Since I could not be there for our discussion on Thursday, I will make my last blog post here the sharing of my thoughts on the film. There was very little in this film with which I agreed. At times, I had true sympathy for some of the artists, and I could agree with them on some issues. I'll start with what I liked about the film.
The concept of "there are no New Yorkers in New York anymore" got to me. I have always hated the idea of living in New York, but I was never really sure why. Some of my favorite books, including A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and The Janitor's Girl take place in New York in the 1910s and 1950s respectfully, and they paint the picture of a charming city (yes, I know Brooklyn isn't New York). Yet, whenever I think of living there, it sounds like an awful idea, even though I wouldn't mind a similar city such as Boston or Philadelphia. I understand now that that's it, that New York doesn't even seem like a city as much as a touristy financial capital. I'll give the film that. Moving on, Sixe from Barcelona said something like "I belong first to Barcelona, then to the world." I have genuine admiration for that kind of loyalty to one's hometown. Also, the old woman who liked it for beautification purposes, I have no argument there; if she allows it, then there's nothing to complain about. I thought the Parisien made tasteful art, and the people in Capetown seem to have a worthy cause.
The men in Sao Paulo seemed hard to challenge. The one... Wag Cacao, I think? He pointed out that much of what's legal is far uglier than anything he and his crew do. I appreciated the "Buddha is watching" bit from Tokyo, and I liked Belx2 (I think that was her name). In LA, I agreed emphatically with Revok's critique of the dominance of the automobile (because of course I did). The last positive thing I have written down came from the guy with the bridge piercing, saying that if you "sell out," he'll still respect you, but as an entrepreneur, not a graffiti artist. I think that's a very reasonable way of viewing things.
Other than that, I found most of the artists to be very unreasonable in their thinking. They decry the art form's becoming acceptable and commercialized, and yet they complain about being persecuted? That man in Germany, all I heard out of him was "I hate my country because it sucks"; I find myself less than inspired by such a cause. The discussion with the old man in Barcelona is a good example of what the authorities in New York and Germany were saying, that breaking a window leads to general window breaking. Those Barceloneses seemed to be totally oblivious to the fact that illegal graffiti, no matter how pretty it may be, is what inspired those teenagers to vandalize the man's door. That woman in LA, TKO, I literally laughed out loud when she complained about someone tagging (what I believe was) her house. Most of the LA scene in general annoyed me; I think the non-graffitizing citizens have every right to be upset. Tagging an overpass or a freeway noise wall is one thing, but private property and road signs is another matter.
Until now, I've skipped Pike and Nug--from the Low Countries, I think? Mostly Nug. I laugh at the notion of him fancying himself an artist. He's not, at least he's not shown to be in the clip of him "at work" in the studio (the subway). He looks like he's literally drunk and/or high, working with all the skill and precision of a toddler armed with crayons on the wall of his house. I don't understand how he isn't ashamed of himself, really. What he makes is trash, not art. I suppose it's implied that Pike then comes along and works on Nug's "template", although if that's the case they should have shown as much. In any case, Nug could be replaced by an exceptionally tall sixth grader.
The last thing I'll say about the movie: that guy from LA with the bridge piercing. Another thing he mentioned was a brief spiel against capitalism. I wonder if he supposes he could fair better in the USSR or the PRC.
I'm not against street art, I'm really not. Well-made and tasteful paintings on otherwise blank slates are at least tolerable in my mind. Emblazoning your own name in giant, caricatured letters doesn't just seem wrong; it seems like an allegory for narcissism. I really have no idea why some of these people act as if they have a noble cause. And although "well-made" and "tasteful" are subjective terms, there can be some consensus. If you disagree, go up to the roof of the parking garage. Tell me how much profanity, hate speech and how many manhoods you can count, and then tell me if you still believe that nothing can be called "tasteless".
For further reading/viewing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lS18bNaaRt4
This is a nine-minute video from the infographics show explaining the "Broken Window Theory."
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1982/03/broken-windows/304465/
This is the original 1982 article, "Broken Windows" by Kelling and Wilson from the Atlantic.
https://alice.library.ohio.edu/record=b1766722~S7
This is Alden Library's copy of The Janitor's Girl by Frieda Friedman. It's a charming young adult book in its own right, but it's also a realistic, contemporary depiction of Manhattan neighborhood life in the 1950s. I'm just mentioning it because of that bit about the Disneyfication of Manhattan.
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