I have often been particularly interested in the idea of free activity— not meaning only that is free of boundaries but actually free of charge. What I’ve observed over the last twenty years is also that there is less and less public space and free space, where people can have fun or interact without consuming, without paying, without being under control of some commercial restraint. You know, people like to play, like to be together, like to not be controlled; and that is of course directly linked to happiness; all over the world, there is a general shutdown on public space and freedom of just being together and it is all slotted onto commercial activity.
- Wolfgang Tillmans
Graffiti is a marking done on a surface without permission. It is inherently site specific. Showing graffiti away from the original space it was created in prevents the documentation of the work in its entirety. The commercialization of graffiti focuses only on the surface the work is on and leaves out the context of how to artist got there, how dangerous it was, and the amount of time they were able to spend with the work before the risk of being arrested was too high. This film aims to show the viewer an intimate look at the process and the performance that is often out of the conversation.
Against seemingly slim odds, Knoxville won the Bell Helmet $100K grant for more mountain bike trails for the East Tennessee biking community. Sean Leader celebrates at a recently finished downhill trail on Sharp's Ridge. The newly funded trails are expected to be completed in Spring 2016.
