Southampton Arts Center Goes 'Beyond the Streets' with Post Graffiti Show

If the Beyond the Streets: Post Graffiti exhibition at Southampton Arts Center proves anything, it’s that the street art umbrella is quite broad and encompasses a wide range of expression. The show has some of the genre’s icons and usual suspects — Futura2000, Barry McGee, Crash, Kenny Scharf and others — as well as plenty of surprises. With its energetic mix of styles and media, Beyond the Streets is a welcome bit of urban flavor and edge out east, delivering rusty gates and train cars, barbed wire, spray paint and well-used skateboard decks in rural Southampton Village.

Often associated, even now, with vandalism and gangs, graffiti in all its forms also conjures vibrant feelings of youth, excitement and, occasionally, danger. And despite roots in boasting and braggadocio, the art form carries a strong sense of authenticity, even when it moves from subway cars and city blocks to stark white gallery walls.

Immediately upon entering the exhibition, the gap is bridged from the in-situ methodology of the street to the sanitized gallery setting. To begin, instead of placing graffiti in a frame or on canvas, legend of the game John “Crash” Matos has tagged and decorated the walls in-person, spray painting furnishings and molding and leaving no doubt that this show is about taking over the space.

Southampton Arts Center Executive Director Christina Mossaides Strassfield said it was a thrill to see Crash in action, painting live for the show. “It was so exciting to see that energy,” she says, adding, “It just made it all come alive. … When he was doing it — he’s probably in his mid-60s now — he had such energy and vibrancy, and you could see it. It was super exciting for him to see that vision come to fruition.”

In the same entryway, three shelves display a variety of spray paint canisters, and a vitrine along the wall brings us further into the era with vintage ephemera, including markers, spray paint nozzles, buttons, books, business cards, a Keith Haring Absolut Vodka magazine ad and more. It is one of several standing displays like it in the exhibition.

Continuing on, artist Timothy Curtis presents a pair of blue and white canvases that reflect the look of toile, blue willow or floral patterns seen on 18th century China dishes, but he adds faces and a looseness that harkens back to his street art influences. “He grew up in Philadelphia and he was aware of all of the graffiti artists that were happening there, and he said they so inspired him that he wanted to continue that work,” Strassfield says, explaining why the pieces fit so well in this exhibition.

This Post Graffiti show is part of the broader Beyond the Streets art-driven cultural and educational movement that is producing large-scale shows and pop-ups in locations around the world, including Los Angeles, New York City, London and Shanghai. It follows the first knockout Beyond the Streets exhibition at SAC in 2021, Beyond the Streets on Paper.

Strassfield says Beyond the Streets founder and the show’s curator, Roger Gastman, approached her to do a second Beyond the Streets exhibition, and Post Graffiti is the result. “He’s had shows all over the place. … He’s known as the preeminent scholar on graffiti art,” she says of Gastman. “He wanted to come back and I said, yes, that’s a great idea, but it should be something different.”

As Gastman explains, this particular exhibition is about how the art form and ethos went from the subways and store gates of the 1970s and ’80s to the global stage. “…graffiti has transcended its roots to become a defining element of contemporary culture. Post Graffiti captures this transformation, showcasing how a once clandestine form of expression has grown into a vital, influential art movement,” Gastman says. “This exhibition not only pays homage to the pioneers who risked everything to express themselves but also celebrates the diverse artists who continue to push the boundaries of what graffiti can be. It’s a testament to the enduring power of creativity against the backdrop of societal change, reminding us that art from the streets can speak volumes in galleries and beyond.”

A shining example of this change is Kenny Scharf, who has two large canvases in the exhibition. He started putting his work on the streets to help gain recognition as a young man, and now his paintings are regularly selling for close to $1 million at auction, and he will be honored at this year’s LongHouse Summer Benefit in East Hampton this July.

It should also be noted that every piece in this exhibition is available for sale — though much of it has already sold.

Post Graffiti is truly a thrill to behold and must be experienced in-person to fully appreciate its scope. The list of participating artists is long and also includes names such as Paul Insect, PRIEST, Tim Conlon, Eric HAZE, Keith Haring’s former art partner Angel “LA2” Ortiz, Maya Hayuk, Todd James, the Guerilla Girls, and KATSU who paints with AI and a drone.

“I do like the idea that work can start in one place and really transition to so many different things,” Strassfield says, pointing out how Beyond the Streets: Post Graffiti illustrates the evolution of this art form.

Go see the show at 25 Jobs Lane in Southampton, or visit southamptonartscenter.org to learn more.