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io9Space Invader Invades Space
The artist, not the video game. Well, actually, both. Kind of. If you saw the amazing 2010 documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop, you’ve heard of the street artist who calls himself Space Invader. Even if you haven’t seen the film (which you should, like, as soon as possible), it’s still entirely possible you’ve seen … Continued
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Tech NewsPhilly’s Beautiful Plan to Fight Crime with Neon Murals
Just the presence of streetlights can deter criminal behavior. A South Philadelphia neighborhood is trying something a little more innovative than that—using neon-lit murals to brighten the sidewalk and turn the area into a destination. Electric Street, by David Guinn and Drew Billiau, transforms a wall into a work of public art that not only … Continued
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Tech News
How a Street Artist Secretly Painted an Urban-Scale Mural in Cairo
All over the world street artists have become famous by surreptitiously adding swabs of paint or wheatpaste to city walls. But the most remarkable thing about a new mural in Cairo is not only its size—it covers about 50 buildings—it’s that the artist managed to do it in a place that’s not known for encouraging … Continued
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Tech News
How Math Geeks Almost Doxxed Banksy
Describing graffiti as a “minor terrorism-related act,” researchers in the UK have used a technique developed for crime-fighting to tag the identity of a Banksy, a highly prolific but secretive street artist. The system could thwart more serious crimes, but its use in outing an anonymous artist shows the potential for abuse. The technique is … Continued
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Tech News
This Is the Latest Street Art to Appear at the European Space Agency
Street art keeps cropping up across the European Space Agency, and this is the latest piece to make an appearance. The latest piece to be made by the French artist known as Invader, this depiction of Europe communicating with satellites in orbit can be found on the side of the ESA Headquarters in Paris. Below, … Continued
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Tech News
How NYT Magazine Made a 150-Foot Pedestrian for Its Walking Issue
It’s like Christmas morning for pedestrian advocates! This week’s New York Times Magazine is all about walking, from the very act of perambulation to all the ways that the city—any city really—is best appreciated on foot. And the cover is a street-scale work of art. This is not Photoshop! The art was shot practically, from … Continued
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io9
Mind-Boggling Optical Illusion Graffiti Looks Like It Floats In Mid-Air
Graffiti artist Odeith wanted to make his street art stand out, so he decided to create murals that are also anamorphic illusions. By skewing is images in just the right way and painting “shadows” on the walls and ground, Odeith is able to create designs that look like 3D objects hovering in space. Not all … Continued
By Lauren Davis -
Tech NewsIs Banksy a Woman? Watch This Documentary And See What You Think
As bored as you might be with the breathless coverage of Banksy and his “takeover of New York,” there might be one reason to catch the HBO documentary on the street artist. Over at CityLab, Kriston Capps has an intriguing theory after watching the film:Banksy is a probably a woman. There are a lot of … Continued
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Tech News
This Office Tower Is Being Demolished, But Not Before a Giant Art Party
Buildings get old—most office towers aren’t designed to stand for centuries, as they once were. In Tokyo, a team of artists and curators got permission to interrupt this a near-perpetual cycle of construction and demolition by throwing one last party inside a tower destined for the scrap heap. The project was called Bction, and it … Continued
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Tech NewsAnimated GIFs Have Finally Invaded Street Art
If you had to pinpoint one single reason the internet became such an integral part of our day-to-day lives, the obvious answer would be animated GIFs. They’re what make staring at a screen all day long completely worth your morning commute. But now, a couple of artists have finally found a way to put animated … Continued
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Tech News
These Photorealistic Stencils Make Banksy Look Like an Amateur
If you visit the elementary school in Terracina, Italy, you’re going to be a little bit tripped it out. As of a month or two ago, several small children appear to be standing sideways on the building’s façade. But obviously, children cannot defy gravity. They’re actually the latest creation of a street artist named Strøk. … Continued
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Tech News
This Nifty Tool Turns Google Street View Into a Graffiti Time Machine
Graffiti may be ephemeral, but then there’s Google Street View with its all-seeing camera. Inspired by Google’s recent to move to let users go back in time in Street View, Brian Foo at the New York Public Library Labs thought he could make us look at street graffiti from a new perspective—through time. Here’s the … Continued
By Sarah Zhang -
Tech News
The Coolest Paintings From Google’s Project to Immortalize Street Art
Street art is mutable by definition. But Google Street View, the archiver of all worldly street-borne phenomena from gentrification to wildlife, wants to change that with its Google Street Art Project—an archival website of the world’s street art from Buenos Ares to Atlanta. The project, which launched today on a stand-alone site affiliated with Google’s … Continued
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Tech News
Why the Panthéon Is Covered In Black-and-White Faces
For the past two years, the Panthéon in Paris has been undergoing a renovation, its signature dome wrapped in a cute little plastic hat. This week, the 1790 structure revealed an art installation to tide tourists and residents over until the work is complete: thousands of black-and-white faces covering its marble surfaces. The faces are … Continued
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Tech News
Clever Photoshop Street Art is “Erasing” London
Ever walk down the street wishing you could erase the ugly billboards and other urban detritus? These Photoshop-themed street stickers posted around London may be the closest you’ll ever get. The project is called Street Eraser, and its effect of superimposing the ubiquitous visual tableau of Photoshop’s checkered background onto city surfaces is surreal. Those … Continued
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Tech News13 Hand-Painted Murals Brought to Life as Animated GIFs
Even if you’ve never heard of INSA, you’ve probably seen his work—the British street artist has designed signature collections for everyone from Nike to Kid Robot. But his latest work is a little bit more immortal: INSA’s making GIFs. These aren’t your regular, run-of-the-mill animations. INSA’s actually developed a method whereby he can transform wall-sized … Continued
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Tech News
Tour a Secret Art Show Inside a Condemned NYC Apartment Building
Last week, as New York City suffered through blistering cold temperatures, 43 street artists were secretly painting three entire floors of a soon-to-be-demolished apartment building. We got to visit during an exclusive, two-hour show on Friday night. The show, called Surplus Candy, was the brainchild of street artist Hanksy. I spoke with Hanksy’s manager about … Continued