Photo credit: Lia Vagionaki
Brussels 2011

Photo credit: Zdravka Primova
Sofia, Bulgaria, 2011.

On the morning of 18 June 2011 residents of Sofia awoke to discover that the Monument of the Soviet Army ( built in 1954 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Soviet ‘liberation’ of Nazi-allied Bulgaria depicting Red Army soldiers heroically fighting alongside the Bulgarian people in typical socialist-realist architectural style) had been spray painted by an anonymous artist.

The tarnished, bronzed, Red Army soldiers had been transformed into popular American icons including Superman, The Joker, Captain America, Ronald McDonald and Santa Claus. A slogan written in black spray paint below the monument accompanied the statue’s makeover: 'Moving with the Times'.

While most of the officials and the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the act as vandalism, as it clearly was, the newly painted statues proved popular with many, quickly becoming a tourist magnet as people flocked to have photographs taken with them. It provoked widespread reaction and controversy. Even T-shirts with an image were being printed out and sold. It hit the news – both national and international. The slogan was later in the year used in the local elections campaign from one of the Mayoral candidates.
Controversal as it was, and, it may be admitted, clearly an act of vandalism, this act provoked reaction not because of the legal offence in itself and not might because of the offence that have been intended to the Russian soldier, but rather because of the artistic act which highlighted the still existing tensions of the Bulgarian society with its past.

Copyright: Nicos Philippou
Some of the objects in this fascinating arrangement can be seen as vernacular interpretations of symbols of Cypriot heritage (or Cypriotness) like the classical columns and the two mouflon on the roof. The scene is quite common on suburban roads around urban centers like Nicosia and Limassol.

Photo credits: Leila Garfield
Alexanderturm, Berlin, 2006

Photo credit: Juha Niemi
Helsinki in January 2011

Photo crédit : Collectif d’Art au Quotidien
View from the clock of the Orsay Museum in Paris, 2011.

Image credits: Dara McGrath
Artists: Eli Caamano & Sorcha O'Brien
Year: 2008 (October)
Courtesy National Sculpture Factory Cork Docklands Commission

Copyright: Przemek Sikora

The picture shows graffiti presenting selected motifs characteristic of Lodz, the statue of Tadeusz Kosciuszko, the Church of Pentecost and the Old Town Hall, the historic tram, and the boat with the emblem of the city Lodz, floating on a wave of cobblestones. The graffitti is made by Futura Design Group and covers an area of 900 m2. They worked almost two months, consuming more than one thousand cans of paint. The graffitti has a note in the Guinness Book of Records