MoMa Summer Programs Bring Kids To The Sreets

Today I was coming back from the photo store when I turned down 9th avenue from 18th street headed north. I then came upon a construction shed being plastered with art by what looked like a roaming horde of young adults let loose on the city. They were aggressively posting their images over illegal NPA Outdoor advertising content. I immediately stopped to ask what was going on and was quickly told they were a part of a MoMA summer program that teaches young adults about the art world. This specific class was a response to a trip to a recent rock and roll exhibition that pays homage to New York's influential rock and roll culture. Punk rock, being a large part of NYC music history, has a rich DIY poster history itself. Many of the bands used public posting as a cheap media outlet when others were unavailable.

The students were practicing this process for themselves out in the open, in broad daylight. Not only this, but they were having what looked like a fantastic time, getting on each others' shoulders to reach the higher spots and generally enjoying creating their own public content. I asked them if they knew that the advertising they were pasting over was illegal, which they seemed unphased by, yet oddly aware of. Getting rid of advertising content using artwork, or publicly created content, suddenly seemed very natural.

I ran home to get my camera to take the group portrait you see above. Thanks to the two wonderful teachers for bringing their students into the rich world of public art and public interaction. Bravo!