SPY urban art

Spanish artist SpY has refined his subversive urban art interventions over decades of work converting conventional spaces into extraordinary places. He is an international sensation that adapts his work to whatever process and materials a situation calls for, from giant posters and billboards to small-scale transformations.

urban guerrilla street sign art

Many of his works revolve around alterations to ordinary objects, tweaks that at first may not register as passers by catch glimpses of them out of the corners of their eyes – but that upon closer inspection call our everyday urban environment into question.

guerrilla street sign modification

While some of his work is simple, superficial (structurally speaking) and easy to execute other pieces require forethought, advanced tools and serious stealth to be implemented.

illegal urban guerrilla art

Years as a graffiti artist, prior to starting his guerrilla art installations, taught SpY the power of subversion – which he has taken to new levels by transforming ordinary objects into extraordinary works of thought-provoking contextual urban art.

“SpY is an urban artist whose first endeavors date back to the mid-eighties. Shortly after, already a national reference as a graffiti artist, he started to explore other forms of artistic communication in the street. His work involves the appropiation urban elements through transformation or replication, commentary on urban reality, and the interference in its communicative codes.”

“The bulk of his production stems from the observation of the city and an appreciation of its components, not as inert elements but as a palette of materials overflowing with possibilities. His ludic spirit, careful attention to the context of each piece, and a not invasive, constructive attitude, unmistakably characterize his interventions.”

“SpY’s pieces want to be a parenthesis in the automated inertia of the urban dweller. They are pinches of intention, hidden in a corner for whoever wants to let himself be surprised. Filled with equal parts of irony and positive humor, they appear to raise a smile, incite reflection, and to favor an enlightened conscience.”