Street Smarts: Harnessing the Creativity of Urban Activism

Does your organization take its activism to the street? This low budget urban social movement can be done with little funding and lots of creativity.

Here are some recent examples that come to mind. I know there are lots more– and would love to hear your examples.

Scientists on the Train

Hebrew University researchers take to the train for free monthly lecture series in specially designated compartments.

Recent lectures include a profile of Albert Einstein’s contribution to humanity (in honor of his March birthday which marks Israel Science Day), physics experiments in motion, and Israel’s development of new food crops, like genetically modified tomatoes.

My favorite quote from a passenger, “It was weird, but good.”

What would your organization do to go public? Lectures on trains and singing on street corners may seem extreme, but there’s always a lesson to be had in translating your mission and objectives into hands-on contact with constituents.

— Is Your Organization Brave Enough to Sing on Street Corners and Write on the Walls? Keep Reading to Find Out Who Is —

Music in the (Food) Court

Not long ago, the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra took to the court, the food court that is, in the center of Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Square.

There they mingled amongst diners and broke out into Verdi’s “Il Trovatore” in a stunning study of bringing an organization and its art form to an uninitiated audience.

You have to see it to believe it, so click on the video below.

Israeli Street Art

Are these two examples outliers? No way. Public expressions of art are manifested throughout the country.

Street art is a powerful medium that is almost ubiquitous to Israel’s urban centers. It is commonplace to see art on bus stops and walls, and pretty much any public protrusion is fair game for the street artist’s paint brush or spray can.

Israeli Art as Innovation

While dramatic art, as performed by the “Scientists on the Train” and Israeli Philharmonic, is a different art form than wall paintings, they are both emblematic of the central role of art and innovation in Israeli culture.

Israel’s hunger for artful self-expression is evident from the walls of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to our very physical geography.

(Here’s a view of the Azrieli tour and a Gaudi style building near the beach.)

We crave creativity in our interactions with our surroundings and pride artful expressions of it in even the most unusual settings. (If you need reinforcement of this idea, go back and watch the reactions of the crowd in the videos.)

Learn More About Israeli Street Art

To learn more about Israeli public art, check out these photo pools on Flickr (most of whose photos are copyrighted, but they make for excellent browsing).

• Israel Street Art
• Tel Aviv Graffiti
• Tel Aviv Walls

As well as this excellent blog, which features many photos and videos:

• Tel Aviv Street Art Blog

Share

Last but not least, I want to hear your stories. There are tens of examples of performance activism that I’ve heard about over the years. Will you share yours with The New Jew’s readers?

Moreover, if these stories have inspired you to act out artfully in your own passionate pursuits– be they personal or professional– it’d be great to hear about your plans. Please comment below.

Photo Credits

Many thanks to those who mark their photos, especially of public art, with the Creative Commons license.

Flickr photo credit is as follows:

• “Mantiochus”: title image; Arab and Jew hugging, women kissing, Azrieli Tower
• “JoFo2010”: “The Hat Wants You,” “City Croquis,” “Stencil Mosque”
• “AustinEvan”: “Gaudi Tel Aviv”

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