Urban Anthropology Blog

Although I don't have an image, I assume many of you saw where I placed my sticker (on the stairwell leading down to our classroom in the dungeons of the library). I put my sticker here because I wanted to play with the themes of public/private as well as the unspoken, psychologically-binding mentalities that encode various cultural groups (i.e. Hipsterism). The image [sticker] only means something to those of us in ANTH2350; the significance for other students, professors, and janitors (who will perhaps be charged with removing the sticker at some future date) is nonexistent save each individual's unique interpretation of the image's content [itself]. Because of our class assignment, the sticker has become imbued with meaning, with a story and correlating details to which only a small percentage of the viewing public has access. The placement of the sticker thus becomes an agent of cultural segmentation, whereby those of us who recognize the story behind the image are assembled, gathered, and 'cult-ified'- we form, in spite of any nascent intentions, a selective, insular body within the overarching cultural matrix.

http://permaculture-media-download.blogspot.com/2011/10/guerilla-gardening-occupy-wall-street.html

Found this on a blog a few minutes ago. I'm still trying to figure out if this a statement about the illegality of graffiti, whether the artist's name is "illegal," if it's just the start of a bigger piece, or maybe something else I haven't thought of yet. It was done by an Oakland protester from an #occupy movement there. Note the anonymity of the artist and his/her wearing of all black. Any thoughts of the significance of this image and why the Wall Street Journal is featuring it on their site?

http://blogs.wsj.com/photojournal/2011/10/27/photos-of-the-day-oct-27-2/

Hana

I was wandering down Huntington looking for a suitably incendiary place to put my sticker, when I noticed this sign outside of the dry cleaner near Symphony Market. This sign, ostensibly designed to make students feel more comfortable and ultimately choose this particular business to clean their jungle-juice-stained shirts, takes on a bit of a creepy feel when complemented with this rather violent sticker. It becomes a message not from the well-meaning dry cleaner, who just wants to get that vodka-cranberry stain out of your nice dress at a decent price, but rather from the consumer culture that somehow convinces an astounding number of people to pay $135 for a pair of sneakers because they were named after a basketball celebrity and have been ruthlessly marketed to their demographic. "Welcome back students," it says, "to another year of brand-worshipping consumerism at the cost of the people who made your shoe at less than minimum wage because a minimum wage doesn't exist in their country because the company that designed your glamorous shoe and convinced you that you needed it has lobbied, bribed, and coerced their government into deregulating industry so they can work in free trade zones and take all their profits out of the country without paying taxes!!!!"

^I tried to make that as angry as the sticker.

- Rebecca Willett

I selected a sticker that shows a figure stuck inside of the international "no" sign.  He is sweating and reaching out towards the viewer. I interpreted this as his attempt to escape from captivity inside some set of rules that prevent him from doing what he wants.  In short, this figure seems like a rebel rejecting societal rule.

I placed this sticker besides a few "no" signs in the city before I found this spot. This is the green line Park Street stop on the T, an extremely crowded place, especially during rush hour when I placed the sticker there. I thought it would be fun to place this "no" sticker besides another "no" sign. It works especially well here because the signs are about the same size.  The hope is that people will do a double take as they pass by yet another sign that tells them what not to do. 

I am not encouraging people to smoke in the T-station, but perhaps the juxtaposition of the stickers have people question the amount of "no's" we see every day, and who is creating these rules that we are forced to follow. People spend a lot of time waiting for the T and likely have a lot of time to stare and think about the sticker while waiting.  Perhaps it will change the "place" where one waits for the T to a "space" where one can question rules and conformity. 


Hana Nobel

I decided to place the sticker I had, something that was characterized as a police officer "in uniform". Since I missed the initial class where Professor Lee talked (maybe?) about PoPo and his intentions with his project and stickers I don't really know what his intentions are with the stickers. My interpretation of the sticker was that the police are kind of a joke, that the profession they work in is becoming less and less effective. My initial decision was to find a stop sign near a police station that would look like the sticker was instructing people to stop. After I couldn't find a stop sign near the police stations around campus, I determined that placing a provocative image about police anywhere near a police station would suffice. So I put my sticker on Ruggles street, on a sign that was directly before the police station. My thought process behind this was to make people who were maybe walking by or waiting at the red light to just think about what it could mean, maybe skew a few peoples own perceptions.

- Preston

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2011/07/13/the-heritage-of-berlin-street-art-and-graffiti-scene/]

I came across this interesting article on street art in Berlin that gives brief analysis on a few well know street artists in the area but also briefly mentions the history of Berlin's street art in connection with the Berlin wall.
One of the artists, Alias, I thought demonstrates well what we discussed about street art as a subculture based on it's giving a voice to the voiceless as well as on the need to both feel treated unfairly by and stay anonymous to the dominant however this street artist does not use graffiti as his medium and instead employs stencils in the style on banksy and produces a constant stream of art for the purpose of keeping his art, although not himself, in the public eye.

"The picture of a hooded teenager with a blank face communicates a need to give outsiders a voice. The irony is that the one person humane enough to give them that voice, a street artist, has to remain anonymous. That, Alias suggests, is his reward for daring to question society."


To counter this conception of street art as a method of attacking the dominant culture there is an artist referred to XOOOX who personally claims that his works of art have nothing to do with criticism of capitalism, as they often are interpreted to, but are simply at outpouring of his love for fashion. His stencils are created from his fashion magazines and he too produces a constant stream of art to remain in the public eye.

Overall, XOOOOX’s images show an artist with a genuine appreciation of conventional beauty. In a scene that likes to subvert conventions, this must make XOOOOX the most unconventional artist working on Berlin’s streets today.

In comparing these two street artists from the same city who both produce art on a massive scale(with a new work practically every day) what category do you think we would have placed them in in our discussion?


-Katherine

I placed my sticker on a lamp post that is attached to the roof level of the columbus parking garage. The lot was completely empty when I was up there--it was a bit eerie. While I didn't choose a high traffic area to put the sticker, I have always been artistically oriented and thought I would play with the idea of proportion (in both the pictoral and the metaphorical sense).
The view from the top of the garage is remarkably scenic. When you're on the roof of any building in Boston (or any city for that matter), there is this sensation of omnipotence. It's as though because you can see the whole city, the whole city can somehow see you. The sticker and lamp post seems so large up against the city backdrop, which visually replicates that invigorating sensation from looking out at the city from the rooftop of a building.
I now see why many street artists choose to write on high up places (like in Exit Through the Gift Shop when Shepard Fairey is shown placing numerous prints on roofs of buildings and on highway overpasses). Not only does this accomplish the task of giving a voice to the voiceless, it places the message literally above where the craziness of everyday urban life occurs. It's as though the message will somehow trickle down to the streets, which to me is a very cool concept.
So my placement of the sticker on this lamp post accomplishes my attempt to give meaning to an otherwise meaningless lamppost on a parking garage. It now invites whoever sees it to think about how they see themselves compares to the city, and it tempts them to think bigger and not be overwhelmed by the size of the city. It allows for me to feel important as the writer for getting attention, and it also allows people to indulge in that momentary rush of looking down at a city and feeling as though you are floating above it. It's also just a nice view.

I decided to place my sticker on on of the bridges behind the school that go over the train tracks to cabot center and some of the further dorms. Since freshman year I've been going across these bridges to get to dance classes, the gym and friends dorms and I have always found them to be a place totally alien to the traditional idea of a college campus. I don't know if the fencing and guard towers are supposed to make you feel protected or constantly watched but in short the place feels like you've temporarily taken a wrong turn and ended up in prison. I was hoping that the addition of some sort of street art would make the detour less menacing but of course with the constant and very blatant patrolling of cops I had to make it very obvious that I was simply taping the sticker up temporarily and take it down immediately after my photos.

I tried the sticker in a few places but here with the most dismal view of the bridge and guard tower I thought it did the most to transform this colorless and threatening place into something you would expect of a college campus. Even more so I think the image of the irritated-looking guy with wings tied to his back on a crying duck who seems to be going nowhere is very appropriate for this bridge as clearly this is a place meant to keep some people either in or out but disguised as a place of passage. I thought this sticker drew attention to this fact making people think "Where am I going and what if I was not allowed to go through to get there?" I think this relates to the privatization of public space when forced to consider who really controls the bridge and whose best interest are they looking out for. Whether it is Northeastern who employs these guards or the city of Boston(working for Northeastern) I assume it is most likely they are looking out for the safety of us monetarily valuable college students to ensure that no member of a more threatening social group makes us(or our parents) fear for our safety. I suppose that means I should feel safer on this prison-like bridge but in their spare time the guards are perfectly happy to menacingly follow a college student looking like she plans to deface their lifeless bridge with a hint of color or humor.

-Katherine

I chose a sticker that I think had a lot of meaning behind it. It was of a sneaker with the Nike swoosh piercing through the character inside the shoe. I think it represents our society's over consumption of brands and labels, and our downfall because of it. But I also think that the meaning is 2 fold. One, that theres a level of desire for the brands for those who are economically not well off. The less they have, the more they want items that represent more affluent types. The other side, which I chose to capture in my image are those who reap the benefits of the consumption of all these goods. Theres massive wealth and money for those who gain from society's consumer culture.

It was hard to capture wealth is a single shot so I decided to venture over to Beacon Hill's Louisburg Square, where some of the wealthiest residents live. The square is lined with townhouses and mansions and is quite beautiful. I placed the sticker on the street sign, as a contrast between the exclusive address and those who benefit and the downfall of our culture caused by mass consumption.

I placed the sticker in an alley that I pass by everyday on the way to my dorm. The alley occasionally serves as a recreational area for different types of licentious actives. The face appeared split (based on the eyes) between astonishment or surprise and anger or disappointment. With this facial expression placed in the inherently unmoral site, the sticker seems to say, "What would your mother think of this?" I found that putting this judging face in the alley transformed the barren area into a comical attempt at encouraging the reemergence of a conscious. I did not leave the sticker there; however I would have loved to see how it affected my routine on a daily basis, at least until it became embedded in it. In addition, it would have been great to casually observe the affect it had on pedestrians.

taken at 126 Hemening Way

You know those little blue lights with the call boxes under them? Ever look at them and think why? They tell you on tours that it's for your safety, that you can use the boxes to call in suspicious activity and get an escort. But think about that logistically. If there's an actual threat to your safety, is running down the nearest blue light really all that practical? They probably exist to appease nervous tour-taking parents. But drawing on John Allen's Ambient Power idea, I'd say they serve a second purpose: They let the uninitiated know there's a power structure here, and that it's watching them. It's saying, "This here's Northeastern territory and we don't want no trouble 'round here. Best head back the way you came." I decided to make that a little more obvious with my sticker.