Check out our online magazine and start to get inspired
32 articles
From October 2 to 5, the city of Montrouge will host its first edition of the Urban and Contemporary Art Fair: Spera. A brand-new fair in the Paris region which positions itself differently, inviting visitors to discover an immersive experience, creating connections between galleries, artists and art collectors. This first edition will open with Brazil in the spotlight!
Born in 1983 in Bordeaux, Nerone is known for his colorful, floral and luminous style. Trained in visual communication, he discovered Graffiti during his teenage years. His style took shape in London in 2015, where he sought to break through the grey atmosphere of the city with his vibrant art. Based in Marseille, he collaborates with major brands in graphic design, adding his personal artistic touch. Represented by Urbaneez, his poetic and captivating artworks are among the most valuable pieces of the online gallery.
Initially subversive and illegal when practiced in the streets, Urban Art has gradually become institutionalized since artists started to reinterpret their street work in the studio, while maintaining the codes and techniques of the street. Inspired by the authenticity of the movement, many Urban Art collectors around the world are used to taking advantage of international fairs to discover unique pieces and invest in Urban Art. Whether it's District 13 or Urban Art Fair in Paris, Stroke Art Fair in Munich, UVNT Art Fair in Madrid, or Moniker Art Fair in London which are the main international Urban Art fairs in Europe, they all contribute to the recognition of the movement and its diffusion on the contemporary art market.
The rise of neo-muralism in urban landscapes around the world has led to the emergence of a new form of tourism. Public local authorities have been quick to catch on, and are since incorporating into their tourist offers tours and routes that combine Street Art and heritage. It then provides an opportunity to highlight and (re)discover sometimes neglected districts or villages. Street Art plays now a key role in the development of tourism worldwide, making towns and cities more attractive to many more tourists.
A true globetrotter, Parisian artist Kanos paints his new cyberpunk icons on walls all around the world. Combining the sensuality of Mucha's “flower women” with mechanical elements in order to question transhumanism and the upcoming challenges of our society with new technologies, he introduces symbols to create his own allegorical vocabulary. Visions of a dystopian future or just from a pure science fiction movie, the artist has the floor.
Offering a unique visual identification thanks to an exclusive aesthetic, provided added value by extending brand territory, developing visibility and reach a wider audience... The benefits of collaborations between brands and artists take the form of win-win partnerships. Contemporary artists have long been involved in commercial creation. Clothes, jewelry, accessories, perfume or alcohol carafes packaging... Everything is a pretext for marrying brands with signed artworks. And Urban Art is of course no exception to this rule! Graffiti and street artists also used to taking possession of brands, which enable brands to take the opportunity to renew their style thanks to this breath of modernity.
In 1991, Paris Tonkar was published by Éditions Massot: the first French and European book about the Graffiti movement. A cult book that has influenced generations of graffiti artists in France. The authors, Tarek Ben Yakhlef and Sylvain Doriath, observers and actors of the emerging graffiti movement, have created a unique photograph, positioning this emerging art form as a benchmark for up-and-coming urban artists. After the book was published, Tarek Ben Yakhlef left the world of graffiti for two decades. He made a name for himself in comics before returning to painting in the early 2010s, now exhibiting in numerous galleries around the world. In September 2024, he brings out the reissue of Paris Tonkar, more than 30 years after the first publication. Interview.
Tags, throw ups, masterpieces, 3D… There are multiple techniques and terms specific to the world of Graffiti Art. Here is a brief overview of the language codes and styles that are most the representative of this art, which was once only for the initiated.
Urban Art has become a powerful form of cultural expression and a source of creative inspiration. Across the globe, street art festivals transform cities into open-air museums, showcasing the talent of local and international street artists through breathtaking XXL murals. These festivals not only draw street art enthusiasts but also foster a unique form of tourism, turning cities into sought-after street art destinations. One of the pioneering events in this global movement is the Nuart Festival in Stavanger, Norway. This groundbreaking festival, founded in 2001, holds the distinction of being the world's very first street art festival. Starting as a music event, Nuart emerged as a way to encourage artists to gather, exchange ideas, and celebrate the vibrant world of Street Art.
Following the success of its previous edition in September 2022, the international art fair dedicated to Graffiti and Street Art, District 13, launched by the gallery owner Mehdi Ben Cheick, is coming back this year and will take place once again in the famous auction house Drouot. This not-to-be-missed event gathers artists, galleries and key players of the Urban Art world in an exceptional fair. The fifth edition will welcome 32 exhibitors of six different nationalities and will expect more than 10'000 visitors over three days. Exclusive artworks and live performances are on the agenda!
Originally from Sittard in the Southern part of Holland, the Dutch street artist Marcus Debie aka GOMAD pioneered Graffiti in his region and has since become one of the most acclaimed Dutch muralists worldwide. In this interview, the artist tells us how he developed his iconic photorealistic style, why eyes are the protagonists of his mural paintings, and what he wants us to observe in his surrealistic art with our own eyes.
Street art practices and techniques are very wide: stencils, collages, stickers, mosaics, street installations, tape art, hijacking of street signs... are just some of them. Explanations.
Urban Art marketplace launched in 2016 by Yannick Bosseo, president of Artvizor, a production and management company of art events, Urban Art Fair will take place under the hall of the Carreau du Temple in the 3rd district of Paris, from April 13 to 16. Led by Morgane Perroy, director, the event aims to be a bridge between galleries, artists and collectors of all backgrounds.
Graffiti and Street Art have always been two distinct branches of Urban Art, the most prolific artistic movement of the 21st century. Even if the line that divides both disciplines is sometimes small and can be easily crossed, with artists moving from one discipline to another, these notions imply different practices, aesthetics and codes. With as common point however, the act of creation mainly carried out without authorization in the public space but also the appropriation of the street and the ephemeral character of the work. However, from these illicit interventions anchored within an underground culture, a multitude of artistic practices have since asserted themselves, symbolizing the diversity of this movement, to such an extent that they can now be qualified as urban arts.
Tag, graffiti, customization, break dance, hip hop... Urban cultures are intrinsically linked to the major artistic and cultural phenomenon of the 21st century: Urban Art. Interdependent each one with the other, the different disciplines of urban cultures are at the heart of a new event in Paris, Urban Influence, of which Urbaneez is partner. The first edition will take place on Friday 18, Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 November 2022, in the 4th arrondissement, at Ellia Art Gallery, 10 rue de Turenne.
Urban artist resolutely anchored in the plurality and diversity of the international contemporary scene, Oré plays with mediums and public space. A visual artist attached to his native Normandy, he has made his travels the guideline of his artistic career. His plywood plaques decorated with the Quetzalcóatl, a feathered snake from the pre-Columbian divinity, placed in the centers of the world's largest cities have become his urban signature. However, the artist's career is not limited to these installations. Painting and the occupation of the street remain his leitmotivs.
The visual expression of Graffiti and Street Art has come a long way from its underground roots. After the success of street art exhibitions held at renowned museums worldwide, such as "Street Art'' at Tate Modern in London (2008), "Born in the Streets" at Fondation Cartier in Paris (2009) and "Art in the Streets" at MOCA in Los Angeles (2011), the Urban Art movement was ready to claim its own specialized museums and this has now been achieved through different initiatives around the world.
Street art is an art like any other. But if these words seem obvious today, we must not forget that it has been a long road to get there, 50 years! The time to create the greatest artistic movement of the 20th century, and which continues its epic existence in the 21st century under the name of "Urban Contemporary Art".
Already announced beginning of 2021, the upheaval of the art market has clearly begun. A paradigm shift is now underway, enabling the online sale of various types of artworks, from paintings to sculptures, including drawings, prints, photographs and more recently NFTs. Although this digitalization has been carried out at a forced move, it is now driving the trend for the years to come. NFTs, these artistic UFOs that have explosed on Internet through the use of the blockchain, are creating a buzz and whetting the appetite of collectors. Collectors whose profile is getting younger and whose appetite for online art is growing.
Emanuele Vittorioso is an Italian post-graffiti artist living in Syracuse, Sicily. His abstract paintings are inspired by the urban landscape, the kinetic energy of graffiti, and Italian abstract artists of the 1950s and the 1960s. With them as references and holding graffiti lettering as a starting point, Emanuele Vittorioso deconstructed his letters up to action painting.
The Netherlands and England are quickly affected by the graffiti movement that swept across Europe after the United States. But France, Germany and Spain are not left behind too.
According to Street Art Cities, 60’000 votes have been registered by the community-driven platform in 3 weeks of voting to elect the best murals of 2021. From blog and social media posts to features in local and national media, many artists have also been interviewed and got the opportunity to share their work and love for Urban Art. More than a "best of", this top 10 murals of 2021 is a way to share beautiful Street Art each year and to teach the general public about this influential contemporary art movement. Let's discover the 10 most popular murals of 2021!
21.8 million euros. This is the amount that Banksy's artwork "Love Is In The Bin" sold for on 14 October 2021, a work which had already created a sensation in 2018 by self-destructing at Sotheby's. Far from undermining its value, this sale confirms the exponential increase in price of this artwork, auctioned for 1.2 million euros only 3 years ago which has since multiplied its price by 18. While Banksy’s communication is like no other artist and his rate is unparalleled, these figures are just a shining example of the rise of Urban Art at auction sales since the mid-2000s.
Created one night in 2007 in a square of the 11th arrondissement of Paris, the characters created by Le CyKlop were originally like a game. Since then, the artist never stopped having fun, whether in the street by hijacking traffic signs or anti-parking bollards into cyclops, Lego characters and various animals, or in his studio, by transforming this street furniture into collectors' items. Between humor, generosity and facetiousness, discover our encounter with the father of these strange CyKlops.
Although New York, Paris, London, Berlin, Barcelona or Amsterdam are pioneer cities for the development of the movement in Europe, many other cities have had a decisive role and are now positioned as open-air museums for Street Art lovers. Rome, Ghent, Lisbon, Toulouse and Athens invite you to wonderful urban walks around Graffiti and Street Art, discover our list of the best spots not to be missed in these 5 must-see cities in Europe for any art lovers.
During the 80s and 90s, the Old Continent started to be passionate about the movement after the United States. Graffiti and Street Art then surge like a real shock wave, synonymous with freedom of expression and a great springboard for some artists. Let's go back to the breaking wave and the unbridled years of Urban Art.
For Jacques Villeglé, Street Art is not "a job of monks", and being an urban artist who interact in the city does not mean "taking a vow of poverty". The common belief according to which an urban artist could not leave his street practice for a studio work under the penalty of being badly perceived has lived, as an evidence, one can notice all the events highlighting this movement. Here is a look at the progressive and long recognition of Urban Art in the world.
Driven by the passion for the Post Graffiti movement, the Speerstra Gallery is proud to present the exhibition "I Love Graffiti" from September 10th to October 30th at the gallery from Paris.
Following the United States, Graffiti arrived in Europe in the early 1980s: The Netherlands with Amsterdam and England with London and Bristol are the first affected by the virus. Explanations.
Prolific artist from the Bordeaux scene, Charles Foussard frames his surreal Pop paintings under the arches and ashlar bays of the capital city of New Aquitaine. Laid on concrete blocks or wood panels, his street works are true masterpieces inspired by ancient painters and the Californian Lowbrow movement. Fond of large formats and urban wastelands, he is also used to painting over the bunkers of the Atlantic coast to bring them a new life through art. In the studio, he transposes this energy to further develop his writing and work on canvas compositions rich in details mixing the real and the unreal. Interview.
If the paternity of Street Art is shared between Philadelphia, New York and Paris, it's because on the one hand, there were cities that were shaken by an economic crisis due to a strong deindustrialization, and on the other hand, cities that were the scene of social revolts. Storming the walls has therefore often been a political act before being a purely creative one.
The art market has been deeply affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and has accelerated its digital transformation. If online sales of contemporary art or even Street Art have been progressing steadily for the last five years, the Covid-19 has been a real game changer for the art market. The social distancing, regulatory measures and mandatory closures have forced galleries, auction houses, art dealers and advisors to shift online urgently.