‘The Orphans’ is an art series by AT.AW. that involves adhering temporary paper drawings to enliven the urban environment.
‘The Orphans’ uses ubiquitous methods of wheatpasting or flyposting as a means to proliferate throughout the urban landscape. The act of ‘consuming’ ubiquitous urban objects and space creates a whimsical layer to the often mediocre or bland design of urban infrastructure. This intense massing creates a provocative singular wall paper effect, delightfully animating the experience of the object through, essentially, a scale distortion of lilliputian proportions. Unlike graffiti which emphasizes territory or the individual persona/ego of the tagger, these character are mass produced mini-portraitures that celebrate the potential manufactured diversity of the urban environment.
Through the medium of ‘street art’, ‘The Orphans’ comfortably sit between an alternative and unique art statement and the more blatant accessibility of a consumable mass produced product. This exploration of mass produced processes as a subversive rather than regulatory technique blurs the line of art and product, digging deep at the intentions of mass production and their effect on the built environment. As a critical statement on contemporary art, the work suggests an alternative or, arguably, more effective means of communicating with an audience.