Review Buku Cubabrasil

Kami membeli sebuah buku street art berjudul Cubabrasil. Buku ini berisi tentang karya-karya street artist dari Brazil, Jerman dan Kuba yang melakukan kerja luar biasa di Havana, Pinar del Rio, Sao Paulo dan Berlin. Buku ini mendokumentasikan hingga tak terhitung karya-karya berupa mural skala besar, proyeksi video, workshop dan pameran, yang lahir dari kolaborasi interkultural.

Cubabrasil menampilkan seniman Amerika Latin seperti Os Gemeos, Vitche, Nina dan Joana, dari Jerman seperti Won, Neon, Cemnoz, Stone dan grup seniman video BerlinBeamBoys dan beberapa muralis dari Kuba.

Me-review buku ini tak lengkap jikalau tak mengutip kata pengantarnya. Namun kami rada sedikit malas untuk menerjemahkannya kedalam bahasa Indonesia. Seperti biasa, kami menyerahkan pada Anda pembaca sekalian untuk menerjemahkan secara bebas kutipan dalam bahasa Inggris ini. Anda sudah terlalu dewasa untuk tidak mengerti bahasa negeri Pangeran Charles bukan. Mari disimak.

“Broken down building, garbage littered streets, stray dogs, abandoned lots-poor neighborhoods and open hearts connect the perspective of the Cuban, Brazilian and German artist that have come together for the historic and monumental project called Cubabrasil. For the German and Brazilian artists who are used to exploring the world and invading neighborhoods this was an opportunity to share their craft and influence a society that has had few encounters with aerosol art. The willingness of these aerosol artists (and others) to donate their art to the streets and poor communities is a phenomenon that never ceases to amaze me. while the artist could easiy charge for their work, they continue the tradition of painting for the neighborhoods that accept their visual language, their wild style paintings. Old school pioneers would be proud and these artists too are old school pioneers in their own cities.

Deep African roots are uncovered by this international art exchange. African spirits and culture travelling on slave ships, landed in both Cuba and Brazil over four hundred years ago and a new world started to be shaped. African slaves brought over customs, language and beliefs that were not present in these foreign lands but today are quite common. Santeria, Candumble and its African mother, Yoruba are common belief systems in Cuba, Brazil and New York, introduced by the displaced people that today guide the lives of thousands if not millions. One can say that an African legacy is seen in the DNA that traveled for generations thru the veins of the spiritual people, ultimately creating the pioneers of this at movement.

Neon, Won, Cemnoz and Stone from Germany are among the first generation of aerosol art in their respective cities. I can recall meeting Neon for the first time in New York City in 1988 and marveling at the young tourist who traveled so far just to see the birthplace of this art form and who sought to paint with the artists, like myself, who were active on the trains at the time. Stone and Won have also made the New York pilgrimage but have also traveled around the world painting and perfecting their craft in the streets. The BerlinBeamBoys are image projection mastred and visual DJs that blend music, electronic images and culture-jamming messages in outdoor spaces that are part experiment and very much a rhythmic performance.

Os Gemeos, Vitche, Jana Joana and Nina from Brazil are pioneering aerosol artists and visionary in the manner they engage and work with the urban landscape. Their characters provide social commentary that celebrates and critiques their surroundings, their city; it is a  refreshing take on this old tradition. Big eyes instead of folding arrows, solid yellow filled-in letters in place of the typical color blend, and original caricatures versus comic book rip-offs, the Brazilian crew has their own thing going on. And, like their German counterparts, they love to paint.” (KET, New York, 2008).

Buku cetakan On The Run  ini layak dikoleksi bagi para penggemar street art (tentunya sticker art juga termasuk). Banyak fitur-fitur informatif yang tersedia didalamnya seperti edisi-edisi lain cetakan penerbit ini. Dan juga bahkan informasi graffiti supplier seantero Eropa serta informasi mengenai buku-buku street art dan graffiti yang sedang hot di pasaran. Sebuah atribut yang lengkap mengingat keberadaan buku ini didukung juga oleh UNESCO dan Goethe Institut. Salut!

Sumber foto: Google