Art in the Streets was the first extensive survey of the history of graffiti and street art to be presented in an American museum. The exhibition traced the trajectory of street art from TAKI 183 and his Greek American friends in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York to contemporary innovators like Barry McGee, Banksy, and Swoon who have helped to inspire a new global audience. Art in the Streets included works by over one hundred artists from more than twenty cities. The exhibition took place at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles from April 17 to August 8, 2011. It attracted the highest attendance in the museum’s history.
A historical timeline documented the most important developments in street art from the early 1970s to the present. The show focused on major innovations such as the invention of Wild Style in New York, Chaz Bojorquez and Cholo graffiti in East Los Angeles, and the heritage of Jamie Reid’s punk graphics in London. Several key venues in the history of street art were recreated, including the seminal Fun Gallery and Rammellzee’s entire studio, with his letter racers suspended from the ceiling. An entire wing of the museum was devoted to a new version of the celebrated Street Market, created by Barry McGee, Stephen Powers, and Todd James. A gallery memorialized the work of Dash Snow surrounded by works by his IRAK crew.
The show featured ambitious installations by artists including Os Gemeos, Banksy, Shepard Fairey, RETNA, and Swoon and an immense outdoor mural orchestrated by Lee Quiñones. Los Angeles legend Mister Cartoon created an installation around his famous ice cream truck, which he spent years customizing and painting. There was an extensive section on the art that emerged from the Los Angeles surf and skate subcultures, featuring films by Spike Jonze, conceptual posters by Craig R. Stecyk III, and an enormous photo collage by Ed Templeton. Neckface created a frightening trash-strewn and graffiti-scarred alley where he lay in the gutter dressed as a bum, sometimes terrifying unsuspecting visitors. Cars customized and painted by Kenny Scharf and Keith Haring greeted visitors at the entrance.
Artists from around the world were invited to create works for the show including Stelios Faitakis from Athens, Miss Van from Barcelona, Mode 2 from Mauritius, ROA from Ghent, and JR from Paris. A large section was devoted to Los Angeles artists including Revok, Risk, and Saber.
There were galleries devoted to artist/photographers Gusmano Cesaretti, Martha Cooper, Henry Chalfant, Estevan Oriol, KR (Craig Costello), Terry Richardson, and Teen Witch, and filmmakers Bill Daniel and Charlie Ahearn. A sculptural skate deck, designed by Geoff McFetridge and Lance Mountain, was activated by teams of professional skateboarders. A film workshop provided facilities to make street art films and presented regular screenings.
A special arrangement was made for Banksy and his crew to work late at night with the security cameras shut off after all the other artists had left. He created a show within the show in addition to an outdoor steamroller installation. Banksy had agreed to participate in the show on two conditions: one, that there be at least one day a week of free admission, and two, that photography would be permitted. The museum administration initially said no to both requests, being reluctant to forgo the admissions revenue and wary of the legal complications of allowing open photography. In 2011, almost all museums still prohibited photography. In response, Banksy immediately sent the museum a contribution to cover the estimated lost revenue on the free day. Solving the photography challenge was more difficult. Letters had to be written to the copyright owner of every artwork in the show. All but one of the three hundred fifty rights holders and owners sent back written permission allowing the works to be photographed. The results were astonishing. By the end of the exhibition, 8,500 people were lining up to visit the exhibition on the free Mondays. Photography in the exhibition became a phenomenon with thousands of images posted online, taking the impact of the exhibition to a different dimension.
In conjunction with the show, large mural paintings were commissioned for the facades of the West Hollywood Public Library parking garage by Shepard Fairey, RETNA, and Kenny Scharf.
