Stop 1

Text

Street artists often try to emphasize the illegality of their work – through images or captions that capture the crime of spray-painting public streets. Some artists explicitly refer to themselves as vandals while others allude to the fact that it’s a subversive practice through the symbols in their work – such as surveillance cameras. We begin at this base level where surveillance cameras are seen as a form of regulation of street art. At this level they do not appear as particularly sinister weapons of the government, but rather an attempt to repress the street art practice by enforcing the law in an area that is constantly rebelling against it. This street artist has taken it upon himself to mock the government and send a message that the presence of cameras will not stop the production of illegal art in the area. The sharp lines, and resemblance to a real surveillance camera add irony by contrasting the sign that reads “BILL POSTERS PROSECUTED” – with the assumption that the government is not actually doing anything to stop people posting bills. The small size and simplicity of the image shows confidence in the artist’s ability to send a message with relatively little effort.