Urban art

Urban art (from Latin urbanus, itself from urbs ["city"]) is a style of art that relates to cities and city life often done by artists who live in or have a passion for city life. In that way urban art combines street art and graffiti and is often used to summarize all visual art forms arising in urban areas, being inspired by urban architecture or thematizing urban live style.

Because the urban arts are characterized by existing in the public space, they are often viewed as vandalism and destruction of private property. Even though sometimes this form of art leads to vandalism the creators do not see themselves as vandals.

Although urban art started at the neighbourhood level, where a lot of people of different cultures live together, it is an international art form with an unlimited number of uses nowadays. A lot urban artists are travelling from city to city and have social contacts all over the world.

The notion of 'Urban Art' developed from street art which is primarily concerned with graffiti culture. Urban art represents a broader cross section of artists that as well as covering traditional street artists working in formal gallery spaces also covers artists using more traditional media but with a subject matter that deals with contemporary urban culture and political issues. In Paris, Le Mur is a public museum of urban art.

In the mainstream

Though starting as an underground movement, urban artists like Banksy and Adam Neate have now gained mainstream status and have, in turn, propelled the urban art scene into popular culture. Perceptions have started to change as urban movements such as graffiti slowly gain acceptance from the public. A confirmation of street art's new mainstream status can be, in part, confirmed by an invitation from the Tate calling upon artists to create outdoor pieces on the Thames side of the gallery in the summer of 2008.^[1]

The band Gorillaz uses an urban art style to promote their band. The band members are animated in a graffiti style.

Notable street artists

Notable urban artists not primarily associated with street art

• Eberhard Bosslet
• Tom Christopher
• Guy Denning
• Nick Gentry^[2]
• Dave Kinsey
• Antony Micallef
• Jonathan Yeo

Further reading

• Le Bijoutier (2008), This Means Nothing, Powerhouse Books, ISBN 978-1-57687-417-2
• Bou, Louis (2006), NYC BCN: Street Art Revolution, HarperCollins, ISBN 978-0-06-121004-4
• Bou, Louis (2005), Street Art: Graffiti, stencils, stickers & logos, Instituto Monsa de ediciones, S.A., ISBN 978-84-96429-11-6
• Chaffee, Lyman (1993). Political Protest and Street Art: Popular Tools for Democratization in Hispanic Cultures. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-28808-9. 
• Combs, Dave and Holly (2008), PEEL: The Art of the Sticker, Mark Batty Publisher, ISBN 0-9795546-0-8
• Fairey, Shepard (2008), Obey: E Pluribus Venom: The Art of Shepard Fairey, Gingko Press, ISBN 978-1-58423-295-7
• Fairey, Shepard (2009), Obey: Supply & Demand, The Art of Shepard Fairey, Gingko Press, ISBN 978-1-58423-349-7
• Gavin, Francesca (2007), Street Renegades: New Underground Art, Laurence King Publishers, ISBN 978-1-85669-529-9
• Goldstein, Jerry (2008), Athens Street Art, Athens: Athens News, ISBN 978-960-89200-6-4
• Harrington, Steven P. and Rojo, Jaime (2008), Brooklyn Street Art, Prestel, ISBN 978-3-7913-3963-4
• Harrington, Steven P. and Rojo, Jaime (2010), Street Art New York, Prestel, ISBN 978-3-7913-4428-7
• Hundertmark, Christian (2005), The Art Of Rebellion: The World Of Street Art, Gingko Press, ISBN 978-1-58423-157-8
• Hundertmark, Christian (2006), The Art Of Rebellion 2: World of Urban Art Activism, Gingko Press, ISBN 978-3-9809909-4-3
• Jakob, Kai (2009), Street Art in Berlin, Jaron, ISBN 978-3-89773-596-5
• Lewisohn, Cedar (2008), Street Art: The Graffiti Revolution, London, England: Tate Publishing, ISBN 978-1-85437-767-8
• Longhi, Samantha (2007), Stencil History X, Association C215, ISBN 978-2-9525682-2-7
• Manco, Tristan (2002), Stencil Graffiti, Thames and Hudson, ISBN 0-500-28342-7
• Manco, Tristan (2004), Street Logos, Thames and Hudson, ISBN 0-500-28469-5
• Marziani, Gianluca (2009), Scala Mercalli: The Creative Earthquake of Italian Street Art, Drago Publishing, ISBN 978-88-88493-42-8
• Palmer, Rod (2008), Street Art Chile, Eight Books, ISBN 978-0-9554322-1-7
• Schwartzman, Allan (1985), Street Art, The Dial Press, ISBN 978-0-385-19950-6
• Strike, Christian and Rose, Aaron (Aug 2005), Beautiful Losers: Contemporary Art and Street Culture, Distributed Art Publishers, ISBN 1-933045-30-2
• Walde, Claudia (2007), Sticker City: Paper Graffiti Art (Street Graphics / Street Art Series), Thames & Hudson, ISBN 978-0-500-28668-5
• Williams, Sarah Jaye, ed. (2008), Philosophy of Obey (Obey Giant): The Formative Years (1989–2008), Nerve Books UK.
• Walde, Claudia (2011), Street Fonts - Graffiti Alphabets From Around The World, Thames & Hudson, ISBN 978-0-500-51559-4

See also

• Urban culture
• Art graffiti
• MONU - magazine on urbanism

References