Veiled Threat: The Guerrilla Graffiti of Princess Hijab

Veiled Threat: The guerrilla graffiti of Princess Hijab
Bitch Magazine
by Arwa Aburawa
November 19, 2009

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Since 2006, the elusive guerrilla artist known as Princess Hijab has been subverting Parisian billboards, to a mixed reception. Her anonymity irritates her critics, many of whom denounce her as extremist and antifeminist; when she recently conceded, in the pages of a German newspaper, that she wasn”t a Muslim, it opened the floodgates to avid speculation in the blogosphere. If her claim of being a 21-year-old Muslim girl was only partially true, some wondered what the real message was behind her self-described “artistic jihad.” Continue reading “Veiled Threat: The Guerrilla Graffiti of Princess Hijab”

There’s a Fork in the Road in Pasadena

Pasadena’s Fork in the road is guerilla art installation
by Janette Williams
Pasadena Star News
November 3, 2009

forkintheroad-200Pasadena – Right where Pasadena and St. John avenues divide, there’s a fork in the road.

It’s about 18 feet tall and looks like stainless steel.

The fork’s appearance a few days ago, tines firmly stuck into a little Caltrans-owned median, was a bit of a mystery at first.

“It’s a guerilla installation,” guessed Rochelle Branch, the city’s cultural affairs manager, who oversees the public art program. “I don’t know if it’s through Caltrans, but it is clever.”

Caltrans spokeswoman Maria Raptis, who said Caltrans leases the small plot of land to the city, was equally baffled.

“Sometimes we do put art up. We have context-sensitive art off some freeways,” she said. “But I don’t know about this.”

And David Amronin, co-artistic director of Pasadena’s always edgy NewTown arts group – they describe themselves as “A Persistent Weed in The Garden of Art” – said it wasn’t his group. Continue reading “There’s a Fork in the Road in Pasadena”

Mysterious Footprints and Tofu Grip Toronto and Wilmington

The tofu-graffiti mystery
by Ryan Bigge
thestar.com
August 15, 2009

tofu-200I first noticed the strange four-letter word written in black spray paint in Liberty Village, during last year’s Nuit Blanche. On the shins of three concrete plinths near the south end of the Lamport Stadium parking lot, in uppercase letters, was the word TOFU. It was simultaneously funny (what sort of miscreant selects soybean protein as their semiotic weapon?) and enigmatic (how best to respond to such a non-sequitur?) Still, it held my interest, despite having viewed an evening’s worth of competitively creative contemporary art, so I took a quick photograph and forgot about it.

But it turned out that TOFU was not a one-off conceptual prank without a punchline. Continue reading “Mysterious Footprints and Tofu Grip Toronto and Wilmington”

Berlin Wall Enshrined by Unsanctioned Art

Historic kiss on the lips revived
RussiaToday.com
20 July, 2009

http://www.russiatoday.com/s/swf/player.swf?file=http://www.russiatoday.com/v/2009-07-20/484383_wall.flv&image=http://www.russiatoday.com/s/obj/2009-06-18/sredi.jpg&controlbar=over&skin=http://www.russiatoday.com/s/swf/skin/stylish1.swf

The autumn of 2009 will mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, which is now being renovated after years of decay, pollution and vandalism.

It took lots of tears and fighting to bring down 155 kilometers of concrete. And it was more than just a wall for Germans. It was a physical embodiment of the iron curtain between the West and the Communist East.

On the day it fell, the celebrations in Berlin seemed like they would last forever.

Since the end of the Cold War, the Wall, which was once a great divide, has now become a source of inspiration for many.

Twenty years on, the once-odious barrier has been transformed into a treasured icon – one that sells well both in parts and as a whole. The wall”s remains are now officially an open air gallery called East Side, which has quickly become one off Germany”s top tourist attractions.

Watch the video or click here for the rest of the story.