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Moi!

My photos are focusing on streetart & graffiti. I´ve been really hooked up on the streetart since 2004. My interest is also to adventure abandoned places and houses and so called no-places or anti-sights. Sometimes I found myself also capturing houses, city and nature by camera. Some words about streetart: I found streetart usually easy, happy art. It is everydayart not necessarely deep. Good streetart is aesthetic. I could compare streetart to popular culture and "normal" art to highculture.

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What do you define as graffiti?

Anything written or painted on place where it is possible to be seen publicly.

What do you consider to be the difference between graffiti and art? Is there one?

Basically there´s no difference. But usually (at least I see this) ingraffiti are important the shape and grafic expression than some great abstract idea which artobjects normally try to express. There´s more outer idea than inner, but of course it depends. For me Graffiti and streetart is more fun than normal serious art. I dont take graffiti too serious.

What do you think of the council's policy of removing graffiti? Should it be better protected?

The Centers of cities are usually quite clean, maybe too clean for my taste. But I think it is big growths opinion is not to have graffiti especially in centers.Still graffiti and streetart have its place. :) For me irritate moreplasticbags lying on the streets.Still it is always nice if there´s more legal paintinghoods and places where nobody cares which are not legal in theory. I see graffiti is more suitable for outlying places of cities and backstreets.Streetart makes urban area, which could be boring, more lively. Inmodern cities everything is usually too clean. It´s nice to seepeoples touch in places, makes city more human not just embodiment of engineers ideas. I feel cosy if there´s graffities around.

Do you think there should be more provision for publicdisplays of graffiti art?

Of course!! More big walls. It brings beauty for all people. Everybodydon´t go galleries. They came the landmarks and symbols of certain hoods.

How do you think graffiti art can help young people? Do youthink graffiti workshops are a good idea?

Art and especially graffiti gets young people more interested of life. Especially if they have problems art can support a lot. If there´sworkshops it´s also important to emphasize that graffiti is usuallyillegal. Maybe that´s only encourages young to paint. ;D Graffiti could save many for worse things.

How do you think graffiti and graffiti artists areportrayed, and should this be altered?

More respect for artists and graff. There´s more artists than only Banksy.

Do you ever visit/contribute to graffiti festivals/events? What is that like?

I´ve been in some demonstrations for streetart in finland. There´s such crazy things going on. Stickers and bombing!! In Helsinki there´s very strict laws about graffiti in urban space. Zero tolerance!!:( That and nasty side effects makes many people very angry. (Zero tolerance ended 2010 and now things are much more free in the way there´s lot of free walls and legal murals.)

How long have you been a fan? – what made you get into it in the first place?

I began my graffitihobby in 14 years old. But during few years it get over. In year 2004 I saw exhibition of Janne Siltanen in gallery of academy of fine arts. And that was very BIG thing. He´s art was part of new wave of streetart which was just arrived to Helsinki. In the hoods were also much of his stickers. From that moment I´ve been documenting streetart.

You´re also welcome to visit my other Flickr stream. Which is more like fine art: www.flickr.com/photos/laurilauren/