ANBI
1106
Artwork
Street art piece
Pilot II
Street Art Museum Amsterdam
Author:
Btoy
Artist Bio:
Btoy is one of the first women who stepped out onto the streets of Barcelonawith detailed multi-layered stencil art that playswith colour, light and shadow to create moody and powerful portraits. Born in Barcelona, Btoy is the child of social activists and refugees fleeing the dictatorial regime in Uruguay lasting from 1973-85. As a self-taught artist, she came to graffiti while completing a photography degree (and after abandoning studies in law), first playing with paste-ups on the streets of Barcelona in the early 2000’s. At that time, before it became the mass tourism hotspot it is today, a welcoming culture and low cost of living in Barcelona created fertile ground for those experimenting with graffiti, underground music, theater and art subcultures. It was in this setting that Btoy began to vigorously investigate feminism, stereotyped gender roles and identities, and to express her own identity through her work, choosing the streets as her medium for their freedom from convention, their hidden moods, memories, and stories.
Place:
WG-plein
Date:
2016
Technique:
Stencil
Material:
Electrical box
Acquisition:
Commission
Completed:
2016
Condition:
Good / Legible
Physical Description:
Btoy's favorite artistic medium is the stencil for its multiple and quick reproduction capabilities on the streets. The Spanish artist is undoubtedly one of the European masters of this technique and over the years has developed a unique and easily recognizable style. Through the superimposition of different layers, Btoy is able to create portraits with a great realism and three-dimensional effect. In the case of Pilot I, the patches of color are what most define the volumetric strength of the figure: the Spanish artist uses mostly bright contrasts, sometimes surreal, which allow her to create a realistic yet creative portrait. As in the case of "Pilot I", the most important element of the portrait is the gaze composed by real deep eyes, capable of transmitting the strength and the history behind the person portrayed. From a compositional point of view, Btoy chooses a three-quarter portrait, typical of the classical artistic tradition of portraiture with a triangular shape reminiscent of classical half-busts.
Iconography:
The portrait represents Amelia Mary Earhart, American aviator, famous for her flying records and for attempting the first round-the-world flight over the equator. Nowadays, Mary Earhart is a symbol for emancipated women and feminism movement.
Gallery
