For some it is a mess, vandalism in the urban space, soiling of bridges, underpasses, walls or trains, for some it is the biggest art movement of world history. We are talking about Graffiti, Street Art or Urban Art, the contemporary generic term for these art forms. The genre polarizes people. Yet it reached worldwide recognition, not least thanks to artists such as Keith Haring, Blek le Rat or Banksy. Today it is established on the international art market, Graffiti and Street Art is hip. The recent revolts in Egypt and the Ukraine demonstrated that Street Art in particular plays a big role as a tool for protest and freedom of speech.

AB Gallery dedicates the upcoming exhibition titled Graffiti is ART? to the phenomenon of urban art movements. We show works by four international artists, including murals by the established Street Artist Ammar Abo Bakr from Egypt, photographies from the “Chernogirls NYC”-series by German- American photo artist Marc Erwin Babey as well as imaginary graffiti by the Afghan artist Shamsia Hassani. In this exhibition we want to draw attention to the diversity of these art forms: Graffiti does not equal Street Art. Graffiti has its roots in writing or spraying names, the term is etymologically derived from Greek (graphein means to write), whereas Street Art focuses mainly on the motif and interaction with people. Today the stylistic elements of both movements often merge, making it impossible to clearly separate the two. In the exhibition the visitors have the opportunity to get an idea of the different styles.

-AB Gallery

Image: © Ammar Abo Bakr
Courtesy of the artist and AB Gallery