A Playground For Young Artists

In my last post, I mentioned an upcoming event called Illustrative. A quick recap: it’s among the world’s biggest illustration and graphic artwork exhibitions, running from this weekend until November 1st. Artists and agencies are in Berlin showcasing their works, doing portfolio reviews, and hosting parties and speakers. The whole thing is sponsored by Swatch and several of the artists have designed watches for them. Some of the exhibits need to be paid for, but the entrance fees run cheaper for students.

MTV Playground yesterday was one of the events. Illustrative took over a church and turned it into, yes, a playground for artists. One wall had slabs of free posters hanging up for the visitors to rip off as they please. Next to it was a plywood board propped up against the wall. Attached were several black and white markers on strings. The board was open for whoever wanted to come over and doodle or sketch to their heart’s delight. Across from this, there were a few mock turntables where you could pretend to be a DJ, just for a few moments of your life. There was also a table with block letters, animal stickers, string, and patterns. You could spell out a message on the table and have a photograph taken.

The highlight of this entire event was hands down the Light Graffiti room. You enter a dark room with a camera pointed at one end and a projector screen on the other. You stand in front of the camera with a canister of “spray paint” that resembled a flashlight. As you hold the button, you “spray” images and patterns in the air. The camera traces the light as you move the canister and then takes a snapshot after about 10 seconds. The complete image created in light appears onscreen! I could have spent hours just drawing patterns of multicolored light in the air.

Light graffiti: I'm behind the green squiggle This art fair accomplished something incredible that is far more rare in the US: the chance to experience free, accessible, and fun art. The problem with the art scene in New York is that it often becomes lofty and pretentious. Works hung in galleries are meant to inspire awe to the point that most gallery spaces become akin to places of worship. At museums that are essentially free (the Met), you see much more life and interaction with the work. Students can draw for hours, and people can talk without fear of being shushed. The MTV Playground was a multimedia, hands-on extravaganza that was entirely welcoming. It was just as I had hoped: a small piece of heaven dropped into Berlin.

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