Global Graffiti Documentary Series

Facilitator Name: Stefano Bloch
E-mail: bloch@umn.edu
Phone: 612.722.7166
Location: U of M Hubert H Humphrey Institute, Room 15 (West Bank)
Directions:
http://www.hhh.umn.edu/about/contact/parking.html
Time: 7:30-9:30 pm, Every other Thursday from Oct. 16-Dec. 11
Note: Oct. 16 will be a showing at the Walker Art Center
Course description:
We will view some of the classic and recent documentaries on graffiti and street-art culture and tactics, including a showing of the Twin Cities premiere of Bomb IT! at the Walker Art Center on October 16th (the Director Jon Reiss and I providing Q and A after the show). These documentaries focus on some of the most prolific, infamous, and talented graffiti writers, bombers, taggers, and artists in cities around the world. After each showing we will have informal discussions about some of the issues raised in the film — addressing some of the larger debates related to style, criminalization, history, etc. I will also provide reading lists for those interested in learning more about graffiti as an urban aesthetic, a spatial practice, and an act of contestation against the normative appearance of the built-environment.
The October 16th showing will take place at the Walker Art Center.
Experience:
Stefano Bloch has been an active member of the Los Angels graffiti community for almost 20 years. He appears in the documentary on global graffiti, Bomb IT (2008), and is now working on his Ph.D in Geography, focusing his research on the role of graffiti in urban morphology, the politics of space, and urban aesthetics.