Monthly Archives: December 2019

A Decade Of Political Street Art

The third of our series reflecting on the street art we have enjoyed over the past 10 years looked at the street art that appeared on our streets.

Banksy had a lot to contribute politically over the past decade of course.

Banksy, Brexit, Dover

Much of the art was done without permission though there were the occasional huge campaigning murals.

Dave The Chimp – Education Is Not A Crime

Here is a slide show showing the photos that we pulled out of our archives, the full descriptive text about the political street art is on Graffoto, our other blog

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Street Art, review, 2010s, Graffoto.co.uk, street art tours, tour guide, political street art, Banksy, Cept, EINE, Bambi, subdued, Tom Blackford, CodeFC, Uberfubs, Extinction Rebellion

Banksy – If Graffiti Changed Anything, It Would Be Illegal, London 2011

Part 1 of the Decade 2010 reviews looked at where Street Art was in 2020: here

Part 2 was a look back at spectacular murals: here

All photos: Dave Stuart, principal guide and founder, Shoreditch Street Art Tours

A Decade On – King Robbo

Christmas Day 10 years ago the notorious Robbo vs Banksy spat went to another level. Robbo, RIP, headed out very early Christmas morning, crossed the Regents Canal at Camden directly under British Transport Police HQ and painted the perfect riposte to Banksy’s Wallpaperer.

Banksy, Robbo, feud, Banksy v Robbo, Street art, Graffiti, London, Shoreditch, Camden, Pure Evil Gallery, tour, tour guide

25th December 2019 KING ROBBO!

Early that Christmas morning I noticed a photograph on Flickr of Robbo’s new iteration of this piece posted by Robbo’s WRH crew mate Doze. The genius was immediately apparent from that photo. I whizzed straight down to the canal, took some photos and “Banksy vs Robbo WRH, WD – Checkmate” was posted online before Christmas lunch was served. It remains to this day the most read post on Graffoto.

Before Robbo’s Christmas morning adventure, the art on the wall consisted of a workman by Banksy wallpapering over some graffiti, which was actually over an ancient Robbo piece.

Banksy Wallpaperer, 19th December 2019

For context, Banksy vs Robbo was an intense feud with ancient origins but for roughly a 6 month period it raged spectacularly at several locations along Regents Canal in Camden as each artist attacked the other’s art with a succession of insults.

“It’s tongue in cheek, it’s all a laugh, it’s a giggle” Robbo told Graffoto about 10 months later when we met for a beery one on one unpublished interview in his local near Kings Cross. Robbo also said in reference to the art Banksy was producing at the time “A couple of things I like, the graffiti wallpaper, that was a good piece, so was the global warming, that was a good piece. I appreciate art, I’m an artist. I’m a graffiti artist that’s my main flag but I am an artist”

Robbo exhibition opening night, Pure Evil Gallery, Sep 2010

Robbo mentioned how he didn’t have much to do with social media so his mate put up the photo on Flickr, then early afternoon Robbo received a call to tell him the piece had already been picked up by a blog. Robbo said some kind and appreciative things about the Graffoto coverage so on the 10th anniversary of that event it is a pleasure to remember that exciting piece of art.

Robbo RIP, Tribute by Adnate (Aus) in Shoreditch. Sep 2014

Graffoto Christmas Day 2009: “Banksy v. Robbo – Checkmate”

All photos: Dave Stuart

A Decade Of Murals

Part 2 of Graffoto’s trip down memory lane covers some of its favourite murals of the past decade. (Graffoto is our “other” street art blog started in 2007 way before Shoreditch Street Art Tours)

Street Art, review, 2010, Graffoto.co.uk, street art tours, tour guide, murals

Jim Vision

This is not about a ranking or declaration that these were the top. Nor is it one of those “a collection of other people’s photos” kind of review. It’s just murals that stood out that we enjoyed for real.

D*Face

The context of these murals and their specific historical significance is in the full text on the Graffoto review “2010 A Decade of Murals”.

Street Art, review, 2010, Graffoto.co.uk, street art tours, tour guide, murals, Jo Peel, Borondo, Banksy, Cept,Sweet Toof, Jim Vision, Meeting Of Styles, EINE, Roa, shok 1,

Phlegm

Part 1, “10 years After” kind of looked back at the state of street art at the beginning of the decade and is previewed HERE.

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All photos: Dave Stuart

10 years After

Can you believe the decade is over? Our sister blog Graffoto has been looking at street art for the whole of the decade, looking back fondly over what has amazed us, where and how the art was created and by whom.

Street Art, review, 2010, Graffoto.co.uk, street art tours, tour guide

MIghty Mo, Goldpeg

Its going to be a series of thematic blog posts, looking at say murals, sculpture, non permissioned art… and more. To be honest, until we write it we don’t know what it’s going to cover but it will be great.

Herakut

This isn’t a list of the top 50, or the “best of”, because for starters it is generally based on what we actually experienced but with occasional reference to scene as it developed elsewhere. It starts with a look at street art in Shoreditch at the start of the decade, just so you can see in the subsequent posts who much things have developed since.

Isaac Cordal

The full text supporting each of the images and why they were definitive is including in the Graffoto blog, written by the same author in case you were unsure, here is a slide show of the visuals that defined our landscape back in 2010.

Antony Lister

Remember to follow to pick up the full series and do tell your friends.

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Links:

Graffoto “The Decade Is Dead, Long Live The Decade”

All photos: Dave Stuart

OSCH, Freddie and Michael

Otto Schade has revisited a wall in Shoreditch that he used to paint frequently until abandoning it to paste up street art for a short while. Yesterday afternoon he returned to that spot and painted a new composition featuring Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson reacting to a rat that has appeared on stage.

Otto Schade, Stik, Street Art, Princelet St, Shoreditch, Shoreditch Street Art tours, stencil,

Michael and Freddie, Otto Schade, December 2019

The last time Shoreditch Street Art Tours blog updated on Otto’s street art was February 2015, a look back at what Otto has done on that one spot since then is overdue. In February 2015 our last update ended with Otto creating this piece with the kids turning the tables on the kid’s entertainer:

That piece endured pretty well though by March 2017 it had suffered a few indignities.

Otto & Stik, March 2017

Otto swiftly addressed that mess with greedy or desperate hands grasping at money distributed by a scarecrow.

“The Believers”, Otto Schade, March 2017

That didn’t last too long, replaced by “David vs Goliath” in June 2017

Street art, Shoreditch, London, stencil, paste up, spraypaint, Otto Schade

Otto Schade “David vs Goliath”

That was taken out in August 2018 by someone holding a grudge against Otto, so Otto painted “Flies around shit” about giving vast military power to mindless idiots who might use it with reckless abandon.

“Flies Around Shit”, August 2017

The next update in March 2018 reflected on the impact of technology in turning citizens into passive voyeurs.

“Jack The Ripper 2040”, March 2018

Then in October 2018 Otto somehow anticipated the impact drones would have on London airports in December 2018 when they caused the closure of Gatwick for 3 days resulting in the cancellation of hundreds of flights.

“AI”, October 2018

This lasted pretty much until May 2019 when a large throwie (tag) went over it followed by multiple paste ups, in this image most notably Laup Nosnibor.

May 2019, feat Laup Nobnibor et al

All traces of Otto’s art had disappeared as evidenced fortuitously in this photo I took yesterday to capture the art adjacent to that spot

Wild street art,assorted artists and quality

It was a little puzzle that after such prolonged use of he same spot with some many changes that Otto appeared to allow it to drift for over half a year but now normal service has been resumed.

Michael and Freddie, Otto Schade, December 2019

LINKS:

Otto Schade Instagram

All photos: Dave Stuart

Previous Otto post: “Otto Schade Busy In Shoreditch”