September 2009: "Hope and Resurrection" in Rome

Omino71 and his crew rock my socks. From their Stick My World events (where you can find some Illicit Exhibitions stickers) to their awesome blog interviews, those Italians know what's up. Their latest project let them collaborate with artists in different mediums to create a quasi-social experiment. Omino writes:

"What is the power of an image? How does it effect/move/transform a place or a person? And what happens when people of different backgrounds come together to push an image out into the world? The photography project 'Hope and Resurrection' was brought about through the collaboration of American photographer and art historian Jessica Stewart and Roman street artists Mr. Klevra and Omino71. A singular image of the Madonna and Child, something so icon yet often overlooked in our modern times, carries forward the sentence 'Only After Disaster Can We Resurrect.'Plastered across Rome as stickers and posters, whether placed on electrical boxes and decaying walls or hung from clotheslines, this undeniable image was diffused through the city. How would people react? Would they break from their daily urban routine to stop, slow down, and observe the power of this image? Would people be able to recognize the artistry of the pieces instead of dismissing them as vandalism? How would each artist bring their style to this collaborative effort? By juxtaposing their collaborative pieces with their own individual works, Omino71 and Mr. Klevra allow the pubic to judge this for themselves."

"The images exhibited have developed over the span over several months. First, we captured the small-scale stickers that dotted Rome, with the iconic image of a child reaching out to touch the artwork as a focal point, and then moved toward an installation of posters on the public clotheslines of the Roman neighborhood Garbatella. Jessica shot the majority of the photography in a one-day whirlwind of activity across the city the evening after a pasting session by Mr. Klevra and Omino71. She set out to tell the story not only of each individual location, with its specific characteristics and contexts, but to also capture details which force the viewer to 'observe' the pieces in a specific way, thus recalling the details one finds in art historical texts. The idea being to take the imagery put into the world by these artists and not simply report it, but also transform it into a powerful message of hope as seen through the eyes of the photographer."
"Jessica Stewart is a Rome-based photographer and art historian. She relocated to Italy in 2005 to be surrounded by the Renaissance and Baroque art for which she is passionate. Her love of photography was developed during coursework at Boston University and honed through her blog—RomePhotoBlog, where she regularly posts images exploring contemporary living in Rome. Her keen sense of observation, honed through years of studying the compositions of the Old Masters, is also informed by her time living as a foreigner in Italy. Through lighting and angles she seeks to find the beauty in everyday urban life and to breath new life into already iconic spaces."
"Omino71 is an anonymous Italian artist… or maybe he’s just a poscapen fan. He works with poscapens, mosaics, acrylic paintings, photography, spraycans, posters, stickers, stencils, and flyers. He plays with Rubik's cubes, postpunk, arcade games, scooters, skateboards, comics, sneakers, b-movies, and pop art."
"The pseudonym Mr. Klevra is derived from the Hebrew translation for rabid dog, is fitting considering that a bull terrier, with its oblong shaped head, is one ofthe recurring figures in his detailed artistic repertoire, which takes inspiration from both fantasy and street art. From the time he first remembers drawing, all self-taught, his style has ranged from futuristic illustrations to strict Byzantine iconography. Any surface will become a canvas in his hands, populated with strange figures, full of grace and yet with meticulous detail."

Thanks, guys! Check out their respective websites to see more of the project.