Oi You! Banksy Stencils Sydney

While Cockatoo Island sounds like some kind of bird sanctuary, it’s far from it. Thousands flocked (pun intended) to the island for Sydney’s Biennale last year and thousands more are expected to catch the rarely-used-form-of-transport, ferry across the Sydney Harbour again. This time they will be attending the free street art festival, Outpost Project commencing on the 4th November until 11th December 2011.

If there was ever a time I was proud to be living in Sydney, it would be now as the festival boasts to be the largest in the goddamn Southern Hemisphere. The infamous street artist, stenciler, Banksy will grace the warehouse space with 23 of his art works as part of the Oi You! private collection. Not impressed yet? Did I forget to mention the festival will also feature interpretations of street art by 100 local and international street artists and collectives?

Even the Executive Director Geoff Bailey is making a fuss, saying “this will be the first time so many works by Banksy have ever been seen in Australia. People are fascinated by Banksy’s art and by his identity, which has never been revealed. This is a private collection showcasing an art movement that has become a global phenomenon.”

I’m not gonna lie, Sydney’s Art scene is nowhere near the diversity and involvement of street artists in New York or Berlin, but we still boast some talent. I don’t go to Art exhibitions as much as I probably could and should but not due to lack of interest… moreso, my lack of knowledge of what’s on! While that may sound pathetic and a lame-ass attempt of an excuse, it’s true. Fortunately, my discovery of Lo-Fi Collective’s website no longer allows for my excuse to apply. Why? Because this site/ blog will pretty much keep me updated on the latest and coolest and colourful exhibitions in Sydney; dedicated to the world of street art of course.

In their own words: LO-FI Collective is a week-to-week showcase of Australia’s leading low brow artists, designers and photographers. The 6 month initiative is a rare move to support this exceptional home-grown art movement. LO-FI Collective is part gallery and part studio featuring a selection of resident artists to both produce and exhibit weekly in the space, and has been provided at no cost or commission to the artists.

Have you ever wondered why the regular looking, semi-sociable and averagely intelligent Joe always seems to achieve everything in life? While the smart, beautiful and hard-working Sally seems to not be getting anywhere? My curiosity in the matter has grown exponentially and whilst I struggled to see a pattern in the past, I have just recently discovered why. I took the passengers seat for a while, just watching and observing my surroundings. See, there’s this thing called self-image and it’s pretty vital to the way we lead our lives. It dictates what actions we take, what sorta people we surround ourselves by and essentially how happy we are. I mean, i’m nowhere near mastering this 8 wonders of the mind… but first step is to see the potential.

Like many, I wrestle with self-confidence. Don’t get me wrong, I generally am happy with my life as a whole. But there are those times where I can’t help but question my ability and purpose. From there, I am thrown off my path easily by small obstacles and give off a negative vibe. People can sense a negative aura about someone from a mile away. The old lady on the bus can smell it. Most of you who read this won’t know me personally. At the moment i’m just a bunch of words on a screen to you. But for those who do, you’ll know how much i’ve been focusing on myself recently; in terms of career, self-development and finally being active about my dream. With everything that’s happened in the past, that’s the least I owe to myself. So what i’m trying to get at, is that self-confidence can be worked on by giving yourself the right kind of attention.

I did all the lame stuff that you read in books or hear in movies but hey, it’s worked for me so far. For one, I have lists everywhere; literally. On my iPhone, on my Macbook, on tissues, on post-it notes. It helps to be reminded what your goals are for the day or whatever. I read a lot of self-development books, autobiographies of people I aspire to… just a lot of absorbing basically. I even have fricken’ inspirational quotes written in my room. I mean, little things like that can take you a long way.

I read somewhere once, about this plastic surgeon who used to remodel the faces of people who thought they were basically ugly. But even after giving them an Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt makeover, these people were still miserable as they were before the surgery. Once you start feeling good about yourself, everything else kind of just falls to place cause you’re actually happy to begin with.

In a little town, north of Tel Aviv in Israel, exist a multi-talented and young art crew. They pretty much run the street scene in Haifa as their hours of work are scattered on posters, gas stations, shopping malls and walls. These kids aren’t lacking too much on the entrepreneurial side either as they’ve recently opened up a store to the public, showcasing their cool designs on sneakers, T-Shirts… the list goes on really! And why wouldn’t they? Their bold drawings are kooky, colourful and confronting. Watch the videos they’ve uploaded on their site http://brokenfingaz.com to see this enthusiastic crew start and finish street designs. It’s really mind-blowing; to say the least.