HOPE IG
400 x 300 cm
Three authors are presented in this segment: Hope, Razum and Mac. These authors have distinctive signatures and are very recognizable on the streets of Belgrade. Hope’s style has gone through several transformations and made a 360 degrees turn from where he started. With the knowledge he has gained, his technique and stylistic changes have taken him back to the roots with a fresh view and he has made a significant leap towards simplicity. As most of those who started doing their graffiti in New Belgrade, Hope took on the local tradition of simplicity and elegance in letters and, with time, deconstructed it beyond recognition. He has been active since 1999 as a graffiti writer, and it is all but natural that his style should change. Interestingly, one of his pieces from 2009, a yellow and black composition, is one of the most viewed and liked, and we can see that several other pieces from this new phase have had a large number of likes as well. All of them have the traits we have already mentioned: a simple shape in the lettering, a single colour outline and, usually, a single colour fill in. Hope likes to use a technique that looks as if there was not enough colour or enough time to properly add the fill in. Consequently, adding something sloppy but ‘true’ to the finely developed style of the letters is taking it back to the roots when one had to improvise before getting the technique and style right.
Exhibitions with this piece
TAKE 3
Loving Street Art Belgrade
While there is no substitute for looking at graffiti and street art in real life, it has become evident in recent years that new technologies can add an extra dimension to these art forms. At the end of 1990s, graffiti culture had already recognized the potential of the world wide web as a platform for this global movement to intertwine and cement its reign in urban settlements. One of the pioneering web sites, ArtCrimes.com, served as a gallery where one could see the artworks from all over the world. So, in the beginning, it was the culture itself that recognized the potential of what the digital revolution could bring. Since the mid-2000s and following the rise of street art, it has become obvious that not only graffiti culture and, consequently, street art, have had the need to document and share art on the streets, but that this has also become a favourite activity of those frequenting social networks. Next to cute cats, food porn and selfies, sharing photos of graffiti and street art has become extremely popular. However sociologists or psychologists interpret this phenomenon, it shows one thing clearly – people do notice and enjoy graffiti and street art. In this exhibition, let us explore the world of the digital content and a selection of the most popular artworks among social network users. One could ask why would this selection be relevant to the art world and what can this curatorial approach bring to the viewers? Well, the answer is simple – we wish to see if the audience picks just random ‘pretty’ things or whether there are more significant processes going on. Therefore, we are going to take the photos with the biggest number of views and likes on our organisations social media and organise them in groups so that they can be put in context and analysed. The outcome will be clear at the end of this virtual presentation. So, take one Level at a time, take the ‘wisdom potions’ on each Level and at the end of the exhibition you will have gained the ‘ultimate knowledge’. Enjoy! Ljiljana Radošević, curator.
TAKE 3
Rien ne peut remplacer l’observation des graffitis et du street art dans le monde réel, cependant, il est devenu manifeste durant ces dernières années que les nouvelles technologies sont en mesure d’apporter une nouvelle dimension à ces formes artistiques. Déjà vers la fin des années 1990, la culture graffiti s’est rendu compte du potentiel d’internet pour se mettre en réseau et pour affirmer sa domination dans le milieu urbain. Une des pages web pionnières, ArtCrimes.com, servait de galerie qui présentait les ouvrages du monde entier. Au début, donc, c’est la culture qui a reconnu le potentiel de ce qu’une révolution numérique pourrait offrir. À partir des années 2000 et avec l’essor du street art, il est devenu évident qu’en plus du street art et de la culture graffiti, qui ont un besoin naturel de documenter et partager l’art trouvé dans les rues, ceci est devenu l’activité préférée des utilisateurs des réseaux sociaux. En plus des chats, de la nourriture et des selfies, partager des photographies de graffitis est devenu extrêmement populaire. En dehors des interprétations des psychologues et des sociologues de ce phénomène, cela nous montre clairement une chose : les gens voient les graffitis et le street art et y prennent plaisir. Cette exposition nous permet d’explorer le contenu numérique et une sélection des œuvres d’art les plus populaires parmi les internautes. Vous vous demandez peut-être pourquoi cette sélection serait pertinente pour le monde artistique et ce que cette approche curatoriale pourrait apporter aux visiteurs. La réponse est simple : nous voulons vérifier si le public ne choisit au hasard que de « belles » choses ou si des processus importants ont lieu lors de ce choix. Pour cette raison nous avons choisi les photographies ayant le plus grand nombre de vues et de likes sur les réseaux sociaux de notre organisation et nous les avons organisées en groupes afin de leur donner un contexte et de les analyser de la façon la plus adéquate possible. Les résultats seront clairs à la fin de cette présentation virtuelle. Alors, allez de niveau en niveau goûter les « potions de sagesse » de chaque étape et vous atteindrez « la connaissance ultime ». Profitez ! La commissaire d’exposition Ljiljana Radošević.