HOPE Outdoor Gallery
HOPE Outdoor Gallery is situated on 11th Street and Baylor Street in the centre of Austin (close to the CBD). HOPE Outdoor Gallery was set up by the charitable organisation HOPE (Helping Other People Everywhere) in 2011, with the “support of the property owner Castle Hill Partners” (HOPE 2014). HOPE’s mission statement is “connecting creatives with causes” (HOPE 2014), giving creatives in Austin the opportunity to beautify “a dynamic yet underutilized space” (HOPE 2014), as well as create an educational art space. The outdoor gallery allows “muralists, graffiti artists and community groups the opportunity to display large scale art pieces” (HOPE 2014) in a legal setting with an educational message. As HOPE Outdoor Gallery attracts a variety of people, the graffiti is diverse, ranging from political to cultural art etc. HOPE Outdoor Gallery is a dynamic environment with the graffiti continually changing.
The graffiti at the outdoor gallery is a microcosm of the plug-and-play community found in Austin. Graffitists in this space can find opportunities to express themselves, build support networks between graffitists e.g. SprATX (HOPE 2014) and keep their individual identity (Florida 2002). As Austin’s plug-and-play community is continually changing (large-scale), with the assimilation of new people into the community, so is the graffiti in HOPE Outdoor Gallery (small-scale). The graffiti is ‘living’ in this gallery, changing every time a new creative turns up; with at least three graffitists there at the time of data collection. According to one graffitist at the gallery, “the space changes daily, with artists trying to work round other peoples’ art”, silently honouring each other’s work. In many of the photos taken at the outdoor gallery, multiple graffiti styles can be seen in one image.
In many cities across the US, an outdoor graffiti gallery would not work, however the creative class “crave stimulation” (Florida 2002) and outdoor spaces (Florida 2002). Often legal walls are found in cities where a high percentage of the population are in the creative class (from traditional creatives to “creative professionals” (Florida 2002)) e.g. Austin. As the creative class “crave stimulation” (Florida 2002), the graffitists at HOPE Outdoor Gallery can push the creative and political limit. Many of the graffiti pieces photographed are extreme in style, stimulating the audience’s minds politically and creatively. The extreme pieces of graffiti in the gallery fit with the city’s slogan “keep Austin weird”, as the graffiti is pushing the limits of the medium of art.
The graffiti at the outdoor gallery is a microcosm of the plug-and-play community found in Austin. Graffitists in this space can find opportunities to express themselves, build support networks between graffitists e.g. SprATX (HOPE 2014) and keep their individual identity (Florida 2002). As Austin’s plug-and-play community is continually changing (large-scale), with the assimilation of new people into the community, so is the graffiti in HOPE Outdoor Gallery (small-scale). The graffiti is ‘living’ in this gallery, changing every time a new creative turns up; with at least three graffitists there at the time of data collection. According to one graffitist at the gallery, “the space changes daily, with artists trying to work round other peoples’ art”, silently honouring each other’s work. In many of the photos taken at the outdoor gallery, multiple graffiti styles can be seen in one image.
In many cities across the US, an outdoor graffiti gallery would not work, however the creative class “crave stimulation” (Florida 2002) and outdoor spaces (Florida 2002). Often legal walls are found in cities where a high percentage of the population are in the creative class (from traditional creatives to “creative professionals” (Florida 2002)) e.g. Austin. As the creative class “crave stimulation” (Florida 2002), the graffitists at HOPE Outdoor Gallery can push the creative and political limit. Many of the graffiti pieces photographed are extreme in style, stimulating the audience’s minds politically and creatively. The extreme pieces of graffiti in the gallery fit with the city’s slogan “keep Austin weird”, as the graffiti is pushing the limits of the medium of art.
Surrounding Area
A few roads away from the outdoor gallery, there is a building covered in graffiti. Unlike the outdoor gallery, the graffiti on this building is illegal as it is a public space. Even though it is illegal to graffiti on public spaces, these spaces often serve “as the canvas and expressive outlet for communicating the messages of street artists and their work” (Gleaton 2012). As this building is a public space anyone can graffiti on it, unlike the outdoor gallery where only certain approved graffitists can utilise the space (Pino 2014).
Graffiti on public spaces (“the streets”) communicate “messages that focus on themes such as anti-war, anti-capitalism” (Gleaton 2012) and anarchism. Graffiti on this building fits with this thought of communication as most of the artwork is either political or religious. However, the graffiti on this building is much more subtle than the graffiti found in the outdoor gallery, as graffitists have less creative time because they are working illegally. As well if the graffiti is subtle it is less likely to be removed from the space, quietly conveying its message to the masses.
The graffiti on this building fits with Austin’s slogan “keep Austin weird”, as Wassenich; the man behind the slogan is anti-capitalism and anti-establishment. Wassenich believes in Austin embracing its funkier roots, and one could say that graffiti on public spaces is Austin’s way of embracing its weirdness.
Graffiti on public spaces (“the streets”) communicate “messages that focus on themes such as anti-war, anti-capitalism” (Gleaton 2012) and anarchism. Graffiti on this building fits with this thought of communication as most of the artwork is either political or religious. However, the graffiti on this building is much more subtle than the graffiti found in the outdoor gallery, as graffitists have less creative time because they are working illegally. As well if the graffiti is subtle it is less likely to be removed from the space, quietly conveying its message to the masses.
The graffiti on this building fits with Austin’s slogan “keep Austin weird”, as Wassenich; the man behind the slogan is anti-capitalism and anti-establishment. Wassenich believes in Austin embracing its funkier roots, and one could say that graffiti on public spaces is Austin’s way of embracing its weirdness.