While street art is too often used as an avenue to gentrify neighborhoods, it can also serve – as depicted in Spencer Wilkinson’s award-winning documentary film ALICE STREET– as a tool to empower, energize and unite members of diverse communities in their struggle against gentrification.
In 2013, Chilean studio painter Pancho Peskador joined forced with Chicago-born aerosol artist Desi Mundo to create a four-story mural at 14th Street and Alice Street in downtown Oakland. Painted directly across from Hotel Oakland Village, a facility that provides affordable housing and services to hundreds of Chinese seniors, and the noted Malonga Center, a venue for African drumming, culture and dance performances, the mural — designed with direct input from the folks served by the neighboring sites — represented downtown Oakland’s diverse cultures.
But by then gentrification had aggressively reared its ugly head. Local folks were concerned about being economically and culturally displaced as rents feverishly increased, along with condominiums to house the wealthy. And soon after the hugely impressive mural was completed, the news came that another development would be under way that would block the its view.
ALICE STREET brilliantly documents the people’s fervent and largely successful struggle against unbridled corporate greed, as they fight to preserve their culture and their neighborhood. It is an ode to the power of public art to not only enhance but to transform our lives.
This weekend ALICE STREET will be in NYC with the Architecture & Design Film Festival for two special screenings at Cinépolis Cinemas to be followed by discussions.
Photos courtesy of ALICE STREET
by lois via Street Art NYC
In 2022 the "
https://ift.tt/Td257ey The Gouzous have appeared in Europe, Asia, Africa and America. What was the first trip you made? What do you remember about taking the character out of his usual territory? The first trip was to Prague on New Year's Day in 1994. It was -15º C. I was wearing sneakers in the snow. I had stolen some street posters and the locals were yelling “Hooligan!” at me :-)). Traveling allows you to find new sources of inspiration, find exotic and original media, meet other artists, other cultures. In short, nurturing you spiritually and culturally.
Your characters are special because they give a new meaning to the spaces that they appear in. How do you come up with your ideas? I try to analyze the places where I want to paint, understanding the wall not as a blank page but as a page that already has information that I will add my humble touch of a decorative element - or not. What role do the environment, your imagination and circumstances play? I draw in sketchbooks ahead of time with ideas that are just waiting for context, or sometimes context spontaneously triggers an idea. There are no set rules!
Of all the trips you've taken with Gouzou, which was the most memorable? There are rather two that immediately come to mind: Madagascar, because of the life lessons we learnt there on a daily basis and no-one returned unscathed. Also, of course, Chernobyl, because it was a true trip back in time, a trip I had been fantasizing about for more than fifteen years. The organization was complex and the emotions that you feel in the place are incomparable. What’s it like to travel with the Gouzou? He’s a very nice companion, he’s quite discreet and points with his nose when I ask him to. In any case, it is a good excuse to get together and share experiences! The advantage is that we don’t need a lot of time to make it happen.
Your work must appeal to all kinds of audiences. What reaction to your work has caught your attention the most? There are quite a few unusual anecdotes. As for surprising reactions: an entire wall was taken down and included in the new building that was created in place of an old one. And hundreds of people tattooed with the image of Gouzou! How does it feel to do your second limited edition? Did you want to communicate something specific with the design? It’s always an honor to collaborate with the aerosol brand that accompanies me almost daily in my paintings. This design was created in a bit of a hurry, there isn't really a deep message. It features a multitude of Gouzous, squashed in the can, that appear to be compressed by springs inside that extract the juices that give this specific color to the Gouzou! This new Jace MTN Limited Edition is now available at your nearest 
