culture crossover
“Street art isn’t just limited to the street”.
Street art & graffiti is all about self-expression and putting art out there for the public to see. Giving artists a platform to share their work with the world is a big part of our ethos. Sure we love a big, blank wall but (almost) everything and anything can be a canvas for artistic expression.
From the early days of graffiti and hip hop, which both emerged in the late 1960s / early 1970s in New York City, those two cultures quickly became intertwined. Both heavily influencing each other, with hip hop artists like Run DMC and Beastie Boys inspired by the graffiti aesthetic across album covers and fashion, with brands like Adidas incorporating graffiti-style graphics into their designs. Hip hop fashion also became a way for artists to express themselves and their connection to the culture.
Image credit: Martha cooper
Run dmc album cover for ‘walk this way’
These days street style artwork can be seen on football kits, trainers, skateboards, watches, album covers… the list goes on. We encourage this type of culture crossover, and we’re here to see these types of artist collaborations flourish.
We’ve worked on all sorts ourselves! Beer cans, water bottles, pianos to name a few.
Many of the brands in the middle of this welcomed clash of worlds aren’t exactly what you’d call “street” either, they can be high-end names that you wouldn’t expect to be associated with a culture born out of rebellion and nonconformity.
On the surface, the word graffiti has a negative stigma attached to it. Despite often being used in the same mould as street art by modern society, there are clear differences between graffiti and street art, even though both are legitimate art forms. If you don’t know, get to know via this blog post, where we spoke to Vans on whether graffiti is art or vandalism.
Why is it important to mention this? brands particularly need to approach collaborations with respect for the art form and the artists. Collaboration should not be viewed as a way to exploit the culture but as an opportunity to celebrate and showcase it.
So, how can brands successfully tap into the energy and creativity of street art and graffiti culture? The key is to approach with authenticity and humility, recognising that graffiti and street art are art forms with a rich history and a strong community. While some may view collaborations with brands as "selling out", when done with the above approach in mind, they can be a powerful way for artists to showcase their work and connect with a wider audience.
At the same time, artists shouldn’t compromise their artistic integrity for the sake of a brand if their creative freedom is blunted.
we’ve put together a selection of culture crossover classics for you to indulge in, These are just a few examples of two worlds colliding in harmony.
lewis hamilton X daniel arsham
American contemporary artist Daniel arsham collaborated with seven-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton to create this awesome, one-off helmet design.
It was also made into a sculpture piece with all proceeds made from the sale going to Mission 44, a charity organisation that supports and empowers young people from underserved groups to succeed through narrowing opportunity gaps in education, employment and wider society. Now that’s culture crossover with a purpose!
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Puma – Borussia Dortmund’s away kit
Image via PUMA
Dortmund is a german city that has a rich graffiti & street art scene. puma chose to bring this element into the design of the borussia dortmund away kit in the 2020/2021 season. The prevalent creative streak which runs through the heart of this city was woven into the fibres of the shirts that players wore representing the club.
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Nike Air Max Graffiti Stores
The following is one of those “That’s amazing! I wish I thought of that!” ideas, and rightly so as this was a multi-award-winning campaign by akqa and nike which pushed out some serious marketing stats and has remained to be a popular attraction on the streets of Sao Paulo, even after the installation.
collaborating with Brazilian street art collective, Insta Graffiti, artists were tasked with updating their existing street art characters by giving them a brand-new pair of kicks.
Sneaker heads and footwear fanatics from far and wide were then given the opportunity to access presale codes on a weekly basis for the latest drop of Nike Air Max trainers, to do this they had to visit the walls where the characters lived and unlock the codes with their smart phones.
Throughout this adventurous marketing feat Nike.com saw a 22% rise in visits to their site and staggering social media reach of 80 million, all while connecting fans to street art culture.
Image from akqa
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banksy X stormzy
Stormzy’s 2019 headline set at Glastonbury will go down as one of the best performances ever at Worthy Farm, but it’ll also be remembered for the stab-proof vest “custom made by the greatest, most iconic living artist on planet earth, Banksy" said Stormzy in his own Instagram post.
With both being masters of modern culture, the collaboration helped amplify a message on Britain's knife-crime crisis and racial inequality in the criminal justice system.
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OBEY
One of the greatest curators of street art culture crossing into other realms is Shepherd Fairey and his OBEY campaign turned streetwear brand. His art often challenges authority and promotes social justice, with political and rebellious undertones. His influence can be seen in a wide array of mediums, ranging from art, music, and film, to fashion and politics.
image from obey
OBEY Clothing, which Shepard Fairey launched in 2001 and has become one of the most recognisable clothing brands in the world, intertwined with street art culture in its aesthetic and tone of voice.
images from obey
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Hennessy artist collabs
Hennessy's dedication to merging the worlds of street art and spirits is something we love to see, having built a legacy collaborating with some of the biggest names in the scene since 2011 such as FElipe pantone, kaws, vhils, shepard fairey, jonone and legendary graffiti writer, Futura.
Futura is undeniably a living graffiti icon. The bottle design is an amalgamation of Futura's distinctive helix visuals.
The Hennessy Very Special Limited Edition by JonOne, which features a colorful, vibrant design, is the latest addition to the ongoing series of collaborations between Hennessy and internationally renowned urban artists.
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Blade x Supreme
Supreme paid tribute to another influential New York City figure in Blade. The Bronx native was widely regarded as one of the most influential graffiti writers of all time, earning him the title "King of Graffiti" in the early '80s due to his penchant for painting subway trains, totaling over 5,000. Blade's imaginative approach to his many works, playing with perspective, abstraction, and geometry, set him apart from others who followed particular styles or trends.
The 2016 collection included a hoodie, long-sleeve and short-sleeve T-shirts, skateboard decks, and a pin.
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KAWS x MTV
KAWS, the graffiti artist turned contemporary art legend, has been a prominent figure in collaborative efforts between artists and brands. Though collaborations have been common for sneaker and streetwear brands in recent years, KAWS has been linking up with both niche shops and mainstream mega-brands for almost two decades.
In 2013, the renowned production company MTV approached KAWS to redesign their iconic moon man trophy for the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards. The original statue was modelled after the celebrated American astronaut Buzz Aldrin and had remained untouched throughout its 30-year history.
The new one-year-only redesign of the moon man saw the incorporation of celebrated KAWS characteristics, replacing the helmet with the artist's signature companion figure. This marked a significant transformation of the trophy's design, introducing a fresh and distinctive perspective to the longstanding MTV legacy.
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culture crossover gone wrong - how not to do it
as shown in all of the above, we’ve seen some amazing collaborations between brands and street art over the years, all of which are perfect examples of how street and visual art culture can seamlessly blend into other worlds.
However…
there are times when these worlds collide, and not in a good way. more like a head-first collision at speed resulting in a metaphorical pile of mess that needs to be cleaned up.
Below are some past examples of culture crossover gone wrong:
REVOK VS H&M
household name and mainstream brand h&m got into some hot water when they used a photograph for one of their campaigns which included a piece of street art as the backdrop, without permission. an innocent mistake? doubtful!
jason revok is the artist that had the unwelcome surprise of seeing his work being used without his say. with the online street art community backing him and his lawyers smiling at at a case they were destined to win, jason set out to put things straight. full story here.
an example of revok’s work
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boohoo x dele alli campaign
blank walls artist spzero76 and the lost souls crew fell victim to the thievery of intellectual property, once again by a big company. boohoo used the work of 14 artists work as a background for an advertising campaign featuring star footballer and england player dele alli.
This is of course a very attractive prospect for any artist, to have their work plastered all over central london in connection with a huge name in british football. well, it would be if they had permission to use the artwork plus acknowledged and paid the artists. luckily a fellow artist alerted spzero76 via social media whilst also outing the brand for their complete miss use of his work.
full story here plus some other wild cases of brands ripping off artists.
image: London calling blog
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thankfully the above examples of negligence are few and far between, and on the whole artists and creators are paid correctly for use of their work and given the platform they deserve when collaborating with big brand names.
when collaborating with us, we prioritise making sure our artists are happy and being paid properly. happy artist, happy client!
keen to talk artists x brand collabs? get in touch here
