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Against Streetart: Tale of the Paint Splasher
By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Jan 23, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Jan 23, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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Over the last few months, someone has been splashing paint over major streetart works all over the city. The "Splasher", as he's come to be known, has a taste for targeting major pieces by Swoon, Obey, Momo, and others. His trail of paint-dripped terror extends from Williamsburg, to Soho, and back again-- and he's already obliterated dozens of pieces. Take a look:
Often, in the wake of his attacks, the Splasher also leaves wheat-pasted screeds, attacking the streetartists as tools of capital, calling their work a "fetishized action of banality" and "a representation of the most vulgar kind: an alienated commodity":
Several people who we know in the New York graffiti community urged us not to cover the Splasher at all, saying that it would only encourage him to destroy more work-- but his project does raise some interesting questions that seem worth considering. First, to what extent is his basic premise correct-- are most streetartists spoiled children of the (white) bourgeoisie? Is their work just a leading sign of gentrification? And second, can a project that consists of destroying other people's work itself be considered art? After all, burning down a museum would rightly be called a crime. Is this? Before you answer, maybe it's best to read up on the Splasher-- here are some links from around the web.
FlowerFaceKillah on the Splasher
GowanusLounge on the Splasher, and a followup post
Curbed on the Splasher
Streetsy pix of the splasher
I'm Not Saying on the Splasher, with a gallery of Splasher shots
and a similar project, StreetArtBlows.
Tagged
art
children
crime
gentrification
graffiti
new york
people
photos
soho
streetart
terror
the city
williamsburg
Jacob Dobkin
Jake Dobkin co-founded Gothamist with Jen Chung. In 2019, Jake released Ask a Native New Yorker, a book based on his Gothamist advice column.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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