urban art - The Art of the Prank

August 2, 2011December 15, 2023

Artist Zefrey Throwall Loses His Shirt on Wall Street

From Tim Jackson: “Putting it all on the line – a fine performance!”

A Bare Market Lasts One Morning
by Melena Ryzik
The New York Times
August 1, 2011

It was an early Monday morning like any other on Wall Street. Before most of the blue-shirted financiers descended, there came an army of helpers: the custodians and coffee fetchers, personal trainers and headsetted assistants who make the money street run smoothly. They marched along the sidewalks, in a hurry to start their workweek.

Zefrey Throwell, who devised the project, speaking with a police officer on Wall Street. Mr. Throwell also participated in “Ocularpation,” playing the part of a hot dog vendor.

Here and there, though, a few people were slowing down, like the trader barking into his cellphone in the calm before the market opened. He paused to loosen his tie. Unbutton his shirt. Take off his pants.

“He”s buck-naked “” Lord have mercy!” a woman said, stopping to gawk at, loudly judge and then photograph a sudden expanse of flesh. Continue reading “Artist Zefrey Throwall Loses His Shirt on Wall Street”

June 4, 2011December 15, 2023

Improv Everywhere: The Mute Button

From Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere:

The Mute Button

For our latest mission 23 actors and 2 dogs infiltrated a public space and went on “mute” at coordinated intervals. The mission took place near the northern entrance to Prospect Park in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The Mute Button was produced by Improv Everywhere as part of the Guggenheim Museum exhibition stillspotting nyc.

Produced by Charlie Todd and Matt Adams / Music by Tyler Walker

More information, pictures and credits here.

April 9, 2011December 15, 2023

Voina’s Prize Winning Boner

Radical Art Group Wins Russian Ministry Prize
by Ellen Barry
The New York Times
April 8, 2011

Moscow “” The radical art collective Voina has won a contemporary art award sponsored by Russia”s Ministry of Culture and the National Center for Contemporary Art for a project that consisted of a 210-foot penis painted on a drawbridge in St. Petersburg, said Andrei V. Yerofeyev, a member of the jury that awarded the prize.

Mr. Yerofeyev said most members of the seven-member jury were initially against awarding the prize to Voina, whose leaders are awaiting trial on hooliganism charges that could bring a sentence of up to seven years. But during deliberations, three advocates of the group persuaded the other four that Voina”s work had artistic merit, he said.

Among the arguments they put forward was that the penis had already gained such a wide audience via the Internet that ignoring it would also be making a statement.

“No one wanted to look like a conformist,” said Mr. Yerofeyev, a prominent intellectual who has long championed Voina, which means war. Continue reading “Voina’s Prize Winning Boner”

January 18, 2011December 15, 2023

No Pants Subway Ride 2011

From Charlie Todd of Improv Everywhere:

On Sunday, January 9th, 2011 over 5,000 people took off their pants on subways in 48 cities in 22 countries around the world. In New York, our 10th Annual No Pants Subway Ride had over 3,500 participants, spread out over six meeting points and ten subway lines. Watch the video below.

For more information and photos, visit Improv Everywhere.

For more posts about Improv Everywhere, click here.

January 15, 2011December 15, 2023

More Banksy

14 Great Banksy Street Art Photos and Quotes from Street Art Utopia…
A terrific display of the artist’s hand and mind:

“Think outside the box, collapse the box, and take a fucking sharp knife to it.” “” Banksy

“You”re mind is working at its best when you”re being paranoid. You explore every avenue and possibility of your situation at high speed with total clarity.” “” Banksy (Banging Your Head Against a Brick Wall)

“Some people become cops because they want to make the world a better place. Some people become vandals because they want to make the world a better looking place.” “” Banksy (Wall and Piece) Continue reading “More Banksy”