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Hope all over the city
04/22/2008 6:42 PM by John M
A nice contrast to reports of the arrest of the recent spray-paint-vandal LAST, this week’s Style Weekly has a piece on the street artist Hope and his art in the “third space”.
Political crackdowns on this kind of thoughtful, random, and visually appealing community participation is just one example of why Richmond continues to drag behind other cities – cities that endorse and support citizen expression. So many creatives want so much more for this place. There could be so, so much more.
This story is just more fodder for our cynical and frustrated artist population to grumble about, in a town that tries extremely hard to think of itself as culturally progressive. So silly, and really too bad. $1.8 million? Good luck! But I would buy a painting to support his penalty fund. For sure.
I have long thought that we should bring this brand of artwork to the toll booths, and other institutionalized eyesores that are necessary to workings of the modern populus. What could possibly be so wrong about embracing and validating local, organic talent?
I find it really hard to understand.
If Hope were to face fines then so should every political candidate and business that posts illegal signs, of which there are many. However, I didn’t gather from the article that anyone was thinking about imposing fines on Hope. Of course, now that it has been brought to everyone’s attention, who knows.
I, for one, enjoy renegade art.
The thing I notice is how the city will crack down on the VCU students who are tagging around town, but they do nothing to the gang and pseudo-gang members who leave their marks around town. And, the writers of the gang-type graffiti are often violent and dangerous offenders that need to be taken off the street. If the vandalism laws apply to the art students, then it should also apply to the gangsters.
I find this particular painting interesting because it is of the late poet and VCU professor Larry Levis. He happened to have died in the North Wing of our house in 1996. Here is a link to the actual photo this was painted from:
http://www2.eugeneweekly.com/2001/04_12_01/graphics/books.jpg
Eric Huffstutler
Read works by Larry Levis in Blackbird, VCU’s online journal of literature and the arts: http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v6n2/poetry/levis_l/index.htm
I think it’s important to note that none of the art Hope puts up damages anything. I doubt the city puts him in the same league as the taggers.
Everytime I see a new sign, it brightens my day. They have very positive messages.
I doubt they will bust him. In fact, maybe they should hire him.