Atlanta has this thing called “Living Walls”, which the NYT describes as “an annual gathering of street artists from around the world who paint on walls and buildings”.
Some of these paintings are in “blighted” areas; the theory seems to be that these paintings will make things look a little nicer.
But it has also prompted an outcry. Some residents have raised concerns that too much of Atlanta has become a canvas, and some find the works disturbing or offensive.
The punchline?
One mural depicting a nude woman was taken down in September after residents called it pornographic. On Tuesday, Georgia Department of Transportation workers painted over another mural — of an alligator-headed man with a serpentine tail — that neighbors said confused them and was possibly demonic.
But this had nothing to do with “artistic value”, according to the DoT: rather, they claim that the artist didn’t have the proper permits for public art. (Other “Living Walls” paintings are on private property; the NYT doesn’t make this clear, but it looks like the alligator mural was painted along the side of a road.)
And:
The mural of the woman was done by an Argentine painter, Hyuro, and the alligator painting was by a French painter, Pierre Roti. Mr. Roti, who traveled to Atlanta on his own budget and spent 11 days on the mural, said he found the reaction confusing. He intended the mural as an allegory about the brutality of capitalism, not a statement on religion or demons.
“an allegory about the brutality of capitalism”. By the way, “Living Walls” sponsors include “a prominent law firm, the Museum of Design Atlanta and the W Hotel”.
This entry was posted on Friday, December 14th, 2012 at 8:22 am and is filed under Art, Clippings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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