Convergence on the Street

This article examines shifting definitions of creativity in urban spaces in the contemporary USA, and analyzes how different definitions of creativity inform an understanding of convergence in the context of contemporary street art. This essay examines the logic that mobilizes these dynamics, and, through the cultural lens of contemporary street art, asks how and in what ways does 'creativity' matter differently – indeed, have a different value – in the contemporary moment of convergence and global capitalism? I situate convergence culture as part of a broad process mobilized by political, economic, cultural and historical transitions that centrally involve the marketization and branding of arts and culture. Through the examination of street art by artists such as Banksy and Shepard Fairey, I focus on the convergence of creative 'authenticity' and the commercial. Keywords: street artgraffiticreativity/creative cityauthenticitybrand cultureself-branding Acknowledgements The author would like to thank a number of people for their helpful ideas on this essay: Josh Kun, Inna Arzumanova, Melissa Brough, Cara Wallis, Laura Portwood-Stacer, Daniela Barof fio and Henry Jenkins, as well as the co-editors of this issue, James Hay and Nick Couldry. Permission to reprint some material published elsewhere has been granted as follows "The Politics of Commerce: Shepard Fairey and the New Cultural Entrepreneurship" by Sarah Banet-Weiser and Marita Sturken, in Blowing Up the Brand: Critical Perspectives on Promotional Culture, eds. Melissa Aronczyk and Devon Powers, New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishers, 2010. Notes 1. The 'explosion' in street art in the early twenty-first century is well-documented in the 2010 Banksy film, Exit Through the Gift Shop. For more on Shepard Fairey as a cultural entrepreneur, please see Banet-Weiser and Marita Sturken (2010). 2. The definition of street art varies depending on sources. It is beyond the scope of this essay to detail the differences between graffiti, street art, tagging, muralism, etc. I focus here on street art because the relationship between street art and advertising relies on some shared similarities, despite the varied differences between these aesthetic forms. I define street art as art that is painted, stencilled, stickered or pasted on public spaces – walls, trains, fences, etc. – that is clearly understood by its producers as art and not advertising. On the website streetsy.com, dedicated to a 'group conversation about street art and related topics', they offer this as a definition: 'Street art is art created in public places, often without permission. Street art is made in a number of mediums, including stencils, stickers, posters, paint, and sculpture. In mathematical, political, criminal, and philosophical terms, street art is a subset of graffiti' (streetsy.com). 3. Indeed, as part of revitalization efforts the penalty for graffiti in the city of New York during this period moved from a misdemeanour to a felony (Greenberg, Austin). 4. Certainly, the distinction between the authentic and commercial is not new (indeed, Henderson calls it a 'centuries-long standoff' (Henderson 2008, p. 569). However, the way in which it is authorized and enabled in the contemporary neoliberal economy is somewhat shifted from previous eras.