Carlsbad Art and Culture

WHAT: Sidewalk Activism
WHERE: Oceanside Museum of Art (MAP)
WHEN: February 15–June 21, 2020

The street has long been a site for unmediated commentary, debate, and advocacy, from both groups and individuals acting on their convictions to further a cause. As opposed to spray paint and graffiti-related messages, street art holds a different aesthetic, engages a larger audience, and is arguably judged on its ability to cultivate change by advocating, motivating, or educating the public. Representing a diverse number of issues from a broad perspective, the artists featured seek to empower and move important political ideas forward in the best venue they know, the street.

The exhibition will be organized into three different strategies for practicing sidewalk activism: emotion and beauty, humor, and manipulation of media. In addition, San Diego Street Art Document will contribute artwork from their collaborations and documentation of graffiti and street artists working in San Diego.

Curator Dr. G. James Daichendt is a professor of art history at Point Loma Nazarene University. Daichendt has written several books on street art and graffiti including biographies featuring Shepard Fairey, Kenny Scharf, and an upcoming 2020 publication featuring Robbie Conal. He has been dubbed Professor Street Art and regularly writes art criticism for several local and national publications. View Daichendt’s TEDx Talk on street art here.