Stencil graffiti is a form of

graffiti Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...

that makes use of

stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...

s made out of paper, cardboard, or other media to create an image or text that is easily reproducible. The desired design is cut out of the selected medium and then the image is transferred to a surface through the use of

spray paint Spray paint (formally aerosol paint) is paint that comes in a sealed, pressurized can and is released in an aerosol spray when a valve button is depressed. The propellant is what the container of pressurized gas is called. When the pressure hol ...

or roll-on paint. The process of stencilling involves applying paint across a

to form an image on a surface below. Sometimes multiple layers of stencils are used on the same image to add

color Color (or colour in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though co ...

s or create the illusion of depth. Stencils can be done quickly. Together with being cheap and easily repeatable, the short amount of time required to paint a single stencil illegally onto a wall is a key characteristic that makes stenciling attractive.

History

Stencil graffiti as an art form began in the 1960s. Today it is usually a part of

Street Art Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art. Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant gr ...

, in style writing

stencils are not used much or their use is often disguised or not valued. French artist Ernest Pignon-Ernest stencilled life-size silhouettes of a nuclear bomb victim in the south of France in 1966 (Plateau d'Albion, Vaucluse) with paint and a brush. Conceptual artists and other artists worked illegally with street stencils in public space since the late 1960s, among them Canadian artist group General Idea in 1969, Chaz Bojorguez in Los Angeles, who started in the same year, Polish conceptual artist Jerzy Trelinski in 1975, New York environmental conceptual artist John Fekner in 1976 or Moscow conceptualist duo SZ group in 1980. Alex Vallauri began with stencil graffiti in his home town Sao Paulo in 1978 and was the first to start a larger stencil graffiti movement there. Vallauri's (anonymous) stencils were published in France since 1982 and had a larger impact on the New Yorker and later Polish stencil graffiti movements around

David Wojnarowicz David Michael Wojnarowicz ( ; September 14, 1954 – July 22, 1992) was an American painter, photographer, writer, filmmaker, performance artist, songwriter/recording artist, and HIV/AIDS activism, AIDS activist prominent in the East Village, Ma ...

and Thomaz Sikorski. Dutch artist Hugo Kaagman is one of the key figures of the Amsterdam punk movement. While studying social geography at the city’s municipal university, he became interested in art movements like

Dada Dada () or Dadaism was an anti-establishment art movement that developed in 1915 in the context of the Great War and the earlier anti-art movement. Early centers for dadaism included Zürich and Berlin. Within a few years, the movement had s ...

and

Fluxus Fluxus was an international, interdisciplinary community of artists, composers, designers, and poets during the 1960s and 1970s who engaged in experimental performance art, art performances which emphasized the artistic process over the finishe ...

. He started stencil graffiti in 1978 as part of the punk movement to demonstrate against the Dutch government. Blek le Rat claims his first spray painted stencils appeared in Paris in 1981. This early start is apparently based only on his own statements; verifiable press reports on Blek do not appear until July 1984. Blek stated he was influenced by the graffiti artists of New York City but wanted to create something of his own. Australian photographer Rennie Ellis documented some of the earliest examples of stencil art to appear in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

in his 1985 book ''The All New Australian Graffiti''. In the introduction to the book, Ellis noted that US photographer Charles Gatewood had written to him and sent him photographs of similar stencil graffiti that had recently appeared in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, leading Ellis to speculate that:

... unlike our subway-style graffiti, which is nothing more than a copy of a well-established New York tradition, the symbols of Australia and America had originated separately and unknown to each other.Ellis, Rennie; ''The All New Australian Graffiti'', Sun Books (Macmillan), Melbourne, 1985 ()

Over the years this form of graffiti has become a worldwide subculture. The members are linked through the Internet and the images spray-painted on the urban canvas they place throughout the world. Many of its members connect through blogs and websites that are specifically built to display works, get feedback on posted works, and receive news of what is going on in the world of stencil graffiti. Stencil graffiti is illegal in some jurisdictions, and many of the members of this subculture shroud their identities in aliases.

Above Above may refer to: *Above (artist) Tavar Zawacki (b. 1981, California) is a Polish, Portuguese - American abstract artist and internationally recognized visual artist based in Berlin, Germany. From 1996 to 2016, he created work under the ...

/ Tavar Zawacki,

Banksy Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist, and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive ep ...

, Blek le Rat, Vhils,

Shepard Fairey Frank Shepard Fairey (born February 15, 1970) is an American contemporary artist, activist and founder of OBEY Clothing who emerged from the skateboarding scene. In 1989, he designed the " Andre the Giant Has a Posse" (...OBEY...) sticker campa ...

and

Jef Aérosol Jef Aérosol is the pseudonym of Jean-François Perroy (born 1957),Bio (in French)
Jefaerosol.com. Retrieved 2023- ...

are some names that are synonymous with this subculture.

Notes

* C215:"''Stencil History X''". C215, 2007. * Louis Bou: "''Street Art''". Instituto Monsa de ediciones, S.A., 2005.

* BTOY: "''BTOY:DY:002''". Belio Magazine, S.L, 2007. * Jinman, Richard
"Street art moves to a posh new hang-out"

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...

, Sydney, Australia, April 9, 2007. * Norman, James
"Graffiti goes upmarket"

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

, Melbourne, Australia, August 16, 2003. * Reiss, Jon, windle Magazine: Issue 11May 3, 2008 * Bello, Manuel, Shepard Fairey Interview."Interview with Fecal Face14 Aug.2007. * Bello, Manuel Blek Le Rat Interview" with Fecal Face

* Rogers, Michelle
"Jef Aerosol"

Gadabout Paris Gadabout may refer to: Persons * Gadabout Gaddis, ''Roscoe Vernon Gaddis'', 20th-century American fisherman and television pioneer Vehicles * Gadabout (1914-1916 automobile), American automobile manufactured in Newark, New Jersey and later in Det ...

, Paris, France, 2008. * Hugo Kaagman: "Stencil King", 2009
ISBN 9789048802753
C215 Community Service, Criteres ed. 2011

References

{{Street Art Graffiti and unauthorised signage Graffiti in Australia

History

See also

Further reading

Notes

References