Dope-Ass Graffiti Revisited

The second post I ever did on this blog -- way back in March of 2007 -- was about how I heard a young tourist on the subway talk about her desire to see "dope-ass graffiti." (I hope, for her sake, she did.) And I concluded this post by asking: 

"Is graffiti, "dope-ass" or otherwise, something maybe we here [in NYC] take for granted? After all, it's something most New Yorkers find offensive and barely tolerate. And yet ... would we miss it if it ever went away? Is graffiti, at the end of the day, the only truly urban art form, the city speaking back to itself? That, dear city-dwellers, is one to ponder on." 

In another post, in July of 2007, I also said that the best graffiti you could see in the city was on several buildings in Queens, easily visible from the 7 train.

In 2007, my words about graffiti were merely speculative muses and observations.

In 2019, my words about graffiti are business. 

Today, in NYC and other cities, graffiti and street art of all kinds is actually welcomed. It makes neighborhoods more interesting, more tempting to the wealthy people who want to buy property in them. Some developers are actually creating dedicated walls and spaces for graffiti. The graffiti artist Banksy is one of the most famous artists in the whole world and his work sells for millions.

Long gone are the days when graffiti was a scourge of urban decay -- today, it's a symbol of  the urban Renaissance (although 5Pointz, the area I mentioned in 2007, is long gone).

My how times have changed.

Banksy's Back!

In 2013, the world's most famous street artist, Banksy, hit NYC like a tidal wave. His politically-tinged, social-critique pictures appeared all over the city, causing quite the stir, and there was even a documentary about it that came out a year later. 

At the time, along with the rest of the media, Mr NYC gave this "residency" lots of coverage. Its has, in its way, gone down in history. 

And now he's back! 

A huge Banksy mural appeared late last week down on the Bowery, a protest against the imprisonment of a political activist in Turkey. Smaller pictures have also popped up on 14th Street and 6th Avenue and couple more in Brooklyn, in Midwood and Coney Island. 

Banksy's Back Baby!   

"Banksy Does New York"

The Transforming City

In six days we New Yorkers will be going to the polls to elect a new mayor and a whole slew of new public officials. We will be deciding how our city is governed for the next four years -- and, like all politicians, they are promising a great transformation of the city's economy, schools, and transportation, housing, etc. -- while all the while being "fiscally responsible."

But the transformation is already taking place on a literal level. In the next four years, things both noticeable and unnoticeable will literally be changing the shape of this town.

New subway cars are coming that will look like big accordions without doors separating the cars. 

New water tunnels are being constructed that will change the delivery of water to our taps, with sewers and tunnels creating a whole new subterranean city. 

Just today, the city approved the construction a new mall on Staten Island that will be centered around a gigantic ferris wheel.

And One World Trade Center is nearing completion as the tallest building in NYC. Recently the elusive graffiti artist Banksy published an editorial calling it "vanilla" and something that would be built in Canada. However you feel about it, this building will be dominating the NYC skyline for decades to come. 

So the face and innards of our city is changing. We are constantly being reincarnated.

Banksy takes NYC

Banksy is in New York! 

Yes, the secretive, elusive British graffiti artist has taken up residence in our fair city, spray painting buildings nearly every day. If you're unfamiliar with him and his work, basically he's this artist that no one knows or has ever seen, putting museum-quality art in public spaces. Examples of his work:

Many in the city are thrilled to see his work appear around town while others, like our fair mayor, call him a vandal and want to catch him an put him in jail. Anyway, this artist that no one knows anything about and whose work can't be seen in any museum, is currently the talking of the town, getting immense press coverage.

Here's a review of his NYC "residency."

Here's a map tracking his "work" around NYC. 

Here's some coverage of the controversy that Banksy is causing.  

And here's an interview with the artist

How long will Banksy stay in NYC? Will he be caught? Will he get away? Will he come back?

We shall literally see.