Bourges 1983

Jef Aerosol's Bourges is, I'm guessing, made with stencils and spray paint - you can see how the edges of those scream faces are soft and blurred. It's interesting how the process of stenciling kinda flattens everything out, turning these figures into almost graphic symbols, which, in turn, puts all the emphasis on the expression itself. I like the simplicity of the black and white and the raw, immediate feel of the medium. It's like a poster, or graffiti, or something urgently dashed off on a wall. Look at the way the paint sort of bleeds around the edges of the mouth, it gives the whole thing a kind of visceral energy. The urgency reminds me of Barbara Kruger’s word and image play, or maybe the performative aspect of early street art, that sense of grabbing attention, of making a statement in the moment. Ultimately, for me, the beauty of this piece lies in its simplicity and the questions it raises about art’s role in public space.