Barbed Wire
Barbed Wire is one of Roadsworth most famous street artwork. Similar to most of his work, the artist uses an additive technique to something that is already on the street. In this artwork, spray painted barbed wires were added to an already existing pedestrian crossing. There isn’t a lot of details on the barbed wires giving it a 2 dimensional feel. Roadsworth used stencils as a technique for his work. In this technique, the artist needs to draw the outlines of a drawing onto some paper or similar surface. That surface can even be cardboard like since it has to be rigid for the painting part. The outlines are afterwards softly cut out leaving empty spaces between the outlines. At this stage, the surface used for the outlines can be put onto the desired painting surface (i.e. street or wall). The artist can apply spray paint or normal paint directly onto the paper. After all of the cut out spaces have been filled with paint, the paper can be gently removed, leaving the desired traces. Using this technique makes painting faster, reducing the chances of getting caught spray painting on the street. In Roadsworth’s “barbed wire”, spray paint and stencils are the major materials used. The spray paint and the colour used in his work blend very well with the already existing pedestrian crossing. It gives viewers the feel that it was already part of the original crossing. in this work, the artist basically used one stencil and by repitition spray painted it over and over so that it appears as one big barbed wire.
Barbed wires, similar to those used in war, surround the pedestrian crossing. It demonstrates the sort of strict boundaries and repetitive routines that are imposed into our society. Nobody is allowed to go beyond the barbed wire, we need to stay within the walking space allowed. It shows how human creativity and imagination (like those of street artists) is limited by western society rules and laws. It brings in the feeling that we live like robots and that we have already drawn restricted paths to follow in our lives.
Roadsworth is a Canadian street artist name used by Peter Gibson. He was born in Toronto but moved to Montreal in 1992. Originally he was a musician but felt that his career was going to an end. He wanted something more. One day his girlfriend showed him the work of British artist Andy Goldsworthy who creates site-specific installations with natural materials. Peter liked the way Goldsworthy used available materials (i.e. rocks, flowers, etc) that blended perfectly with the natural setting of the work. Gibson wanted to do something similar but in an urban landscape. He began applying bicycle stencils in the streets of Montreal beacause he wanted more bike lanes. In his opinion, public transportation in Montreal wasn’t adequate enough since it supported a culture of over-reliance on the automobile. He liked the repetitive patterns of Goldsworthy’s work, which inspired him to become a street artist. As an street artist he started painting the streets of Montreal in 2001 without permission and was arrested for it in 2004. By then he realised around 300 works of urban art in Montreal and was charged with 51 counts of public mischief which seemed like the end of his street artist career. However Montrealers and admirers of his work around the world showed their support for his work. Since then he became a well-known street artist around the world getting invitations to perform street art in different countries like France, Russia, United Kingdom and many organisations like Cirque de Soleil.
The major themes in Roadsworth’s “Barbed Wire” are definetaly addition, stencil painting, repetition, freedom of expression, and the over-reliance of the automobile.
Reconstruction
In my reconstruction I used a strong watercolor paper in which I drew the outlines of the barbed wire. With an utility knife I cut out the drawn lines leaving empty spaces between the outlines. I first wanted to spray paint my stencil onto asphalt but after a couple of trials the paint wouldn’t stay. Due to the melting snow the asphalt was too wet for spray paint and the paint was going everywhere. So I’ve decided to do it on a concrete floor which I thought was the closest I could get to actually spray painting on the street. Concrete was very similar to asphalt except that it was dry so it made it possible to spray paint my stencil. I first tried to use white but I’ve realised that it did not appear as crisp so I used yellow spray paint. After analysing Roadsworth’s work I’ve decide to explore the theme of addition.
Sources
http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/montreal-street-artist-roadsworth-captured-in-new-documentary-1.757255
Montreal Diary: 'I'm trying to change what I'm known for,' artist Roadsworth says
http://thelinknewspaper.ca/article/street-artist-roadsworth-takes-his-art-indoors
For Roadsworth’s work images: http://www.roadsworth.com
http://www.urbanphoto.net/blog/2012/04/04/roadsworths-legacy/
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