'WHAT'S WORNG?' A Prost Exhibition

On Saturday, August 17th, Urban Spree Galerie presents 'WHAT'S WORNG ?', a solo show by Berlin based street artivist Prost, which is at the same time conceived as a retrospective. The show includes a selection of older and iconic pieces as well as new artworks and collaborations with notorious graffiti writers.

Prost will also present his one-liners : portraits made of a single line, à main levée.

In Berlin, Prost is ubiquitous. His famous character, the Prostie, adorns many of the derelict walls of the city since years whereas his adbusting skills subvert the consumerist codes of our society. For Prost, advertising is the real violence. Commercial images invade the public space without permission and deserve to be twisted, diverted from their intentional purpose, with sheer provocation and an absolute  big laugh.

For Prost, art in the street must bear a message, and should not only be graphically nice but tells something about the state of our society. Prost is a whistleblower, a reminder that we should retain control over the public space. "Berlin schmeckt mir schon, aber Werbung stinkt".

With over 500+ advertising billboards busted, Prost uses his wit to deliver messages, incite passers-by to choose new angles of thought, to think about the overconsumption of images and products, triggering a smile and a reaction against the totalitarianism of beauty as dictated by cosmetic and so called 'fast moving consumer brands', the rejection of an europeocentric approach, aesthatic canons and vitruvian proportions. However, with Prost, the humour and satire are always at the forefront of his work.

As he puts it: "I am a happy anarchist, (...) not an angry vandal."

Seeing a Prostie in the street is a secret indication that something else is to be seen, a slight distortion of reality, however the spectator is free to see what he wants. Prost is just the question mark, he is offering questions, not serving answers.

Prost is a true voice of Berlin. Und Berlin spricht Wände.

Prost is a graphic situationist, and by using his art skills in the street to mock the ridicule of our "société du spectacle", he was poised to run into trouble. Last year, Prost experienced a lot of graffiti/vandalism issues with the police and justice. His troubles today are far from being over.

To make a long story short, it is probably the last time a Prost exhibition will be shown in Germany. A Prost memorabilia shop will be set up in the galerie, with stickers, tote bags, tshirts, pins, DVDs, and a special hand-pulled limited edition screenprint specially produced for the show by Mother Drucker in the Urban Spree Ateliers. You are all heartily welcome to the vernissage on Saturday, August 17th, with the presence of the artist. From 19:00 till late with guest DJs invited by Prost playing in the garden.