First Look: The Bridges of Graffiti Exhibit At The Venice Biennial

For those who know, real appreciates real.  This is why The Bridges of Graffiti — which is on view now in Dorsoduro, Italy as part of the 56th Annual Venice Biennial — may be one of the most important events for graffiti ever. The exhibition inside the Arterminal building quite literally transformed the island of Dorsoduro overnight.

View from the Academia Bridge & Gondolas

Entrance to The Bridges of Graffiti

The transformation would be impossible without the all star graffiti lineup assembled for The Bridges of Graffiti. For those of you who don’t know who Mode2, Zero T, Skii, Jay One and Delta are, you are not alone. The list goes on, Eron, Futura, Doze Green, Todd James and Boris Tellegen, most of these writers have not received the credit they deserve in shaping the graffiti scene on all levels. These artists are responsible for  b-boying, modern graphic design, logos you’ve seen 1,000 times and your favorite punk and hip hop album covers.  A big thanks goes to the curators Fondazione de Mitri and Mode2, who with the consultancy of Andrea Caputo have properly shined the spotlight on the writers who have put in countless hours sculpting their individual voices and influencing the world.

Zero T (Above) & Futura (Below) taking a smoke break before the opening.

Acid and Enamel “You Are What You Write” by Teach (DDS)

Teach

Futura

Reas

Zero T

JayOne

Claudia Rossi work by Mode2

Skii

Eron

Doze Green

With the most influential writers, you’ve also got the most influential photographers, as photography from both Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant is on exhibit side by side the writers they’ve documented.  Without the heavy documentation of the 70s and 80s graffiti scene — which was driven by these two — in all honesty the scene may not exist today.  In a time without cell phone cameras and Youtube, documentation lay in the hands of the writers shooting photos.  Chalfant and Cooper were the ones who equipped writers with the cameras and film needed to document their work and show it to the world. In the late 1970’s and 80’s graffiti was not considered an art in any way.  The film Style Wars and Subway Art changed the game in a major way, a way that is also overlooked by many, but it’s possible all of this could have been much more easily overlooked without the groundwork laid by these writers and photographers.

Henry Chalfant in front of his digital train series.

Photos by Martha Cooper

I have been all around the world for dozens of events similar to The Bridges of Graffiti, but I have never seen a more concise and amazing show. I believe that Europeans always have, and always will, appreciate graffiti and most forms of abstract expression on a much deeper level than most countries, so the attention and detail in this show is unparallelled. Other than 2011’s Art In The Streets exhibition in Los Angeles, I cannot remember such a rewarding exhibition for the artists featured in this scene as what’s been assembled here for The Bridges of Graffiti.

-1xRUN

Words and photos by 1xRUN writer and photographer Mike Popso. Popso has been following this year’s Venice Biennial, you can check out more of 1xRUN’s coverage here. You can also follow him at @mrpopso84.