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1178

Artwork

Street art piece

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Mata Hari

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:

Schiphol the Basis

Date:

2018

Technique:

Stencil

Material:

Electrical box

Acquisition:

Commission

Completed:

2018

Condition:

Good / Legible

Physical Description:

As commented in contemporary works such as 'Stephen Hawking' or 'Nelson Mandela', also in this work it is possible to appreciate a stylistic evolution in the detailing virtuosity that characterises the Spanish artist. The portrait has a great realism, especially with regard to details such as Bowie's hairstyle or his gaze. The use of colour is skilful and bright with the choice of the background dialoguing harmoniously with the palette of Ziggy's character.

Iconography:

The portrait represents Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod. She was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for Germany during World War I. Despite her having admitted under interrogation to taking money to work as a German spy, many people still believe she was innocent because the French Army needed a scapegoat. She was executed by firing squad in France.

Gallery

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