Have you heard? The Olympics start on Friday!
Just kidding, but with that theme, I’d like to dedicate this weeks posts to the spirit of the games, and the abundance of enthusiasm and creativity that surround them. The olympics are one of the rare occasions where a country devotes millions of dollars to the showcasing of art, architecture, fashion and of course, sports. It is a great opportunity to introduce new artists and also encourage a dialogue on subjects that we probably don’t see in the everyday news.
The official posters of the Games are now themselves a special celebration of the meeting of art and sport over the last 100 years. This year, the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games commissioned twelve of the UK’s leading artists to create images to celebrate London hosting the 2012 Games. While the posters have been met with some criticisms, I find these so much more interesting than a generic image of the London Eye, or Olympics Rings. The first one, by Sarah Morris, is my absolute favorite:
In addition to the posters, the Olympic Park has been completely transformed into a sculpture park, with several large public art installments. The art ranges from bridges and tunnels, to enhanced utilities, to more traditional sculptures. Personally, I love the idea of turning infrastructure into an art form- but these are a bit stale- I wish they had gone even further at pushing the creative envelope.
Monica Bonvicini
Martin Richman
Clare Woods
I also encountered this amazing double-decker bus doing pushups. Yes. pushups.
And then for every “official” Olympics artist, there are a number of street artists with their own takes and unfiltered messages:
Mau Mau
Banksy
Criminal Chalkist
Have you seen any Olympic art that I missed? What is your favorite?
Beautiful Life and Style 