Oh. NOW Graffiti is a legitimate, global art form
Posted in BLATHER & DRIVEL on 06/14/2009 01:53 pm by admin
Under a headline that reads “Graffiti Gains Respect,” the NY Times recently published an article about the runaway success of an exhibition of aerosol artists at the Grand Palais in Paris. Of course, I use the alliterative moniker “aerosol artists,” when, in fact, ’street art’ has grown to embrace a wide variety of mediums. I am not collecting as avidly in the graffiti scene as I used to, but I was thrilled when my friend and colleague, Susan Bush, included this image by Yoskay Yamamoto in our 10 Under 30 show.
He recently sold out his LA show with works ranging into the many thousands of dollars. Of course, there are also Banksy and Barry McGee and, to grasp at less contemporary examples, Keith Harring and Jean Michel Basquiat. Their works are much more expensive.
I collected all of the books on graffiti I could buy for a while, but lost interest when that publishing area exploded. There are now literally dozens and dozens of books on the subject.
I guess the matter is settled: Graffiti can be art. The Gray Lady has finally blessed this thirty-year movement and so has the Grand Palais. (The Brooklyn Museum also did a show a few years back.)
See also this interesting article.