Tag Archives: anti-advertising

activism, street art

New York Street Advertising Takeover

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artist – Ji Lee

This past Saturday over 120 illegal billboards were white-washed and covered with art in New York City by a team of volunteers and artists. The guerrilla operation was organized by The Public Ad Campaign over the past four months.

Barbara Celis writes:

As the main organizer explained to the artists who choose to get involved, the agency that owns the ‘attacked’ billboards operates on an illegal basis. “NPA outdoor operates over 500 street level billboards in NYC ranging in size from about 4’x4′ to 50’x12′. All of these advertising structures are illegal. I found this out by talking to the NYC Department of Buildings which has no permits for the NPA outdoor structures but has its hands full dealing with the rampant illegal billboard situation. I have also spoken directly with NPA outdoor employees who have told me that the NYPD will jail them from time to time at which point NPA lawyers bail them out and they are compensated 500 dollars for the nuisance of spending the night in jail”.

NPA Outdoor had teams putting their illegal advertising back up early Sunday morning. I personally spotted ads going up over artwork on 8th Avenue and 26th Street at 2 AM. Celis interviewed an artist at the afterparty who said, “Art is about the experience, about living the moment, and what we did was so fucking great for New York that even if they take down our pieces, we have learned that we can do it, and we will do it again. New yorkers had fun today in a very unusual way. It’s priceless!”

More photos:
cronicasbarbaras
wooster collective
gothamist

street art

Urban Clowns

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rednose

For his Urban Clowns project, Stefan Benchoam placed red vinyl stickers onto advertisements on the streets of Guatemala City to instantly make them funnier. He writes:

In recent years, Guatemala City has become severely plagued with advertising of all kinds. I realized that instead of adding to the problem of visual pollution, I could use what was already there. By adding a simple red circle to them, anyone can effectively turn its meaning upside-down.

More photos.

solo

Pop Down Project

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The Pop_Down Project offers an alternative to the “pop up” advertising we encounter on the streets. They write:

On the Internet, getting rid of unsolicited pop-ups is pretty easy. In real life, things are a tad more complicated. The Pop_Down Project aims at symbolically restoring everyone’s right to non-exposure: Just stick a “Close window” button on any public space pollution.

Head to the site to download the template and start sticking yourself.