In the last years I've developed a growing interest and appreciation for Street Art (mainly murals, stencil and sticker art). I love some of the aesthetics (thought I rather dislike most of the fat letter graffiti thing) but I mainly love the social message present in many artists (well, be aware that in the last years the new far right has also got involved in the street art world, so part of the street art in Eastern Europe has a message far to be endorsed...).
Also, after reading the "Wall and Piece" masterpiece by Banksy (yes, I don't mind how cool it sounds to say now that Banksy is an overrated copy of Blek le Rat, that he's a no longer cool and so on... for me he's an absolute genius) I pretty much share his philosophy of confronting the consumer "street crap" continuously fed into us through billboards and all sort of media, and his opposition to the "Art from a few" society, where just an elite decides what is beautiful, innovative or worth and should be exhibited in our so democratic museums and art galleries.
I'm not sure whether part of my interest for street art has been sparked off for my devotion for Berlin, or if on the other side it's the omnipresent street art in Berlin what has prompted my fascination for that city. The thing is that I feel more immersed in art when wandering around Kreuzberg or Friedrichshain than when in any conventional Modern Art gallery (yes, even my beloved Tate Modern). I absolutely recommend this excellent book to anyone that wants to learn something about Berlin's street art scene.
The thing is that the other day I knew for the first time about P183, an excellent Russian street artist. Coming from such a conservative country like Russia, where the far right has managed to instill xenophobia and racism into an alarming percentage of youngsters, I'd really like to know more about his political stance (is he just one more anti-Putin guy or he's on the left side?). You can check some of his works here and here.
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