Stencil Capital
Roving Reporter Anna reviews a Melbourne publication popular with both stencil graffiti fans and artists.
In the last few years stencils have become an extremely popular form of graffiti, particularly in cities such as Paris, London and Melbourne. In particular, Melbourne's CBD laneways have become a useful canvas for artists.
The Stencil Graffiti Capital: Melbourne book launch was held last month at City Lights in Melbourne. Since then it has sold out at many bookshops, which just proves how popular this book is among fans and artists (copies are still available from the Stencil Graffiti Capital website). Compiled by Jake Smallman and Carl Nyman the book is jam-packed with high quality photos and in-depth text about Melbourne's visually rich stencil graffiti scene.
Both the authors are artists and have a great appreciation for stencil art. Nyman is a graphic designer and illustrator, and currently lives in New York. His most recent work includes a tour of five major Asian cities, bringing stencil graffiti to the Far East. As an ongoing project he documents urban expressions of art.
Smallman is originally from Melbourne and has worked in the UK and Australia as a graphic designer. For a number of years, he has been documenting and participating in Melbourne's stencil graffiti scene, gaining media attention and commissions as well as exhibiting his work all over Australia and America.
The book explores the history of stencil graffiti in Melbourne. In particular, the internet has been a great source for artists to display their work and gain exposure. Melbourne artist Prism has played a major part in the growth of the stencil community by creating the website Stencil Revolution, which today boasts over 15,000 registered users worldwide.
What I love about this book is the profiles of Melbourne's well-known artists including Meek, Vexta, Sixten, Optic and Ha-Ha. The reader gets an insight into each artist's world and their art. Stencillist Ha-Ha explains that he uses stencils because "an image says more than say a tag or graffiti. Stencils make a statement."
Stencils appear in several ways: directly sprayed onto walls through cut-outs, sprayed onto poster paper first then pasted onto walls or miniaturised on sticks. The street art form is popular mainly because it can be quickly and easily reproduced once the stencil has been created. Smallman and Nyman are direct in their approach in explaining exactly how much work goes into each stencil, from idea conception to design to what we see on the street wall. It's clear throughout the book that the authors want the readers to understand that there is more behind the world of stencil art than just a picture on a wall.
Another common thread throughout the book is the controversy surrounding stencil graffiti and its illegal nature. Many of the artists know that it is a criminal offence to paint on certain properties and admit they try to avoid it, however stencillist Meggs says, "you feel like you're playing a small part in the visual look of your city without requiring anyone's permission or approval. It's also a buzz to do something illegal, something outside the parameters of how you're supposed to behave in public."
Public opinion about stencilling and other graffiti varies. Many people have said that they like stencil art as long as it isn't messy and offensive. The difference between stencillists and the usual graffiti kids is that stencil artists are very aware of their environment and try to use it to their advantage; they also find a space that will give their art the most exposure.
The Melbourne Stencil Festival plays a major part in helping stencil artists to get their work recognised. The festival which started in 2004 exposes established and emerging artists' work to the wider community. The event was created to develop and encourage discussion and appreciation of stencil art, as well as widening audiences of the medium both in Australian and worldwide. Similar to the book, the festival is increasing public acceptance and understanding of the art form. Stencil Graffiti Capital definitely is a book worth keeping, and will be of special interest to any budding artist.
