The Art Battle Continues
So vandals hit us again. More tags. And bleeding cat eyes. (The cat eyes happened while I was working in the shop. I stepped out to grab a coffee, locked the door, and when I turned around the black paint was still leaking down the wall.) So we hit back with more paste-up action – and Illuminati Cat was born! Bam!
While it’s a bit annoying – all this back-and-forth with facelace brats – (jeez, I sound like a crotchety old man) – we’ve quite enjoyed the battle. It’s caused a lot of interest from passers-by on the street, a bit of online buzz, and helped us further define our general Grey Tiger vision. It’s even inspired fresh ideas for decorating our washrooms.
In some way – and this is most interesting – it’s helped to make the artistic part of this whole endeavour come more to the fore. It’s helped to soften the edges of the project – you know, paying bills and all that – and serves as a reminder that art – actually being artistically engaged through the process – is crucial. We’re artists. Which means being aware of and engaged with our surroundings – not just inside our shop, not just with the business, but with the neighbourhood itself – the city and its people, faceless or not – in a very particular way.
On another level it makes me think about – and be more sensitive to – how we are helping to gentrify our neighbourhood – something I once railed against as a younger artist – and how certain people feel feel and react to the changing face of Bloordale. We’re in a position of great responsibility and influence. While we’re doing something good – not just for us but, in the eyes of many of our neighbours, the neighbourhood – we are also helping to usher-in a kind of unwelcomed change for some other neighbours.
That’s some heavy stuff, to say the least. I’m not yet sure how I feel about it.
Funny: the so-called vandals seem to have have done us a favour. They’ve helped to remind us of our position and direction. They’ve inspired a lot of interesting conversation and contemplation. And they’ve inadvertantly become participants in the making of Grey Tiger. …
Anyway, yeah, so that happened. And there’s more to come. More amazing, mysterious, creative activities, thoughts and feelings to report very soon. …
Ryan wrote on Apr 21:
Yes. A very special conversation indeed. A special happening. A lot of our neighbours think it's a fun and healthy response to tagging. And very other day, it seems, from inside we hear people talk about it as they pass by our shop, or we catch people being photographed in front of it.
milena kosec wrote on Apr 18:
I don’t feel this as the art battle but as very special conversation with the neighborhood. Probable it will and as friendship.