This fall, street artist Artez toured Eastern Europe, completing three new murals in Belarus and Serbia. Artez, who originally hails from Serbia himself, took the opportunity to explore some new topics and techniques with his work. Fall is a time of transition, and only time will tell if these new attributes become permanent fixtures in the artist’s repertoire.
“Precious Things” / “Freelance”
First, Artez visited the Belarusian capital of Minsk to complete a large-scale mural titled “Precious Things” / “Freelance” for the city’s Urban Myth’s initiative. Urban Myths is an interesting endeavor with an experimental approach to facilitating the creation of murals in Minsk. In 2015, blogger Frankie Beane wrote that “Foreign artists [working with Urban Myths] come to Minsk without preliminary sketches, they walk around the city for three days, exploring the sights, getting acquainted with residents – so to say, plunge into the atmosphere of the capital and create their original paintings.”
His work with Urban Myths contributes to the “Future” triptych, now in progress at one of this city’s major hubs. Regarding the triptych, a press release from Urban Myths explains that “Organizers offered artists from three different countries to reflect on modern Belarus through the prism of the images that artists saw themselves in Minsk.”
Advancements in technology have siphoned manufacturing jobs away from laborers. This does not directly translate to lower employment, though. As the International Monetary Fund notes, this trend generally means that workers are redirected into newer, growing industries, like financial or health services. The press release from Urban Myth’s acknowledges that Belarus is witnessing this shift for itself, saying, “There are more and more young mobile people who work in new high-tech industries. This fast-growing generation of Belarusians has a great influence on the city’s appearance and its development.”
Artez chose to address this change for his contribution to “Future.” Technology is the opposite of Artez’s typical motifs, which usually center around the decidedly analogue pastimes of reading, biking, and foliage.
The artist chose to address this new theme by utilizing narrative. The press release states:
“A real young woman from Minsk who works as a freelancer in the creative sphere became the prototype for Artez’s mural. For the mural the artist had decided to build the story around something that’s quite common in an urban environment – the phenomena of carrying the backpack in front, on your chest, instead of carrying it on the back. Usually, people are doing this in order to reduce the chance of becoming target of pickpockets. This small change in the way people carry their bags became the cornerstone around which the story was built, as all the elements that were part of the backpack instantly became precious because of the special effort that was invested in order to keep them safe. You will see a laptop in the bag, an item that should be associated with technology, and some elements that represent Belarus tradition, like a small straw owl doll, old bus ticket patch or “Vasilok” flower (cornflower) that is holding the attention of woman carrying the bag. Besides these elements, Artez managed to squeeze in something very precious to him personally.”
That item, of course, is a beautiful blue flower sprouting up from a pot in the girl’s backpack. She stands firmly, but stares at its blooms with a touch of consternation. It’s hard to determine the thoughts behind her eyes – is she confused by the flower’s existence, conditioned to the cold concrete and chrome of her urban lifestyle? Is she wondering how it got there? I believe Artez’s work makes a statement about the importance of interrupting our artificial routines with the spontaneity of our roots, the beauty of nature. Here, while confronting this new theme, Artez seems to assert the importance of those images he sticks to. Like the entire Urban Myths initiative itself, it’s a bold move. With colors that blend into the surrounding landscape’s hues, Artez’s work for this triptych project bodes well for the success of its complete fruition.
“When the cat is away”
Next, the artist travelled to Novi Sad, Serbia. There, he painted “When the cat is away” on what appears to be the facade of a residential building. Artez was invited to contribute his art to the city at the behest of Opens19, a team assembled to celebrate Novi Sad’s accomplishment of earning the European Youth Capital title in 2019.
The European Youth Forum awarded Novi Sad this designation. The Youth Forum’s website states it is “the platform of youth organizations in Europe” that represents a large array of youth organizations in order to “empower young people to participate actively in society to improve their own lives by representing and advocating their needs and interests and those of their organizations.”
In their announcement, the Youth Forum wrote that Novi Sad is “A perfect blend of modern and traditional, openness and tolerance… Every month, Novi Sad dresses up in new colors and hosts various festivals, youth fairs, and festivities. This city is driven by students, youth and artists.” Of the 1,000 civil society organizations that exist in the city, 10% are youth led, a testament to its young people’s active involvement in daily affairs.
Artez’s addition to the city’s rotating hues pays homage to the feisty spirit of youth. By way of explanation for the work, the artist simply wrote, “… the mice will play!” Here, a young woman puppeteering a cat with its mouth agape and paws splayed. She is dressed rather minxish herself, with baggy hoodie playfully arranged over what are either tight pants or her underwear. Her face is painted with cat whiskers and she wears cat ears atop her head.
The women portrayed throughout Artez’s work are normally dreamy, pensive, lost in thought. Here, he utilizes the new opportunity presented by Novi Sad to explore a woman actively enjoying her sexual agency. The woman peeks over her shoulders with a measure of coyness and remove, but her gaze seems knowing. Such is the spirit of youth, at once self-assured and somewhat timid. It’s this sense of potential that renders the younger generation, in the words of Youth Forum, capable to “Be powerful catalysts for positive change and contributors of innovative solutions to Europe’s challenges.” In painting “When the cat is away,” Artez furthers the Opens19 mission to “Celebrate young people’s energy,” “Boost innovation and creativity,” and hopefully “Develop more inclusive youth policy!”
“Aim for the Stars”
Later in November, Artez traveled to Belgrade, Serbia to complete “Aim for the stars” on the massive facade of a standalone structure near the water’s edge. Though the artist did not provide any further nature on the inspiration behind the mural’s message, drawing from its content and surroundings, one can discern an interplay of optimism and slight sarcasm within the work.
The mural is shown surrounded by overgrown brush and foliage, with a river just beyond. It stands in isolation, a context which marks its strong, stark composition all the more striking. With “Aim for the stars,” Artez depicts a young man with his head positioned in a slingshot. A full moon looms large in the background, its only element save for the lavender color Artez frames the entire piece with. It appears to be a tribute to the quote, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
The artist’s feelings towards this sentiment remain unclear. The man that Artez depicts ready to catapult himself towards the heavens seems so concentrated on his task that one actually believes, for a moment, that he might accomplish it. His hands firmly brace the branch he’s arranged his slingshot upon, and his elbows are firm in preparation. His posture also conveys commitment, as he readies himself on one knee, his entire spine reclining backward to direct his trajectory.
Still, there is no way this could work. The viewer knows this. In choosing to depict this man, so determined against all the odds, Artez seems to acknowledge both sides of the story. Yes, this man is foolish to attempt such an impossible feat. But at the same time, he looks so confident in his ability to pull it off. We almost have to respect him for it. Herein lies the beauty of the human spirit: against all reason, we still have the capacity to dream, to plan, and to attempt. And sometimes, it miraculously works out, even in an insignificant place like this wall in one of the city’s overgrown corners.
“Aim for the stars” stands apart from recent works by Artez because it features a man, a central figure we have not seen in his work for quite some time. Furthermore, the composition is rather barren, bereft of usual motifs like foliage or books. Finally, “Aim for the stars” continues a trend towards the more active that this Fall has seen in Artez’s painting. The trend began with the artist’s exploration into innovation in Minsk. It grew with his playful woman in Novi Sad. Here, it culminates with this visionary in Belgrade. We will all have to wait and see if this theme continues to grow within the artist’s work into the upcoming solstice season.
