Urban art qua "the other"

Abstract

I was kindly invited by V!RUS to write a text for its issue dedicated to “the city and the other,” focusing on urban art and graffiti. A great challenge, indeed. As a matter of fact, the subject of “the other” and otherness has always been present in city life and has been approached by many social scientists in the past. Cities are places of high mobility for people and communities, a place to meet and socialize, but also laden with tension and conflict among a multitude of social, ethnic, religious, and other groups. Cities were built and renovated on these foundations, which constitute their very social cement. “The other” is always present, whether transient or permanent. This otherness deeply affects metropolitan life in that cultural differences are expressed on the visible layer of the urban environment. Cityscapes are invariably contaminated by this plurality of sounds, colors, and odors resulting in plural ways of living life and the city. This is especially evident in the so-called “ethnic” neighborhoods, which refashion many of the traditions and representations of foreign lands. Thus, big cities comprise a mosaic of wide-ranging cultural references that contribute to greater cultural miscegenation and hybridity. I would even go as far as say that this exchange of references favors cultural creativity by allowing unexpected dialogues and fusions.