The Urban Portrait Gallery Free admission for everyone

When street art emerged at the turn of the twenty-first century, it was revolutionary in the sense that it concerns art that is not intended to end up in a white cube – typically a place where an admission fee is charged, where you have to keep your distance to the works exhibited, where attendants keep an eye on you and where taking pictures may not be allowed. Instead, it is art meant for anyone to enjoy without restriction.

When a Bike is Stolen, a Fairy Dies And other messages on the streets that have escaped your attention

Streets are home not only to all sorts of signs and a great deal of advertising, they also function as a medium for yet another form of communication. One that defies the prevailing linguistic code of the city as it doesn’t urge us to abide by the law, or lures us into irrationally purchasing things we don’t need.

Here Today, Gone Tomorrow The ephemeral nature of street art

Art in museums is carefully preserved and, if necessary, restored in order to be kept indefinately. Street art, on the other hand, is finite by its very nature. Ephemerality is in fact one of its defining features. Some street art may be around for years. This holds true particularly for murals (although muralism kind of falls into a category of its own).

Cartoon Figures and Action Heroes in Public Space Super Mario & Batman brawl over space on a wall

For many graffiti and street artists, a self-invented cartoonesque figure has become a trademark. KBTR and Oxalien are two glaring examples. In fact, they’re the names of both the silly figures as well as the artists themselves. The hot-tempered dwarf with his red pointed hat and the inflated bubble of pink chewing gum with horns and sharp teeth have, oftentimes together, spread across large parts of the Netherlands like a virus.

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