BLUE IN THE FACE
400 x 300 cm
The first stencil TKV ever did was an image of a beloved popular culture character Amélie Poulain, which appeared in the 2001 movie directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Her stencil was made at the end of 2004 and was only approximately 15x15cm in size. It was made using one colour, as were the other stencils she made at that time. It was quite easy to reproduce, which is the main perk of the stencilling technique. If one creates a simple, small, mono-coloured stencil, it can take over the entire city in one night. But if one keeps doing that over and over again, without changing the modus operandi, stagnation is inevitable. In this piece from 2016/18, we can see that her stencils are becoming larger, at least one metre in height, which allows her sufficient space for details. From time to time, she goes back to simplicity, if not to the smaller dimensions, that the stencilling technique offers but, as we can see in her other pieces, these simple representations are rare. The reason lies in the technique itself. Each colour in the stencilling technique is made using a separate plate (cardboard, plastic, or any other available material) cut out in such way that allows only elements of that particular colour to be reproduced. It means that if you have a multi-coloured piece, you need to have many plates that you need to carry around, as well as multiple spray cans and a base for the surface you will work on. Depending on the weather conditions, making a multi-coloured piece can take up to 45 minutes, which is absolutely not acceptable if one is doing an artwork without permission. Hence, if we find stencils sprayed directly on the walls, they are often very simple and contain only one colour.