Internet Meme Graffiti

Internet memes are ideas or media that go viral online, inspiring thousands of fan art works in a short time. There is no way to force something to become a meme or to predict what image, video or social action will become a meme. 


Meme Street Art
Street artists often reflect internet-based ideas through their art, incorporating popular online phenomena into their street murals. Online games, popular videos and internet cartoons are moving from the intangible world of the internet to the physical canvas of the streets. These appear in the form of spray painted and stenciled images or printed stickers.

Above: The Forever Alone meme is based on a rage comic character, and is often used to express loneliness or unhappiness. For a humorous effect one of the words from the phrase "forever alone" is replaced with another word, eg forever a foam 

Above: Me Gusta, a spanish phrase that translates into English as "I like it" is associated with this rage comic face. Online, the Me Gusta face is used to express a perverse pleasure or the enjoyment of something disturbing or anti-social.

Above: This clever vandal has transformed a road sign into a parody of the popular image of an owl with the abbreviation "O rly?" The phrase is often used in online forums as a sarcastic response to a statement that is either blatantly true or implicitly false.

From the Internet to the Street
Many memes have a distinct character that doesn't change all that much, such as Lolcats' image of a cat riding an "invisible bike" and the character from challenge accepted. For other memes, the image changes and can be interpreted in hundreds of different ways, as with Nyan Cat and the Anonymous hacker group character.

Above: Lolcats famous Invisible Bike image has been recreated as an enormous graffiti mural, complete with, um, exhaust fumes.

Above: Challenge Accepted graffiti. This character is often depicted facing near impossible situations, and has become an online symbol for determination and stubbornness. 

Above: Anonymous, Nyan Cat and Lulzsec get together to become the main subjects for this meme graffiti art work. Two hacker groups and a rainbow-farting pop tart cat. Not even Salvador Dali could have imagined such a painting.

Above: Trollface, a linear drawing of a grinning face; presumably the face a person makes while trolling the internet. The trollface meme appears in videos, gifs moments after a person has been caught out, and on forums when someone reacts to a troll.

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Einstein Fans Create Clever Art

Albert Einstein was a 20th century theoretical physicist who transformed the world with his theories. Einstein has become a symbol of intelligence,and often finds a place in geek fan art.


The Mad Scientist
With his bold features and wild hair, Einstein's physical appearance has become the model for character designs of mad scientists and geniuses. In the fan art work below, the artist has given Einstein an even wilder appearance by using unconstrained brushstrokes and bright colors.

Einstein challenges Science in Art
The collage shown below creates an image of Einstein pulling a tongue. The famous photograph of Einstein blowing a raspberry is a favorite among Einstein fans, because it shows a lighter, more humorous side of the scientist. For the first time in written history, Einstein challenged the precepts that scientists should be serious, stoic men.

Einstein in Pencil
Albert Einstein's recognizable facial features make him an excellent subject for art works. In the pencil drawing below, Ships and aeroplanes, skulls and birds spill out of Einstein's brain. Perhaps these are symbols of daily life that we know view differently because of Einstein's theories.

Mad Scientist = Crazy Hair
One of Einstein's most recognizable features is his crazy hair that stood out at all angles, as if trying to tear itself free of the head that held so many theories. In the caricature painting below, the artist has exaggerated Einstein's hair and moustache, to give the theoretical scientist a humorous appearance.

Einstein gets Inked in Tattoo Designs
Because Einstein has become a symbol of science and intelligence, the scientist's portrait has become a popular subject in geek tattoo designs. In the tattoo of Einstein shown below, he is shown with his famous formula, e=mc2.

Graffiti puts Einstein on the Streets
Einstein has become a household name, and his face is known to millions around the world. The scientist has found his way into many graffiti art designs, and is often used by graffiti artists to send a powerful message. In the street art below, Einstein holds a sign that reads, "Love is the answer."

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He's Ba-ack! Hitler Reappears in Graffiti Art

Adolf Hitler was the failed leader of the German Nazi Political Party during World War 2. During the war, Hitler's forces killed millions of civilians including gypsies, homosexuals and Jews. After finally being defeated in 1945, Hitler and his wife, Eva Braun, committed suicide.

A Dubious Legacy

Hitler is remembered for the atrocities committed by the Nazi Party while it was under his reign. With his slick lock of black hair, piercing eyes and tiny mustache, Hitler is a recognizable figure. Though it has been more than half a century since his death, images of Hitler still appear in modern art, as he has become an easily recognizable symbol for evil.

Above: Graffiti dating back to WWII. This cartoon rendition of Adolf Hitler was found in a barn in East Yorkshire, England. During the war, the barn was used to house troops and it is thought that the painting was created by a soldier.

Above: A stencil graffiti piece depicting a young Adolf Hitler, found in Mexico. The dense black shadows used in this piece adds to the idea of evil that is attached to Adolf Hitler.

Above: A large street art sticker in Berlin, Germany, shows a desperate Hitler with a full bladder. The swastika emblem has been replaced with another symbol on his armband. Quite a number of these Hitler graffiti stickers have appeared in the area.

Above: An Italian stencil graffiti piece which shows Hitler shooting himself, surrounded by the words, "Facists and Nazis Follow Your Leader."

Above: This graffiti stencil in Bergen, Norway, shows Hitler as a waiter. A similar stencil was created by internationally renowned graffiti artist, Banksy, but the creator of the above piece is unknown.

Above: Banksy's graffiti artwork of Hitler as a waiter.

Above: This piece of Hitler Graffiti in Cardiff, England, combines an image of Adolf Hitler with the logo and slogan of the international fast food chain, Mcdonalds. 

Above: "It takes drastic measures" - a stenciled urban art piece found in Spain. Hitler is shown performing the Nazi Party salute, while a pair of unmanned scissors aims to cut off his hand and therefore disable Hitler.

Above: A Mexican artist's sense of humor finds its way into this stencil graffiti artwork. Hitler's hairstyle, with its side parting and long fringe, is reminiscent of the popular emo style that is being worn today.

Above: Is there any relation between the baby's black skin and Hitler views on Eugenics (race cleansing)?

Above: Quite a number of street artists have made connections between George W Bush and Adolf Hitler. In the above graffiti image, Bush doesn't have the trademark Hitler mustache, but two swastikas adorn the picture to insinuate that Bush's actions while president were similar to those of Adolf Hitler during his reign in Europe.

Above: It's not entirely clear if the artist wanted to create a comparison between Bush and Hitler or Bush and Charlie Chaplin, an actor during WWII who had a similar mustache. The piece is slightly whimsical, even pitiful. If it is meant to portray Bush as Hitler, the personality of the piece sets it apart from others in its category as it doesn't exhibit the same 'evil' factor as other Hitler graffiti works.

Above: An enormous graffiti sticker in the Netherlands shows a combination of Hitler and George Bush. Swastikas replace the stars on the American flag. More George Bush Graffiti Art

Above: Another Bush / Hitler hybrid image, similar to the one shown above. Bush Hitler is shown wearing a baseball cap with the Nazi SS logo emblazoned on it. The fearbush.com website is no longer available online.

Above: This train (unknown location) has been painted red and decorated with a swastika and the words, "Hitler Youth". The Nazi Youth Party Played a chilling role in the Second World War as children and teenagers were manipulated by mass propaganda to perform acts of violence.

This mid-20th Century Fuhrer and his actions have been memorialized in a number of different ways. Outside the building in Austria where Hitler was born is a stone engraved with the words, "For peace, freedom and democracy. Never again Fascism. Millions of dead remind us." Many books, movies and artworks have been created around Hitler's memory, and it seems that his image will continue to serve as a symbol of war and hate.

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Street Art goes Skin Deep with Graffiti Tattoos

Graffiti and Tattoos are art forms that have existed for centuries, as scrawls on the walls of Roman baths and tribal tattoos that mark coming-of-age ceremonies and personal achievements. It is only in the last few decades that street art and tattoos have taken on distinct style characteristics that set the apart from other art forms. Now these two rebellious genres have combined to produce graffiti tattoos.

Spraycan

The spraycan is a symbol of graffiti and street art, being the most common tool used by street artists. Its form is simple and its silhouette recognizable, even when morphed by the artist into a characterful artwork.

Above: This graffiti tattoo depicts both a spraycan and a gas mask (used by some graffiti artists to prevent the inhalation of paint fumes) 

Above: This graffiti piece uses a combination of geometric shapes and curves to create a visually interesting urban art-styled tattoo design. The colorful tattoo inks used in this piece, along with the repetition of recognizable shapes such as arrows, gives the tattoo a friendly appeal.



Cityscapes

Urban art is often inspired by the environment in which they are found - cities and transport routes. Using perspective to create visual interest, graffiti artists often incorporate city objects such as buildings, buses, trains and skylines.

Above: This tattoo shows a train bearing graffiti art. Trains are not only subject matter for graffiti artists; often they are also a challenging, illegal canvas for street artists to work upon. 

Above: This graffiti tattoo design combines the words, "New York" with a depiction of the famous city's skyline. The stars used in this artwork further add to the patriotic nature of this tattoo, as stars are a part of the American flag. More Patriotic New York Tattoos

Graffiti Lettering and Alphabets

Although there is no one distinct lettering style for graffiti, there is a variety of fonts that are popularly used by street artists. Graffiti alphabet designs are often warped, with key parts of the letter's anatomy exaggerated or decorated. Depth is created by giving the letters shadows and 3-D shapes.

Above: This graffiti font uses serif in some places, but not in others, proof that the artist is not bound by the rules of consistency usually applied to font design. The capitilized letters bend is if a force or pressure has been applied to them, a technique popularly used in graffiti lettering. The finished result is a graffiti tattoo that spells out the word, "faith".

Above: Some graffiti fonts are harder to read than others, which turns the artwork into a puzzle. The cryptic graffiti tattoos above are indecipherable.

Banksy Graffiti Tattoos

Working with stencil and spray paint, graffiti artist Banksy creates attractive, often controversial street artworks. His urban art mysteriously appears overnight, thrilling British graffiti art fans with both their content and message.

Above: Banksy's graffiti artwork of a girl shooting herself in the head, releasing a swarm of butterflies is tattooed on this girl's hip and belly. Banksy designs work well with the limitations of tattoo art, being clear and simple with elegant silhouettes. 

Above: A graffiti tattoo of the world famous Banksy design, of a man in a fighting pose, throwing a bunch of flowers. Banksy's graffiti art often shows startling contrasts between ideas, in this case, a symbol of love or peace combined with a man in a violent posture.

Above: Graffiti artist Banksy often uses rats as a subject in his artwork, to convey a message about human society. Banksy's rats are highly stylized, and have become a signature of sorts for this graffiti artist.

Graffiti and tattoos are often viewed as being rebellious in nature, as street art is illegal, and tattoos leave a permanent mark on the skin. As a form of self-expression, both styles are quickly gaining popularity, especially as a combination of the two in the form of graffiti tattoos.



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