Peter Gibson is a Montreal street artist who goes by the nom de spraypaint Roadsworth (a wry spin on the last name of Andrew Goldsworthy, one of Gibson’s chief influences). Under cover of darkness, Roadsworth takes to the streets armed only with the homemade stencils and spraycans he uses to convert utilitarian paint jobs into pop art images. Thus an ordinary crosswalk becomes a row of birthday candles and a lane divider is transformed into a giant zipper. Some are amused by his work, others not so much.
Maybe this is my personal bias speaking, but I see the two camps breaking down roughly along these lines: 1) those who find his additions to the drab, workaday urban environment to be a cheeky, refreshing change of pace; and 2) uptight, humorless jackasses. This documentary by Alan Kohl presents a somewhat more nuanced view of the situation, even as it tackles that great question “What is art?” from a number of fascinating angles.
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