STREET LIFE 2 Book Launch Party

 

"Street Life 2" is a photography book that captures the culture of graffiti from the perspective of artists from South East London. It is an ode to graffiti lifestyle and a testimony to the endless creativity and independence graffiti lifestyle creates. 

On Thursday, the 28th of November the Street Life 2 book launch party took place at Open 205 Gallery on Deptford High Street. To celebrate, a number of graffiti artist from South East London submitted work on canvas and framed to collectively curate an art exhibition. 

The “Street Life 2” book was placed on a shrine like table is put together to highlight the aspects of Street Life that may not be seen by the everyday person. The tables contents include a broken electronic tag and phone issued by the Home Office, a baseball bat labelled “GEAR HEADZ”, a security camera and a board with “STREET LIFE” written on it. Collectively these items showcase the risks, repercussions and rewards of living the “Street Life”. 

The electronic tag and phone is symbolic of the repercussions of graffiti lifestyle, as people risk their freedom to leave their mark on the world freely. The Home Office monitor use tags to track the whereabouts of prisoners, whilst allowing them to serve their sentence from home.  

The security camera is a reminder that graffiti artists must be mindful of their visibility as their freedom is at risk when they graff. 

The baseball bat is over 10 years old and represents the “Gear Headz”, a group of friends that have embraced graffiti culture, and experienced the highs and lows that may come with it. The “Gear Headz” have maintained their core friendships and allow their community to grow from creative expression and collaboration. 

The exhibition was filled with art from a range of artists, displaying different styles using different mediums from paint to mixed media. 

The “Street Life 2” book is symbolic of how boundless and opportunistic graffiti culture and lifestyle is. From spray painting on walls to publishing a book, graffiti culture involves being free to make your own rules, makes one limitless to exercising their creativity is a range of mediums. Graffiti culture encourages people to be creative and finds way to be seen yet remain unknown as they leave their mark on the world.