I’m sure that wasn’t there yesterday

By Julian Broadhead

It’s fair to say that the success of Banksy, amongst other things, has thankfully led to a far more public debate over the merits of what is broadly known as ‘street art’. However, for many, what this conjures up is still only images of tagging and graffiti in their traditional forms. Street art today, is so much more and if there is one source to demonstrate this, then it is the Wooster Collective (www.woostercollective.com).

Founded in 2001 by Marc and Sara Schiller, the Wooster Collective started out as their attempt to showcase the art they appreciated and enjoyed in their local New York neighbourhood. Over the following 8 years, it has exploded into something far bigger; a showcase, rallying point and source of inspiration for street artists and followers the world over – one that invites city dwellers to join in by posting their neighbourhood finds on the site. A glance at the website today, has you looking at amazing pieces of work from places as diverse as L.A., Krakow and Montevideo, giving a truly global perspective.

Yet why should we be interested in a topic that is so often divisive? Well, for us at VivaCity, street art of the quality that the Wooster Collective champions has a number of redeeming features, which will become even more pertinent as our urban centres continue to grow. First and foremost, it can look great, enriching both its surroundings and the lives of the people who live there. Secondly, as our traditional art institutions come under increasing pressure from a variety of sources, street art remains fundamentally accessible to everyone. And finally, as is well demonstrated by a great deal of Banksy’s work, the medium is an important channel for political and social commentary.

But this is obviously just our point of view. If you have strong feelings on either side of the argument, we would love to hear from you.
 

why vivacity

This is the century of the city.

Over half the world’s population now live in cities. This is projected to rise to three-quarters of all people in 2050. With population increases, this means 6.75 billion of us will be city dwellers, an increase of 3.75 billion from today. As the future success or failure of mankind lies in cities, new ways of using them are needed.

The city represents an incredible paradox. We have never been closer together physically, but we have never been further away from each other emotionally. At vivacity we celebrate city movements around the world that change and re-define the way we interact with and use cities. Whilst cities cannot cope with the numbers now and the resultant strain on the world’s natural resources and eco-systems are already painfully evident, we believe that human spirit and endeavor will overcome, as it has done before.

vivacity promotes city movements that are connecting people & creating new types of communities. They are typically low impact, highly sociable, enabled by technology, using public and private spaces in new ways and empowering people to act locally.

vivacity promotes new ways of feeling alive, new ways of being invigorated, and new things to be a part of. We call it grassroots stuff in the city. We hope you get involved and share your experiences with us.

who we are

Andy Marks vivacity founder and editor

Social entrepreneur, lecturer, writer and curator, Andy Marks is an agent of positive social change practicing at the intersection or fault-line of business, society and culture. Andy is the founder of research and consultancy network Salad Worldwide, an advisor to some of the world’s leading companies on Corporate Responsibility and an advisor to a number of non-profit organizations. Andy is an expert on grass roots city movements, and a founding partner of an upcycling enterprise launching in 2010.

Julian Broadhead contributor

With a background in advertising, branding and corporate responsibility, Julian works with blue-chip companies from a wide range of industries and sectors, advising on strategy and new ways of connecting with people. He is currently developing a number of new opportunities in the environmental sector, with a particular emphasis on making environmental action more accessible.

Shane Solanki – contributor/distributor/carburettor/carbon-ara

Artist, writer, performer, producer and director, Shane’s first short film was commissioned by the BBC and directed by Peter Cattaneo. His first record was produced by Mercury Prize Winner Talvin Singh. He worked for years to forge the unique identity of independent record label Ninja Tune. We at Vivacity like to think of him as a grass roots detective, covertly operating under the pseudonym of the Last Mango in Paris; imagine him skulking around the world in a beige macintosh, recording and documenting our shift into a society where social responsibility and public creativity are norms.

contribute

become a vivacity scout

As more and more of us live in urban areas, individuals and communities can feel overwhelmed and isolated by the sheer intense-city of it all.

However we at vivacity believe that human spirit and endeavor will overcome as it has done so many times before. That is why we are celebrating movements around the world that are changing and re-defining the way we interact with the city. We would like to hear from you about grassroots movements or activities that bring people together face to face and use cities in new ways. The more original and imaginative the better.

Please email us describing a movement you would like to see on vivacity using a maximum of 300 words. info@vivacity.me