All posts tagged: Sebastien Waknine

History Vs. Developers; The Fight Against Erasing Working Class History in Barcelona

History Vs. Developers; The Fight Against Erasing Working Class History in Barcelona

In a demonstration of people power and the role of street artists as activists, we look today at a neighborhood called Poblenou in Barcelona, whose residents have been gripped in a struggle with real estate developers. The developers have tried to destroy the buildings, the history, and the culture of the area, the local citizen’s group says, and they intend to dissuade them. According to Poblenou neighbors, the large real estate company has attempted to persuade the local city board to purchase a cluster of buildings, including houses with great historical and emotional value, to replace them with offices and high-end residential buildings.

Rubicon. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

After about five years, the battle rages, with locals saying that the Poblenou neighborhood stands as a symbol of struggle and resistance for the working-class people who built it and that people are proud of what the area has accomplished over time. It is a familiar refrain, this gentrification brought by investors – often these days aided and abetted by the “beautification” of the neighborhood by artists.

In this case, the artists are lending their skills to help the fight for the neighborhood instead. The number includes artist Tim Marsh who lives here. Today we see the wall he and like-minded creatives created, focusing in many cases on people who live here, in “the Passage” of Poblenou.

We thank photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena for sharing his photos of some of the artists and their murals with BSA Readers.

Rubicon. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Morcky. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Morcky. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Morcky. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Rubicon. Morcky. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Tim Marsh. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Tim Marsh. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Tim Marsh. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Ives One. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Ives One. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Tim Marsh. Ives One. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Vassilis Rebelos. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Vassilis Rebelos. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Simon Vazquez. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Simon Vazquez. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Sebastiene Waknine. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Julien. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Theo Lopez. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Sebastien Waknine – Theo Lopez – Vassilis Rebelos – Tim Marsh – Juanjo Surace – Ives One – Morcky – Rubicon. Passatge Morenes. Poblenou, Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
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Post Royalty Fígols: Post-Graffiti at the Count’s Castle in the Pyrenees

Post Royalty Fígols: Post-Graffiti at the Count’s Castle in the Pyrenees


“Have you taken down the names for your paper yet?” she asked me. “Stay by my side and I will dictate them to you: the Count and Countess of Caralt, the Marquess of Palmerola, the Count of Fígols, the Marquess of Alella, the …

~ A Barcelona Heiress, By Sergio Vila-Sanjuán


Isabel Rabassa. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

In the decade before the Spanish Civil War, Barcelona was on the verge of boiling over, and perhaps this castle in the Pyrenees mountains to the south was at its height of glory thanks to workers in its coal mines. The Count of Figols and his family enjoyed the view from the tower while the miners, some as young as 14 years old, kept toiling about 13 kilometers away – until they revolted in 1932.


SM172. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

“The mining company, the greater part of which was owned by Liverpool-born José Enrique de Olano y Loyzaga, First Count of Figols, prohibited union organization and paid its workforce in tokens redeemable only in the company stores.”

Revolution and the State: Anarchism in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939, by Danny Evans.


SM172. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Today you can hashtag Figols (#figols) on social media and you can see the tower (Torre del Compte de Fígols) and wander through the ruins of the castle (Castillo Conde de Fígols) – and discover new graffiti pieces and paintings throughout the rooms. That’s what photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena did last week when he went to check out some fresh stuff he heard was painted here about 120 km north of Barcelona. We thank him for sharing his images with BSA readers from the castle of the Count of Figols.

The Count of Figols: “José Enrique de Olano y Loyzaga, basc però nascut el 1858 a Liverpool, va ser el promotor de Carbones Berga S.A., adquirida l’any 1893” – from Directa
SM172. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
SM172. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Isabel Rabassa. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Isabel Rabassa. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Isabel Rabassa. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Isabel Rabassa. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Paulo Consentino. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Ives One. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Sebastiene Waknine. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Sebastiene Waknine. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Sebastiene Waknine. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Rubicon. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
a FASE. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Unidentified artist. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Gerson Ruiz. Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Castillo Conde de Figols. Catalonia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
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Spanish “El Konvent” Welcomes Street Artists and Nurtures Collective Culture

Spanish “El Konvent” Welcomes Street Artists and Nurtures Collective Culture

Typically you may expect to be praying the novena and asking God for absolution of your dastardly sins here in this sprawling compound called The Konvent near Barcelona. While no one would stop you today, you may also wish to check out a number of new installations throughout the many buildings by Street Artists.

Teo Vazquez (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

The Roman Catholic former convent hosted 50 or so artists over the last couple of years to transform the space, perhaps to reinterpret its original charge in a modern light, perhaps just to ready the compound for commercial, cultural, and community pursuits of the owners.

Certainly the decaying spaces and austere aesthetic is inviting, calming, possibly frightening, depending on your associations. Now they are home for music, dance, theatre, film festivals, and artist residencies – often offered only in Catalan but some also in European Spanish.

Teo Vazquez (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

As you walk through the spaces you are welcomed by these works by artists, many of them at one time or another categorized as Street Artists, whose voices now usher in a new era of contemplation and perhaps internal exploration.

Our thanks to photogapher and BSA contributor Lluis Olive Bulbena for sharing these images from El Konvent.

For more information about El Konvent please Click HERE

Jofre Oliveras (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Unidentified artist (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Samuel Aranda Studio (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
AEC – Interesni Kazki (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Valiente Creations (photo © Lluis Olive)
Holy Era (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Wedo . Slim (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Wedo (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Slim (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Slim (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Slim (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Mugraff (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Troy Lovegates (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Troy Lovegates (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Juanjo Surace (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Simon Vazquez . Sebastien Waknine (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
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Sebastien Waknine: “Learning from Migrants and Refugees” In Barcelona

Sebastien Waknine: “Learning from Migrants and Refugees” In Barcelona

Owing to the scarceness of resources that are usually allotted to those who arrive as refugees, Street Artist and muralist Sebastien Waknine relies solely upon the thinnest piece of charcoal as he works on this new wall.

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)

“Learning from Migrants and Refugees” is the name of the collection of scenes that document the situations that people can be in when escaping from strife and fear – the human aspect of appealing to the help of another society. After five weeks of intensive work, Waknine stood aside during a public introduction as a Syrian man held the microphone and described the scenes to an assemble crowd in Barcelona.

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)

Created in the gardens on the Hospital of Sant Pau in Barcelona, the mural was commissioned by the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona and will be exhibited in various locations within the city of Barcelona.

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)

Organizers say that the mural highlights the journey of refugees from the ravages of war and poverty in their countries as well as the realities of their living conditions in their host countries.

It is an unusual technique for a public work these days, as many have become accustomed to the splashy nature of big murals and festivals that present them. Here the warmth of the rendering and the humanity conveyed in the faces and gestures is only magnified when one gets close enough, even intimate with, the artwork.

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)

The detached impersonal nature of war by drone has enabled such masses of people to be uprooted and chased from their lives – and a viewer may contrast the experience of the driver of that drone drawn in the sky with close-up terror of innocents whom Waknine depicts.

Clearly there is much for us to learn.

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)

Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
Sebastien Waknine. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive)
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Simone de Beauvoir: “La Clausura Del Infierno” (The Closing Of Hell)

Simone de Beauvoir: “La Clausura Del Infierno” (The Closing Of Hell)

It is in the knowledge of the genuine conditions of our lives that we must draw our strength to live and our reasons for living.”

French existentialist, feminist, and intellectual Simone de Beauvoir saw the hell created by us and held us accountable to be performative agents in actively transcending the facts of our existence. Since April three artists have been depicting that hell on the exterior wall of Torrent de les Bruixes Institute in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, and they give Ms. De Beauvoir heroic role, triumphal; rising untouched and ebullient above the pit of vipers, monsters, dragons and fantastical embodiments of evils.

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

They call it “La Clausura Del Infierno”, roughly translated as “The Closing of Hell”. Perhaps it could be called “The Opening of Hell” as well.

Because we know you love to see the process as well as the final piece, here is a prime example of how the artists conceive the beginning of a mural by codifying colors. It is impressive how artists Sebastien Waknine, Simón Vázquez, and Juanjo Surace decided to sketch the forms and composition on the wall, using colors and shapes as code.

Our special thanks to photographer Lluís Olivé Bulbena, who shares these images with BSA readers.

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine . Simón Vázquez . Juanjo Surace: “La Clausura Del Infierno”. Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Spain. 2018 (photo © Lluís Olivé Bulbena)


Social: @IES Torrent de les Bruixes @Sebastien Waknine @Simon Vazquez @Juanjo Surace @Gloria Ortiz @Arnau Art

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Selections from Farm Country: GarGar2 Festival in Penelles, Spain.

Selections from Farm Country: GarGar2 Festival in Penelles, Spain.

A well branded cultural initiative brings for the second edition a festival of art, music, craft beer, food trucks, workshops to the village of Penelles in Spain, including 900 square meters of murals in this town with farmer roots and low one story buildings.

It has become almost a formula for cities and municipalities to inject a youthful culture and energy into an area – as you may expect, it is about striking a balance and treating all of your artists well and creating a mixture of events and opportunities for the people to engage with the scene. Even when the population of your Catalonian town is a little less than 500 people.

Fonoll Mas. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

GarGar2 just happened in May with about 30 artists displaying public art in disciplines that touch on almost all of the currently used styles on the street; aerosol, wild style, figurative, illustration, neo-realism, photorealist, commercially slick, folk heroism, calligraphy, text based, pop art, abstract optics, political commentary, brush paint, stencil, craft, crochet, primitive sculpture… Organizers have studied the websites and social postings and surveyed closely what is happening in the mural/Street Art scene and are presenting a cross-section of at least one example of every category.

Sebastien Waknine. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

The somewhat arid agricultural community is spread out over many small roads and fields of wheat, rye, and corn. Old buildings are used for small art exhibitions and music venues – with many of the performing solo artists and ensembles playing a familiar mix of folk, jazz, afrocarribean, and electronic genres that merge local with international tastes.

It is a polished presentation meant to draw attention to the town, and we are thankful to photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena for capturing some of the images from this year’s festival. Following it is a video from last years’ GarGar.

Sebastien Waknine. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Sebastien Waknine. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

BYG. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Asu Calligraphy. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Miquel Wert. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Miquel Wert. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Draw . Contra. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Ryan Smeeton. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Ryan Smeeton. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Paella. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Paella. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Zeso WS. Detail. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Zeso WS. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Jofre Works. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

TV Boy. GarGar Festival. Penelles, Spain. May 2017. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

GarGar 2016

Festival GarGar 2016 from lacreativa.com on Vimeo.


Website for GarGar

Facebook Page

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BSA Images Of The Week: 02.12.17

BSA Images Of The Week: 02.12.17

BSA-Images-Week-Jan2015

“It’s surreal to be on the south side of the US border,” we said last week about being in Mexico. Sorry to report that it may be even more surreal on this side.

Trump and Co. suffered a setback on their Muslim travel ban via the courts but are reportedly breaking out the ICE and going after undocumented people inside US cities suddenly. Politicians are reportedly being flooded with phone calls, letters, postcards, and overflowing town halls from people riled by extreme actions of the new president, and protests pop up sort of everywhere right now about DAPL, Planned Parenthood, immigration….

Meanwhile he’s raging against the judiciary in ALL CAPS, still saying the murder rate is high when its actually low, bankers and corporate captains are sailing into positions in his cabinet, his manic spokes-spinners are attacking/being attacked rhetorically and/or selling his daughters’ fashion wares on live news, his National Security Advisor may have tipped off Russians about easing sanctions before the inauguration, and his top advisor appears to have a large Armageddon roast slathered with terror sauce for breakfast…  frankly there is too much fresh horror every day to re-count and we all have a giant pile of laundry to get caught up on. Jeez!

Meanwhile New York had an impressive snowstorm this week, BAST had his first show of new work in something like 4 years at Allouche Gallery, and Jilly Ballistic is cutting and slicing her way through subway billboard satire in a way that’s pretty funny!

Here’s our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring: 1Up, Icy & Sot, Jilly Ballistic, Josef Foos, Karm, Michelle Angela Ortiz, Pichi & Avo, Sam Durant, Street-People, and Sebastien Waknine.

Top image: Icy & Sot (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Michelle Angela Ortiz for #artinadplaces. NYC phone booth ad takeover. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

“If my parents are deported, I will have to raise my sister.” Erick 13 years old

Jilly Ballistic. NYC Subway ad takeover. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Jilly Ballistic. NYC Subway ad takeover. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Sam Durant “End White Supremacy” sign outside Paula Cooper Gallery in Chelsea, NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified Artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Pichi & Avo. Houston Bowery Wall for Goldman Global Arts in Manhattan, NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Pichi & Avo. Detail. Houston Bowery Wall for Goldman Global Arts in Manhattan, NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

143 ?? (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Street-People on the streets of Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Street-People on the streets of Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

1UP and company. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified Artist on the streets of Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Josef Foos in Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

 

Unidentified Artist on the streets of Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Karm on the streets of Berlin. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Unidentified Artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)

SebastienWaknine on the streets of Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

 

SebastienWaknine on the streets of Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

SebastienWaknine on the streets of Barcelona. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Untitled. Buskers. NYC Subway. February 2017. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

 

 

 

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Sebastien Waknine, Rubicon1, Mugraff “Journey of a Refugee” in Barcelona

Sebastien Waknine, Rubicon1, Mugraff “Journey of a Refugee” in Barcelona

As the world looks on and Americans are deciding which of the world’s refugee children to ban from the country, London-born Street Artist Sebastien Waknine has created a new work in Barcelona called “Journey of a Refugee” with Rubicon 1 and Mugraff.

Sebastien Waknine (0ld lady) in collaboration with Rubicon 1 (refugees) and Mugraff (letters) titled “Journey of a Refugee”.  Detail. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

One of the most active artists in the streets creating in a variety of styles of work that lean toward realism and sometimes tilt into fantasy and exaggerated caricature the London born Waknine decided to do this mural on Selva de Mar to speak to the pure human factors in a refugee crisis that grips much of the developed and developing world.

Sebastien Waknine (0ld lady) in collaboration with Rubicon 1 (refugees) and Mugraff (letters) titled “Journey of a Refugee”.  Detail. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

The new work captures the raw human emotions of fear, desperation and distress of people afloat on rough waters. Somehow Waknine also brings dignity to the harrowing scene and references classical painting, as he has on walls in his travels to countries like Mexico, France, Israel, Germany, and England.

As some societies open their doors to help those fleeing war and imminent danger it seems unthinkable to do anything less for the least of these.

Sebastien Waknine (0ld lady) in collaboration with Rubicon 1 (refugees) and Mugraff (letters) titled “Journey of a Refugee”.  Detail. Barcelona, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

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BSA Images Of The Week: 06.21.15

BSA Images Of The Week: 06.21.15

brooklyn-street-art-okuda-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web

BSA-Images-Week-Jan2015

Summertiiiiiiiiiiimmme, and the living is eaaaaassssssyyyyy. Yessir, today is the first day of Summer here in New York and the longest day of the year – which means you can take a nap under a tree in the park or on your towel at the beach and still have plenty of time to play when you wake up. There are abandoned buildings to explore, murals to paint, wheat-pastes to stick, interventions to engineer, stencils to cut, selfies to snapchat, potato chips to eat, beer to swig. That couch by the window is calling me even now, the big temptress, as she does so often on these languorous days, induced by the heat. But I will not heed her siren song.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring Bezt, Buff Monster, Dain, Dee Dee, Faile, Fra. Biancoshock, Free Humanity, Gold Loxe, Li-Hill, Natalia Rak, Okuda, Old Broads, Phoebe, Sophia Hirsch and Johannes Mundinger, and Simon Vazquez and Sebastien Waknine.

Top image above >>> Okuda (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Li-Hill for The Bushwick Collective. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Li-Hill for The Bushwick Collective. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-betz-avenue-concept-providence-06-21-15-web

Bezt (from Etam Cru) in Providence, Rhode Island for Avenue Concept/Inoperable Gallery (photo © Bezt)

brooklyn-street-art-dain-dee-dee-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web

Dee Dee and Dain are BFF’s on the streets. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-gold-loxe-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web

Gold Loxe (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Faile with a remnant of El Sol 25. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-faile-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web-2

Faile. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-phoebe-new-york-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web-1

Phoebe New York (photo © Jaime Rojo)

brooklyn-street-art-phoebe-new-york-jaime-rojo-06-21-15-web-2

Phoebe New York (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Natalia Rak in Providence, Rhode Island for Avenue Concept/Inoperable Gallery (photo © Natalia Rak)

brooklyn-street-art-fra-biancoshock-vilnius-lithuania-06-21-15-web

Fra Biancoshock’s new installation in Vilnius, Lithuania features a speed checking camera refashioned in the fashion of an Instagram camera. He calls it #picoftheday (photo © Fra Biancoshock)

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Old Broads (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Old Broads (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Buff Monster for The Bushwick Collective (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Sophia Hirsch and Johannes Mundinger installation at the former prison ‘JVA Magdeburg’ in Magdeburg, Germany.  (photo © Johannes Mundinger)

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Sophia Hirsch and Johannes Mundinger installation at the former prison ‘JVA Magdeburg’ in Magdeburg, Germany.  (photo © Johannes Mundinger)

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Free Humanity (photo © Jaime Rojo)

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Simon Vazquez and Sebastien Waknine interventions in an abandoned hotel someplace in Northern Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

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Simon Vazquez and Sebastien Waknine interventions in an abandoned hotel someplace in Northern Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

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Simon Vazquez and Sebastien Waknine interventions in an abandoned hotel somewhere in Northern Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

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Untitled. Coney Island, NY. Summer 2015 (photo © Jaime Rojo)

 

 

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