

Another reason is the current lack of legitimate status of street art in Russian society. On the one hand, street art itself, as described earlier, is an illegal art form. But, on the other hand, in the USA and in the West there are painting platforms where artists can realize their ideas, train their skills, and there are also gallery-type platforms where street artists can even present their work. There are no such spaces in Russia.

Moreover, there is a huge rejection of graffiti paintings, which is expressed, in particular, in how street art objects are dealt with further. Turning again to Western experience, I note that, despite strict sanctions for painting walls in the wrong places, the police are in no hurry to paint over the drawings made by artists. In the UK, graffiti is even being restored (though again by that same Banksy). In Russia, tags are immediately painted over (see Fig. 4 - painting over graffiti near Ladozhskaya metro station), and, most often, the color of paint used to paint over a piece of wall with the image differs sharply from the original color of the wall, so doubts arise that a wall with monochromatic spots of a different color is of greater value and aesthetics than a wall with a bright image. The title of the article “In the UK, vandals painted over Banksy's graffiti” already demonstrates the difference: in Russia, vandals are called graffiti artists, in the UK, vandal = those who cover up graffiti

Russian street art is also distinguished by the fact that it has an even more acute protest element: many stickers and graffiti express ridicule and indignation towards the ruling class.

And the last feature of Russian street art that I would like to note is that in the process of being included in the street art community, the Russian street artist goes through a certain “evolution”: only upon entering the subculture, he is happy to participate in various events organized “from above”, participates in the creation of mural art, and then, having become acquainted with the negative attitude of his community towards commissioned work, goes into the shadows and prefers radically illegal ways of self-expression.

Thus, in the developing Russian street art there are a number of advantages (such as the protest component, which is valuable for the original essence of street art), but also a number of problems and shortcomings.

Street art is a type of fine art characterized by a distinct urban style. Many people are familiar with one of its directions - graffiti, but this is not the only form of self-expression of street artists. There is also screen printing, the creation of posters and installations, drawing with stickers, monumental painting and other forms of street art.

Street art began to emerge in the ancient world. In principle, rock art can be attributed to its manifestations. In its modern form, such creativity originated in America in the second half of the 20th century. One of the founders of graffiti was Taki-183 from New York, whose full name did not go down in history. Working as a courier and moving around the city, he left his signature on walls, fences, and in the subway, consisting of the name and number of the street where he lived. Later, newspapers wrote about him, and crowds of his followers began to leave their tags, increasingly painting the streets of the city.

The walls of abandoned buildings acted as objects for art. Photo: thinkstockphotos.com From America, street art is still spreading further only in the form of graffiti. In Europe this movement has become more “intellectual”. Artists began to encourage people to think, fight for their rights, protest against injustice, and be active. Initially, the walls of abandoned buildings, the bases of bridges, and metro stations acted as objects for art. Later, artists switched to the walls of historical landmarks, which defined outlaw street art. It began to be considered vandalism, and this continued for several decades.

Thanks to street art, it has become popular to create paintings on the walls of entrances or even apartments. Photo: thinkstockphotos.com Nowadays street art is not always perceived by others as art. Some forms of street art are still considered vandalism and illegal in many countries. However, smart leaders reconsidered their attitude towards such manifestations of youth creativity and decided to direct their energy in the right direction. The authorities commission groups of artists to paint the faceless walls of industrial buildings and residential buildings, organize competitions and give grants. Often large shops, cafes or galleries resort to this method of decorating buildings. Thanks to street art, it has become popular to create paintings on the walls of entrances or even apartments.

Gradually, this type of creativity is emerging from the underground. There are completely legal festivals, competitions, exhibitions and other events for street artists, where young people can learn from masters or demonstrate their work.

Street art is done by people who want to make the city better and more beautiful. Photo: thinkstockphotos.com 3D graffiti is considered a relatively new trend in street art. Artists manage to create unique and realistic masterpieces on asphalt, which from a certain point seem three-dimensional. Creating a three-dimensional painting can take several days, but its life is quite short: until the first rain or road cleaning. Here it is important to have time to capture your masterpiece in a photo.

Street art is done by people who are not initially looking for recognition or fame. It is important for them to make the world around them a little better and more beautiful, to touch upon some important social problems, to show the hidden facets of a modern city and their view of the world. If a person can see beauty in a crack in the asphalt, a defect on the wall of a building or an ordinary concrete fence and decorate this place, is it worth stopping him?

Graffiti “Window to Europe”, Tsarevich Embankment, Vladivostok, 2012. Concrete Jungle Architectural Bureau (founders: Felix Mashkov and Vadim Gerasimenko).

The time when graffiti was considered vandalism has sunk into the dark past. Today, street artists have taken their rightful place on the pedestal of contemporary art. City authorities, who previously hounded creators to the fullest extent of the law, are now lining up for contracts to design public spaces. Street artists not only make our cities beautiful and interesting; they are often able to rethink the existing urban landscape and change the architectural context.

Following the great names of the founders of street art - (Keith Haring), (Banksy) and (Jean-Michel Basquiat) a huge number of artists took to the streets to paint everything they could get their hands on. Street artists themselves believe that it is high time to release art from museums onto the streets. And although the typology of contemporary art is difficult to force into a strict framework (post-graffiti, “intervention”, muralism, etc.), the only thing that city residents and tourists want is entertainment, scale, aesthetics, a philosophical message and bright colors. This is exactly what the viewer gets from the street artist.

Especially for our readers, we tell you about the biggest names in the world of contemporary street art and invite you to enjoy a selection of the most spectacular street art projects.

Painting Lampas

Calligraphy with an area of ​​1625 sq. meters took the artist two days of work and required 730 liters of paint.

The artist Arseny Pyzhenkov, originally from Korolev, is known throughout the world as (Pokras Lampas). The funny now is no longer a pseudonym, but an official name, was formed from the old expression “paint” among graffiti artists and the most absurd rhyme to it. Painting works in the “calligraffiti” style, as is obvious from the name - at the intersection of graffiti and calligraphy. He is constantly busy with new projects, and there are traces of fresh paint on his hands.

The artist was only able to paint half of the tunnel from the Atrium to the Kursky Station. The reason is that part belongs to the shopping center, and part to Russian Railways, and the latter refused to provide their section to Pokras.

The artist was glorified by his project to create the largest calligraphy in Russia (and indeed in the world) on the roof of Red October in 2015. In 2017, Pokras painted the tunnel from Kursky Station to the Atrium shopping center in Moscow, inspired by the works of Russian avant-garde artists, quotes, and Mayakovsky. A high-profile international project in the calligraphist’s career was painting the roof of the Palace of Italian Civilization (Palazzo Della Civilta) in Rome, which also serves as the headquarters.

“It is important that creativity does not turn into a craft. The main thing is to trust your intuition and do only what you sincerely believe in. Honest creativity will always be appreciated,” Pokras Lampas.

Duo Aesthetics

The Moscow region post-graffiti duo Aesthetics group has existed since 2004. The composition of the participants and the concept have changed over time, at the moment they are Petro (Petr Gerasimenko) and Slak (Ilya Blinov).

Collaboration between Petro and Slak as part of the pilot project of the “Objects of Nature” festival. Aerosol paint. Kotka (Finland), 2014.

The team has gone from classic graffiti to mixing it with abstract painting. The artists work at the intersection of avant-garde and graffiti; the author's style is expressed in rich colors and broken lines.

Untitled diptych. The left side is Slak, the right side is Petro. Aerosol paint, acrylic. Satka, Chelyabinsk region, 2017.

Misha Most

Moscow artist Misha Most has been doing graffiti since 1997 and has been creating paintings since 2004. The author quickly moved from the category of “street authors” to full-fledged artists. Almost all of the author’s works are devoted to the human future.

In 2017, the artist created the largest wall painting in the world covering an area of ​​10 thousand square meters. meters. The canvas for the work “Evolution 2.1” was the building of an industrial complex in the city of Vyksa (Nizhny Novgorod region).

“Evolution 2.1”, Vyksa, Nizhny Novgorod region, 2017.

In the fall of the same year, Misha taught me how to draw a drone. It was based on the approach of “creating a picture without an artist.” Drones are widespread these days, with people constantly training the devices to do something new. And the artist decided to bring this “something new” to art.

The project “Farewell to Eternal Youth” consisted of several stages. To begin with, Misha drew the object on the tablet, then the image was transferred to a special program in which the drone “flies”. Then, to get the finished piece, you just had to press a button - the machine did the rest.

“Farewell to eternal youth”: Misha Most and drone.

Camilla Walala

Actually, a British artist (Camille Walala) is a textile designer by profession. But the education she received never truly captivated her. Recently, Camilla has been actively called upon to design concrete boxes, unremarkable facades and pedestrian crossings.

Splice Post building, London.

Walala works on the verge of contemporary art and architecture, infusing energy and optimism into the environment with the help of bright colors and patterns. The group had a huge influence on the artist’s work.

Children's playground in London.

It was in the style of this design association that the author decorated the facade of an industrial building in Brooklyn with a 40-meter mural. The concept is based on optical illusions, contrasting colors and repeating L-shaped motifs.

Facade in the spirit of the Memphis group, Brooklyn (New York).

Felice Varini

The canvas of a Swiss by birth and an inveterate Parisian by residence (Felice Varini) was architecture itself. The artist is famous for his signature optical illusions. The author's works are depicted on the walls of buildings and sidewalks, in parks and squares.

Carcassonne, France, 2018.

At first glance, the image created by Varini is not perceived as a whole; it breaks up into separate fragments. And only from a certain “correct” point of view does the ornament form a holistic image. Varini’s works look so unreal that the first reaction of the human brain is: “This is Photoshop!”

Lausanne, Switzerland, 2015.

Grand Palais, Paris, France, 2013.

The genre that Varini chose for himself is called anamorphosis. The main theme of creativity was geometry - a variety of regular figures: circles, triangles, rectangles. Varini’s works are like mirages in the desert: a person watches a hypnotic spectacle and suddenly, one wrong movement, and the vision dissolves.

Roof of the “Dwelling Unit” by Le Corbusier, Marseille, France, 2016.

Ill-Studio

Artists, in collaboration with fashion brand Pigalle, have radically changed the appearance of a basketball court in Paris. In 2015, the sports facility was dressed in sharp colors and clear geometric shapes based on the work of Kazimir Malevich.

The Pigalle Duperré site in Paris is squeezed into a narrow space between buildings, 2015.

In 2017, the studio turned to softer, but no less effective gradient shades. “When working on this platform, we wanted to explore the relationship that has developed between sports, art and culture over many decades,” say the authors of the project.

Pigalle Duperré, Paris, 2017.

The project of a bright basketball court was heatedly discussed on the Internet around the world. The modern Instagram generation clearly liked the space. Of course, this is not the only sports facility that has such a non-standard coloring. For example, in the Belgian city of Aalst, artist Katrien Vanderlinden worked on transforming another basketball court. The bright surface looks most impressive from the altitude of the quadcopter.

Basketball court, Aalst, Katrin Vanderlinden.

And in Ravenna, Italy, the urban environment was enlivened by another basketball court. The update was carried out by street artist Gue.

Basketball court, Ravenna, street artist Gue.

Daniel Buren

The work of the French conceptual artist (Daniel Buren) has a constant element - stripes. It is interesting that the author found the conceptual theme thanks to an accident. Once on the canvases he ordered there were traces of packaging - streaks that filled all his work, regardless of the context.

From the canvas, the Frenchman moves on to the urban environment - he marks the metro stations and courtyards of Paris with stripes. Since the 70s, the artist has been working with multi-colored glass and light. He turns building windows into stained glass and studies the shadows they cast. Together with the Italian gallery Continua, Buren created a large-scale installation directly on the facade of the building of the Parisian gallery Aveline in his signature style - with vertical monochrome stripes and stained glass.

Aveline Gallery, Paris, Daniel Buren.

Chantel Martin

The style of the young British artist (Shantell Martin) is easily recognizable. With black and white sweeping drawings, Chantel is ready to decorate anything - paint city walls or decorate a new collection of shoes or clothes.