When I first moved to the house I currently live in, I felt like I was in an entirely new area of New York, despite being a mere ten blocks from my former apartment. There was one piece of art on the corner of my block that immediately grabbed my attention, and as soon as I saw it, I reached for my phone and took a picture. A dance and theater studio had a piece of graffiti on one of their walls, which was odd because Bay Ridge, the neighborhood I live in, does not contain much graffiti or public art. Since graffiti is so rare in that area, it automatically draws attention to itself, which is its primary purpose. It is meant to draw attention to the studio to help bring in more customers.
The graffiti is of the two faces of comedy and tragedy, also known as the Greek Muses Thalia and Melpomene. These masks are commonly known as the symbol for drama and theater, which is why they were airbrushed on the wall of a dance and theater studio. Thalia, the face of comedy, is painted in pink and yellow, while Melpomene, the face of tragedy, is painted in green and purple. Even though the image is flat, the masks seem full of dimension because of the reflections of light that are painted on the masks, and because they have a lot of facial detail, such as creases on the cheeks and expressive mouths.
The colors on this piece are very vibrant, and the only exception is the background, which is in black and white, and it is checkered and oriented diagonally. Although the background is monochrome, the design itself is very fitting, as the backdrop for the two faces draws more attention to them. There are also two spotlights at the bottom of this piece, shining up at the two masks.
This piece of artwork draws a lot of attention to itself with its vibrant colors and style. The two masks represent the two themes that embody the human condition: comedy and tragedy. These two themes make theater and life in general much more exciting and eventful. Nothing draws a human’s sympathy and emotion more than making them laugh or cry. Most humans can understand these two themes, so they are essential to the way theater is presented to an audience. These concepts also apply to life; humans’ reactions are usually quite strong if they are happy or sad, which are the two emotions that these masks ultimately represent.
The simple monochrome background helped direct the attention to the two masks. However, this could have been done with the color white on its own. The addition of black changes the piece altogether and makes it more complex. These two colors can also be reflective of human life, as the two masks are. The black and white almost have a yin and yang effect, symbolizing balance in good and bad. The graffiti as a whole is simultaneously representing theater and life, and does a good job symbolizing the general human condition with its use of symbolism.
Although this graffiti is clearly sponsored by the dance and studio theater, it is a great piece of public art on its own. It is so vibrant and colorful, and I enjoy gazing at it when I pass by. It fulfills its primary purpose, which is to draw attention to the studio and attract customers. It is not illegal, as it is not vandalism, so it was meant to stay there for a long time, essentially for as long as the studio stayed open. This piece brightens up Bay Ridge, and gives the area a more creative and interesting look.
Safaa Slimani
