The stenciled image of the squatting man holding a sign that reads: “Keep your coins, I WANT CHANGE,” speaks directly to the surge in street art across the globe. In a time when large institutions get larger and often hem in the ability for individuals to get their voices heard, the streets serve as canvases that anyone with some paint and a message can access. The advantage of stencil graffiti over freehand graffiti is the ability to conceive, design and cut stencils in private and in public quickly, concisely, and in many instances, covertly apply the stencil to any flat surface.
Melbourne, Australia, is a hotbed of stencil graffiti and in Stencil Graffiti Capital: Melbourne, two of the major players in the city’s vibrant scene provide a lavish visual tour of the alleyways, buildings and sidewalks across which an artistic movement spreads. More than just a catalog of Melbourne’s best stencils, however, the authors use their street artist status to interview important figures in the scene, many of whom prefer to work behind veils of secrecy, about their inspiration, motivation and techniques.
Extensive in terms of subject matter, the stencils in this book deftly demonstrate the artists’ ability to convey any range of emotion or message. From witty turns of phrase, to intricately patterned logos, to alluring vixens, to political messages, to the down-right absurd, Stencil Graffiti Capital: Melbourne documents the free-for-all of expression that runs rampant through the city and makes apparent why the movement has garnered attention not only from other Australians but from street artists and popular culture enthusiasts all over the world.
Melbourne’s Jake Smallman has worked as a graphic designer in the United Kingdom and Australia. His involvement and commitment to stencil graffiti has earned him media attention and garnered him gallery shows and commissions all over Australia and in the United States.
Carl Nyman lives in Sweden where he works as a graphic artist. His art has been featured in gallery shows in Australia, Europe, Canada and the United States.
Bibliographic Information
Stencil Graffiti Capital: Melbourne
By Jake Smallman and Carl Nyman
160 pages, extensively illustrated in color
Casebound
8 1/4 x 10 inches
ISBN 0-9762245-3-4
Price: $27.95
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Dedicated to making distinctive books on the visual art of communicating, Mark Batty Publisher books focus on graphic design, typography, book arts and popular culture. Uniquely designed, often extensively illustrated, each book is produced to the highest standard. From the definitive edition of a wood engraver’s lifework to a history of advertising methods used by prostitutes in London, our
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This article was last modified on January 7, 2023
This article was first published on August 15, 2005
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