Love Art London

Despite the fact that Boris Johnson has armed swat teams dedicated to graffiti removal, street art belongs to a rich and important tradition. Ever since Neanderthal Man first started drawing on the wall of his cave artists have been using their immediate physical surroundings as a blank canvas upon which to communicate images and ideas. And let’s be clear, we ain’t talking about kids who scribble “Wayne LUVS Tracey 4 EVER” on the side of a bus stop in return for a Big Mac. No, we’re talking about artists who make beautiful, vibrant and distinctive work using the urban landscape as their studio. So tell that to your Grandma next time she whinges about the yoof of today.

The history of graffiti as we recognise it now is partly rooted in political protest which is one of the reasons street artists are considered renegades who exist outside the mainstream. Oh, and the fact that it’s illegal. Dodging the Feds is simply an occupational hazard and part of the thrill in making the work. And like all things with an underground vibe, at some stage the mainstream wants a piece of it. Banksys are now auctioned at Sotheby’s and Christie’s alongside Monets and Picassos. David Cameron even gave Barack Obama a work by graffiti supremo Ben Eine as a gift on his first official visit to Washington. Boris must have been thrilled. So we thought we’d team up with graffiti connoisseur extraordinare Sam Rhodes of artrepublic for an eye-popping walking tour of London's east end hotspots. Five  stars. Five massive stars.

This event is for Members Only (20 places)

http://www.artrepublic.com/
http://www.einesigns.co.uk/