Do you know your Banksy from your Ben Eine? Get a quick street artist 101 here and feel a little more informed and a lot more ‘street’. Just don’t do any ‘yoof’ hand gestures, ok?
With Banksys selling for thousands and colourful murals cheering our town and city walls more than ever, there’s never been a better time to start becoming a bit more aware of what you’re looking at on your local walls and pavements. Street artists all over the country are using the great outdoors to bring joy, make statements and just make us stop and stare. Next time you’re thinking ‘that’s clever, I wonder who did that…’ you might find the answer here.
Banksy
The daddy of street art currently. Banksy’s art tends not to be fabulously beautiful but more political with a dose of humour.
Look for: His trademark black and white stencil style with spots of colour.
Find it in: Very public places (he doesn’t do railways sidings or out-of-the-way spots). He also always asks permission so if you want to know if it’s a Banksy, knock on the door of the building and ask!
Do say: “I think you’ll find latest belief is that Banksy is not in fact Robert del Naja of the band Massive Attack, but a whole art collective.”
Don’t say: “I can’t believe he shredded that lovely picture. What a waste!”
Cornbread
Lesser known as Darryl McCray, this Philadelphia artist is considered to be the first modern graffiti writer. In that sense he’s really a tagger rather than an artist.
Look for: His famous ‘Cornbread’ tag. It’s very simple and he’s all about the tag rather than visuals.
Find it in: Philadelphia, naturally. Often on road signs.
Do say: “Did you know Cornbread got his nickname in juvenile detention centre?”
Don’t say: “But it’s just his NAME! Where’s the art?”
Keith Haring
You’ll know Keith Haring even if you think you don’t; he’s the pop artist with the colourful faceless figures. Once part of the NYC subculture, now his art is all over galleries and calendars for us all to enjoy.
Look for: His famous ‘continuous line’ - he was able to paint a whole picture without using several ‘strokes’ like most graffiti artists. If the piece is signed by him (and they often aren’t) the signature will be subtle and hard to spot.
Find it in: New York City where there are still five murals. Or in galleries around the world. There was an exhibition at Tate Liverpool in 2019 so keep your eyes peeled for more.
Do say: “You can really see Haring’s fascination with semiotics coming through in the text-like shape of his art, can’t you?”
Don’t say: “Did he forget to draw the faces on those guys?”
Annatomix
Birmingham street artist Annatomix is known for her geometric murals of birds and wildlife - as well as some humans, including a mural of David Bowie.
Look for: Colourful, geometric animals - often mistaken for being origami. “ I can understand why people may see a relation to origami in my work, but my influence actually comes from geometry, low poly modelling, crystalline structures and architecture,” she says.
Find it in: Birmingham and other places. Don’t miss the amazing birds mural in Wandsworth, south London.
Do say: “It’s fascinating the way her style clearly nods to our future with nature - more robotic and less organic in many ways…”
Don’t say: “Ooh! Can you do a swan out of a napkin?”
Ben Eine
Londoner, Ben Eine is known for his colourful, often circus style, typographic art. One of his most famous pieces to date is his mural on the side of Shoreditch’s Village Underground, a tribute to the victims of the Grenfell Tower disaster that reads: “You saw it in the tears of those who survived.”
Look for: Huge, brightly coloured letters.
Find it in: London - all over but particularly East London, though he’s now so famous he has his own shop where you can purchase your own Ben Eine in the form of a face mask if you wish.
Do say: “The words represent so much more than the mere letters they are made up of…”
Don’t say: “Well that’s confusing. It clearly says ‘Social Club’ here in large letters but in fact it’s just a garage. Am I in the wrong place?”
If you’re inspired to see more beautiful things on the streets near you, don’t miss our feature Art in the Wild, starting on page 64 of our February issue. Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe
