All posts tagged: Hamburg

Lapiz: HO HO HO and a Sad Stencil About Anti-Vaxxers and Hospitals

December 7, 2021 Artists

“This is not a piece about gloating but about the anger I feel,” says street artist Lapiz about his newest public stencils renders beautifully the jarring facts of hospital workers right now in overwhelmed hospitals everywhere.

“I’ve been shocked to see the nurses wearing so much protective gear that one can not see their faces, nothing really that identifies them as caring,” he remarks on the healthcare professionals who cover their faces, then feel compelled to tape a photo of them on the outside of their uniform to reassure patients that there is a warm smiling person under all those layers.

Lapiz. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Lapiz)

For all you know, it could be Santa under there this Christmas.

For another consecutive holiday season, many of us, like those in Germany, are finding that they live in a hotspot for infections again. And some have become patients.

“But this is how intensive care units now look like since they are overrun by infected antivaxxers,” he says. “This is not a painting of schadenfreude but of anger. It shows the Christmas that many of these disbelievers are facing for a final time.” Oof! There are many complex feelings rolled into this one obviously.

“Merry Christmas from Germany.”

Grumpy Elf: Lapiz in Hamburg Says “Go Shopping!”

December 8, 2020 Artists

Are you finding it challenging to get excited about Christmas this year? Santa says “Go Shopping”!

Lapiz says, “Alles für das BIP” or “All is for the GDP (Gross Domestic Product)”

Lapiz. *AllHailTheGDP*. Hamburg, Germany. (photo courtesy of the artist)

This grouchy-looking elf by Lapiz in this shopping district in the Sankt Pauli district in Hamburg Germany doesn’t look like he wants to be helpful. The stenciled piece is only in a t-shirt and a grimace in this normally busy area. His T-shirt lists the cultural items that are all restricted because of Covid.

But shopping? That is allowed.

“What really matters to society, what really counts – and what defines the system – is the ever-growing economy,” Lapiz opines. “We shall reduce our social contacts so we can consume. Restaurants and Bars need to close, socialising and eating is not important anymore, neither is culture. Even worse it is punishable.”

“All hail the GDP,” says Lapiz, “Who needs to be happy anyway?”

The Thealang Collective: “El Cuco” Stealing Souls of Children, Notre Dame, & the Amazon / Dispatch From Isolation # 45

May 6, 2020 Artists

A new joint mural from LAPIZ and Elmar Karla as the newly formed “Thealang Collective”. Both formerly living in Argentina, the two artists have distinctly different styles to combine here in a scene from a fever dream in Hamburg, Germany.

Thealang Collective. Elmar Karla and Lapiz. *“El Cuco”*. Hamburg, Germany. (photo courtesy of Thealang)

And what a hot steamy shape-shifting surrealist diarama this is on a backyard wall in St. Pauli, full of fire and raging destruction and ultimately, deception, with the main character called EL CUCO.

The combination of cut stencils and fluidly brushed paint, the two say that El Cuco is a mystical creature who steals the souls of innocent children. The Wikipedia entry says “El Cuco is a mythical ghost–monster, equivalent to the bogeyman, found in many Hispanophone and Lusophone countries.”

Thealang Collective. Elmar Karla and Lapiz. *“El Cuco”*. Detail. Hamburg, Germany. (photo courtesy of Thealang)

“The mural portrays the impact of today’s society,” they tell us as we gaze upon these exclusive shots, “the eternally growing economy is symbolized by the donations for the partially destroyed Notre Dame, and its effect is one of constantly destroying the environment, here symbolized by the burning green lung – the Amazon Rainforest.”

It’s fearfully treacherous, this adventurous scene mixing childhood myths and fun-loving characters who appear out of context under a sky of flames, Its an amalgam of the imaginations and experiences of the two –Elmar Karla’s painted characters from the comic world and the stencil techniques of Lapiz, who often likes to take a jab at socio-political themes.

Both members of Thealang have painted extensively internationally and have participated in festivals and exhibitions such as the Ibug, Meeting of Styles, Grenoble Street Art Fest and at the Street Art Museum Amsterdam.

Lapiz “Life In Time Of Corona” Hamburg/Dispatch From Isolation #8

March 30, 2020 Artists

The intervention “Life in Time of Corona” is Lapiz’s attempt to fight the feeling of isolation and loneliness.

“I created and glued it up a day before the first phase of lockdown happened here in Hamburg, just in front of one of the biggest supermarkets in town,” he tells us.

Lapiz. “Life In Time Of Corona”. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Lapiz)

The young woman exists with a margin of danger following her – a buffer band of gold that prevents any other person from getting to close. Of course, the hermit-like among the human family have been practicing social distancing for years, but for most people it’s new and unusual.

For most of us the time of self-isolation, quarantine, and illness is ahead of us and we have no idea how long this might take. We can stay in contact with loved-ones, family, friends, and almost forgotten acquaintances on the other side of the planet via email, skype or video link.

This might also be a great moment of solidarity and an opportunity for empathy, but the minimum safety distance of 6 feet also excludes affection, warmth and closeness.

Lapiz: The Hero Is You

March 22, 2018 Artists

New Zealand’s Lapiz has been working on a new stencil in Germany to address who is a hero in the battle against surveillance and loss of privacy.

Lapiz. “The Hero Is You”. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Lapiz)

In this private commission on a house in Hamburg, Lapiz pushes Edward Snowden front and center, under a quote from him saying, “The hero is you.” The NSA-whistle blower is flanked by Obama writing the word “terrori..” and Angela Merkel checking her phone.

Lapiz. “The Hero Is You”. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Lapiz)

Lapiz tells us that Snowden “is highly regarded as he revealed to what extent we are spied upon, how our every move, email and action is recorded – even including foreign heads of state. However, in his own words, he is not a hero, instead he acted because of his moral beliefs and insists that everyone can be a “hero” and do the right thing. For the government, however, he is a traitor that should be jailed for life.”

Are you the hero? Who is? Do we need another?

Lapiz. “The Hero Is You”. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Lapiz)

Entes Y Pesimo Tour Europe

July 12, 2012 Artists, On the Street

Peruvian Street Artists Entes y Pesimo have been on a tour through much of Europe painting murals in Paris (France), Eindhoven (Netherlands) and Hamburg (Germany). Figurative and familial, their imagery borrows from more traditional graffiti and community mural styles and often depicts people sheltering and caring for one another.

Entes, Pesimo, Seth and Den. (photo © Entes y Pesimo)

Working together since 2000, the duo pioneered their brand of Street Art in Lima and belong to a larger group of artists in Peru who consider themselves graffiti activists. Thematically their work is influenced by social events, cultural and political, addressing issues like discrimination, racism, and the right to personal dignity.

Entes y Pesimo. Eindhoven, The Netherlands. (photo © Entes y Pesimo)

Entes, Pesimo. DJMC Crew (photo © Entes y Pesimo)

Entes, Pesimo. DJMC Crew. 93 Crew. Montry, France. (photo © Entes y Pesimo)

Entes y Pesimo. Super. DJMC Crew. Hamburg, Germany. (photo © Entes y Pesimo)

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Entes and Pesimo would especially like to thank Morne, Super, Paulina, Seth, Inti, Maun, Diana, and Nemiye for their help and support during this trip in Europe.

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Here’s a video of their visit to Buenos Aires last year where they painted the trailer of a man named Henry, who has lived for years in the street.

Stencils of The Week on BSA 09.13.10

September 13, 2010 Artists, Berlin, France, Hamburg, London

This weeks top stencils as picked by Samantha Longhi of Stencil History X

Boxi at the STAMP (Street Art Melting Pot) festival in Hamburg, Germany (courtesy Stencil History X)

Check out an interview with Boxi by Samantha Longhi here

Grafeeney. (Courtesy Stencil History X)

Martin Whatson sprays this stencil on aluminum. (Courtesy of Stencil History X)

From the Schoony Show at Blackall Gallery in London, “Mummy’s Little Army Boy”, by Finbarr (Courtesy Stencil History X)

“Eyes of Night”, by Snikk in Berlin. (Courtesy Stencil History X)

Stencil History X Website

See more Finbarr here.

See more Graffeney here.

See more Snik here.

See more Martin Whatson here.

Vinny Goes to Hamburg: Street Art from Germany’s Largest Port

February 23, 2010 Artists, Germany, Hamburg, On the Street

Vinny Cornelli is becoming a regular on BSA because with his photography he peels back some of the street art hype and looks at the innards of the gritty culture that engenders it. A departure from documentation, his eye captures something more.

For this photo essay, Vinny shows and tells us about his trip last week to Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city after Berlin- and opens our eyes to their approach to aesthetic expressions of the spirit on the street.

from Vinny Cornelli

Last weekend I was able to visit my girlfriend, Lena, on her home turf of Hamburg, Germany. I concede (for some of the obvious reasons) that the trip was incredible, warm and homey. Even outside of those reasons, I was also so very excited by the colors and comforts I felt from a city that seems to gush as a result of the public street and graffiti art that the population either endorses or passively permits.

Hamburg is home to the likes of Flying Fortress and Funk25 and many other street artists. The city also fosters the existence of squats such as the Gaengeviertel; a small community of flats, studios and galleries that keeps it’s doors, beers and art open and available to it’s public. Like many people, these are some of the ideals that I subscribe to and appreciate.

Because I was in the good company of Lena, light snowfall, and the art surrounding us, I had the fortunate opportunity of a guided walking tour through many streets, nooks, and playgrounds. It was quite nice.

One interesting/odd observation I noted was that much of the street art was placed well above the mass marketed posters of albums, concerts, and movies hitting your local Hamburg establishment. In a way, it gave me the feeling that everyday, commonplace (and I think boring) life is placed at eye-level. Yes, this is what’s sometimes seen in NYC and other hotbeds of public art…but some of it just doesn’t fit.

I visited C215 this summer, and he spoke at great lengths of the importance of where he’s placing his stencils – otherwise, it becomes irrelevant. I feel that the wheat pastes and stencils in Hamburg tend to suffer as a result. Placement seems sporadic when viewed with other works sharing the same wall.

On the other hand, it seemed that the graffiti artists were better leveraging the walls and spaces they occupy and their work also seemed very well organized.

I thoroughly enjoyed capturing these photos and the inspiration they foster. I have already booked my tickets to return in April, so I look forward to sharing the city of Hamburg’s movement into the spring.

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