One of the reasons I had not been so enamored of Paris on my 2012 visit was the amount of graffiti I saw then. I have never been a fan of graffiti - it strikes me as disorderly, shabby and a little frightening, suggesting that unknown lurkers are trying to 'claim the block' for their own hidden purposes.
This alley, in Le Marais, was pretty in the morning sun. You can see just a light sprinkling of tagging on the top right and bottom center. I have no way of understanding what these small marks mean and who might have put them there . While small, they mar an otherwise lovely scene, in my mind. It was rare to be anywhere in Paris without seeing some graffiti.
This old door in Montmartre, had suffered more at the hands of the taggers........
........and this one, back in Le Marais, made me want to cry. Both of these doors look disorganized and without thematic sense. Just people scrawling names. No political messaging, no sense of artistry.
Here, I did have to appreciate that 'RTZ' respected the fact that one might want to actually read the sign! This was at Sacre Coeur.
One blessing is that a lot of the messy graffiti occurred on the roll down screens, so became hidden during the day. This makes sense, as the taggers are mostly out at night, so the day-time environment stays cleaner. Again, this is in Le Marais.
Beyond the street level 'vandalism?', there was another level of graffiti that I came to appreciate. One had to look up to see it and the level of risk taken by the creator (I hesitate yet to use the term 'artist') was evident. These versions of graffiti brought a smile to my heart as I pictured the person reaching over with their can in their efforts. This soul must have been right-handed!
This was my favorite 'high level' graffiti, although just a little gruesome. We found it on a walk through Le Marais. Is it a political statement about our place in the world, or has it become 'art?
But now, I have a confession to make. I skipped the tours to the Louvre, D'Orsay and L'Orangerie Museums, so the next level of 'graffiti', the street art, became the only paintings I saw in Paris. I know those among you who are art aficionados are squirming in horror that I didn't trek through the hallowed galleries, but to be quite honest, I think I enjoyed stumbling across the art in the streets a little more - even though I can't tell you who the artist is, nor how much their painting sold for.
It was the element of surprise I most enjoyed. This shutter in Montmartre is just delightful. It is also signed, so if one made a study of these things, one might be able to follow this person. How the space is chosen is a mystery ........ did it just appear in the darkness of the night, or did the owner of the shutter give permission, or even pay for it?
Many of them were quite large murals. I liked this one encouraging LGBTQ tolerance in Le Marais.
Railways lines and bridges often seem associated with graffiti. This one along Quai de la Marne near La Villette was a very vibrant statement. This is no longer graffiti, whether sanctioned or not. Notice in the top left hand corner of the front pylon there is a little black and white pixelated video game 'character'. We saw many of these around the city. I read online that they are the creation of an urban artist Franck Slama who calls himself 'Invader'. These little video game icons were often discreet and isolated, so the process of discovering them was fun and I didn't find myself objecting to them.
This one, in the same area near the canal in La Villette, was also under a bridge. I thought it quite lovely, especially the ethnic African woman. I saw many people of African heritage in Paris, many of whom wore ethnic dress, which I found really pleasing. I wondered how different their lives are here compared to African Americans, without the trauma of slave history. My little bit of Googling reveals that the French do not keep data based on race (a law dating from the revolution in 1789), but there appears to be history of racism here also. As always, I'm sure 'it's complicated'.
It was fun to see the creation being created in front of ones eyes. Clearly this is no longer a night-time, sneaky event. I still am unclear on the relationship between the artist and the 'owner' of the wall, but the vibrancy of the result is joyful. Again, this was along the canal near La Villette.
This one near the canal puzzled me. I wasn't sure if the bikes were part of the installation or not, but I thought the whole thing was definitely 'interesting'. I understand that one of the hazards of owning a bike is not only the possibility of having it stolen, but also that pranksters will toss it into the river or canal. These must have been recently dredged out of the canal where they look as if they had spent a good amount of. time.
Street art definitely crosses the line from static 'public space' installations, to commercial, promotional uses. This Renault, in Montmartre, was most likely used for tourist rides around the area. Montmartre is strongly associated with this car, as Louis Renault achieved his first sales after betting friends his vehicle could drive up the steep Rue Lepic in this area. He got 12 orders from his success! There were lots of them hauling tourists around these narrow streets!
On an even grander scale, this floating restaurant in the Bassin de la Villette was splashed with street shapes and colors.
Happily for me, the exposure to these larger, and sometimes quirky, creations helped me shift my displeasure over seeing the more basic forms of graffiti. Where one flows into the other is unclear, but that they are related seems certain. Nevertheless, their presence on the street gave me an opportunity to view these creations that would otherwise have not occurred, as I resist stepping into art museums and galleries at present.
I leave you with this quote that I found online at https://uk.tourisme93.com/street-art-and-graffiti-in-and-around-paris.html
"The problem with galleries is that 99% of street artists use urban art as a springboard to enter into these galleries. It is a big mistake because their artworks are seen in galleries just by around forty people and by around ten in museums, whilst in the street, over a hundred thousand people will see them, and what gives recognition and essence to a work is the fact of being seen and not to be sold or considered as a work of art in a museum; it is done to be seen by the people".
No comments:
Post a Comment