We all know Banksy, and D*face, and maybe you've even seen "Exit Through The Gift Shop", but as a whole, when you think of street art, Ireland isn't the first thing that springs to mind. I know I posted about anewspace before on here and I recently noticed that it's one of my more popular posts so I thought I'd do a follow-up on my favourite Irish street artist at the moment. Now, first thing's first, I am no expert in this area and most of my interest stems from that of my brother who has been obsessed with the genre for years. I always remember "Wall and Piece" lying about the house when I was younger. Rookie though I may be, I came across Canvaz just before Christmas while in anewspace with my brother and my mum. To be honest, before then, I hadn't really known much about Irish street art or even thought there existed the culture even. Canvaz's work caught my eye instantly though and I ended up leaving the shop with a spray paint mixed media piece of a ballerina being lifted by a balloon (see above); hopefully the first of what will one day be a collection. What interested me most about Canvas's work was his subject matter, two subjects in particular; the ballerina and Alice (in wonderland); the former which has relevance to my life, the latter being an all-time favourite of my mum. This got me thinking to how street art has developed and progressed since the days of simple "graffiti" on the sides of trains and shop front shutters in Paris. There we were, an Irish mother and daughter, interested in and paying for what is essentially graffiti, albeit framed graffiti I suppose, but graffiti nonetheless. Street art is now an expectable norm to be hanging alongside oil paintings and water colours and original Banksys are worth extortionate amounts of money these days.
So what does this say about the world of art in the 21st century? Are these street artists the Renoirs and the Pollocks of our time? To me, this expectance of street art as a true art form is certainly a step in the right direction as far as advancing our outlook on what makes art and broadening our horizons is concerned. Plus, it's a great feeling when you walk down the street and see a piece of art you own strewn across a wall opposite George's Street Arcade.....but hey, maybe that's just me.
Check out Canvaz's flickr here
