…Exploring the role of the prankster as artist, activist and social observer and the significance of the prank in society.
From artist Brian Kane:
Healing Tool is art designed for people in cars.
A temporary public art installation using digital billboards on interstate freeways. June 28 June – July 26 , 2015
Read more about this at Huffington Post here.
Graffiti artist Mobstr tells the story with pictures of his grand experiment taunting authorities:
I cycled past this wall on the way to work for years. I noticed that graffiti painted within the red area was “buffed” with red paint. However, the graffiti outside the red area would be removed via pressure washing. This prompted the start of an experiment. Unlike other works, I was very uncertain as to what results it would yield. Below is what transpired over the course of a year.
It went like this:
Continue to next page to see the rest. Continue reading “Mobstr’s Red Wall Challenge”
From Deborah Thomas:
There’s a Massive, Illicit Bust of Edward Snowden Stuck to a War Monument in Brooklyn
by Bucky Turco
AnimalNewYork.com
April 6, 2015
While most people slept, a trio of artists and some helpers installed a bust of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden in Brooklyn on Monday morning. The group, which allowed ANIMAL to exclusively document the installation on the condition that we hide their identities, hauled the 100-pound sculpture into Fort Greene Park and up its hilly terrain just before dawn. They fused it to part of the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument, a memorial to Revolutionary War soldiers. As of press time, the sculpture was still there.
Read the full story of the erection on AnimalNewYork.com and the very quick removal by City park officials on NYDailyNews.com.
Los Angeles has an obnoxious habit of neglectfully erasing its own history. Before Hugh Hefner helped restore it in 1978, the city’s iconic Hollywood Sign had fallen into disrepair. It was during this low point that a few tenacious pranksters (and recreational drug enthusiasts) decided to temporarily alter it.
In the words of redditor bmwnut, “I do wonder where they put a 45 foot letter on which to practice.”
“In 1976, pot-head pranksters made ‘HOLLYWEED’ out of the iconic Hollywood sign”
By Rusty Blazenhoff
Dangerous Minds
February 27, 2015
On January 1, 1976, Tinseltown”s iconic sign read “Hollyweed” after art student Danny Finegood and 3 of his college pals used $50 worth of dark fabric to transform the famous Hollywood landmark temporarily. They had practiced it first on a scale model Finegood had crafted.
It was more than a simple practical joke, Finegood considered it a statement on the relaxed California marijuana law that went into effect that day.
Read more here.
Naked Satan Statue Has Vancouver Locals Asking, ‘What The Devil?’
by David Moye
The Huffington Post
September 9, 2014
What the hell?
That’s the question some Vancouver locals were asking after a naked, anatomically correct statue of Satan was mysteriously erected in a local park.
The 9-foot-tall statue was a representation of the devil, complete with red skin, a pointed tail and horns atop his head. The statue also holds one hand up in a devil-horn salute familiar to heavy metal fans the world over.
But what has aroused controversy is the statue’s prominent, erect phallus, CTV News reports. Read the whole story here.