What the hell is this?

This abstract from The Guerilla Art Kit by Keri Smith, is a great way to express the spirit that Anonymous Actions were born into.
Enjoy and get inspired!!


WHAT IS GUERILLA ART?

The stereotype of the guerilla artist is someone who makes extremist work and who is constantly on the run from the law. For the purpose of this book I would like to expand the concept and define guerrilla art as any anonymous work (including but not limited to graffiti, signage, performance, additions, and decoration) installed, performed or attached in public spaces, with the distinct purpose of affecting the world in a creative or thought-provoking way.

What motivates someone to put something out into the world in this way? Why do it?

Early humans were drawn to express themselves by drawing on cave walls, producing the first evidence of guerrilla art. People have always felt the need to share and express themselves in a public way, sometimes by telling a story or posing a question, many times by presenting a political ideology. Throughout history we have seen recurring examples of this in political cartoons, street theatre, graffiti, political posters, crayon drawings on walls, doodles in the margins of textbooks, or writings in the dust on the windshield of a dirty car. A series of drawings was recently discovered in California, carved into a grove of aspen trees. It was determined that they were created by Basque sheepherders during the 1930s who were expressing their loneliness by carving words or images of nude women onto the trees.

In the 1980s many street artists such as Jean-Michel Basquist and Keith Haring entered into mainstream galleries and museums. The essence of their work did not change, only the context in which it was viewed. But did it lose something in the transition? A part of what makes public art interesting is how it interacts with its immediate environment. Picture a sticker with a colorful character posted on a construction wall. The character becomes a part of the landscape; we develop a relationship with him that revolves around our use of the space itself. Some guerrilla artists are motivated by the need to take art out of the galleries and into the hands of people. To relegate art to a gallery makes it available only to certain people, usually those with money. Guerrilla art is for everyone. It engages viewers who might never step foot in a gallery. It is free and accessible.
 
The recent political climate in the U.S. has left many individuals feeling like they have no say, powerless to a system that seems to be dominated by corruption and money. Growing mistrust in corporate media has created a need for alternatives. Consequently, independent media such as weblogs, indie news, public art, and street art have become a rapidly growing trend, a way for people to take power back. Guerrilla art is one way of sharing a political ideology. It is a form of propaganda often utilized by the artist, but open to anyone. Guerrilla art offers an alternative to the glut of corporate imagery we are faced with every day in the form of advertisements urging us to buy stuff. It can usually alter and add to the cultural landscape of an area. Many artists see it not only as a form of personal expression but also as a way of creating community in their neighborhoods.

I do not personally attempt to make work with an overt political message (though sometimes that does occur). Instead I let the medium itself be the political act. For me being a guerrilla artist is a way of bonding with and reclaiming my environment. I become an integral part of public space instead of feeling like a visitor in my own city--walking through it but not affecting it in a literal way. In this way I am also questioning what is acceptable behavior and challenging what I am "allowed" to do within a specific context.

Guerrilla art can be used to beautify or recreate a space that is soulless or without character and bring it new life. Picture a sidewalk cracks on a busy street in the financial district that have been seeded with wildflowers. Or the chain-link fence woven with colorful dried leaves. According to the magazine Adbusters. "Public art says 'the human spirit is alive here'."

Guerrilla art can be anything you want - an idea, an expression, a movement, an experience, an outlet, a way of connecting, a way of documenting, a challenge, a form of play, a statement, a performance, an attitude, a practice, an improvisation, a ritual.