From Street Art to Murals

INO's subversive interventions in urban spaces

Resumo

The main topic of my research of the Greek street art scene was its synergies with the reactions expressed by anti-capitalist and anti-globalization movements. In this pattern, its most vocal proponent, INO, an anonymous muralist from Athens, coined the provocative term "brandalism" to initiate a new artistic practice aimed at cause antipathy towards the corporate branding of modern metropolises. If graffiti writers in the 1970s in New York City tried to "spray-bomb" public infrastructure with a single interpretation of symbols[1], contemporary Athenian street artists wanted to directly attack commercial urban media by subversively processing images, slogans and icons. However, despite the efforts of the street artist to be declared an undesirable participant in urban vandalism, many street artists have become recognized as a kind of urban brands. INO is certainly one of the most important and most creative actors of this artistic and cultural phenomenon.

In this research, I used detailed examples of aesthetic form and individual practice in the work of this Athenian street artist to examine the creative tensions between branding and the use of urban space. Through personal views, I have tried to determine whether permanent theorizing and research should be much more deeply respected and whether newly improved forms of design can play an important role in the production and consumption of this street art. The methods used in this research relied on the use of available literature, internet sources, a review of the history of wall painting, and a comparison of the works of other artists in the field of muralism.