04.10.06
Crack is Wack
In terms of turning graffiti into a respected art form, I can’t think of any well-known artist that had more of an impact than Keith Haring (1958-1990). Haring’s “Barking Dog” is hanging over my bed, and one of his famous untitled “crowd” prints is the main piece of focus in my living room. I find myself drawn to the simplicity, the day-glo colors, and the cultural significance of the pieces.
While I lived in the New York metro area, I never got a chance to go and see any of Haring’s famous murals, but during my random web-surfing procrasturbation yesterday, I came across one that I had never even seen photos of before, titled crack is wack. This double-sided mural was painted in 1986 on a handball court at 128th St. and 2nd Avenue, and is still there today.
Besides the obvious Whitney Houston images that the mural’s catchphrase evokes, there was something about this public project that amused and inspired me. In an unrelated yet convenient crossing of coincidences, I was playing with Adobe Illustrator CS2, which has new features called Live Trace and Live Paint, which allow for the easy transposing of bitmap images into vector paths.
With some contrast adjustment, an hour or two of tweaking, I ended up coming up with an interpretation of crack is wack for my desktop that pleases me. I decided to use Live Paint to fill in some of the bright day-glo colors that Haring is known for, and added some reflection and depth to make it a little more interesting and eye-catching.
Tags: art, crack, graffiti, keith haring, murals, new york, new york city, procrasturbation, whitney houston