Begging for Change Essay

UntitledAs an advocate for members of the lowest socioeconomic status, anonymous graffiti artist commonly referred to as “Meek,” created Begging for Change, with intentions to increase awareness, create dialogue and government involvement with issues surrounding homelessness. Located in a bustling train station in Australia, Meek’s life-size graffiti image depicts a man sitting who reflects a beggar soliciting for money. Meek’s powerful artwork located in a heavily populated area has ignited the fire in various individuals who advocate for social change. As an advocate for the rights of the homeless, Meek desires his artwork to reflect his interest and encourage activism for the rights of the homeless within communities. His desires have sparked an essential conversation to fight this pressing issue.

Meek was born in 1978 and began his career in 2003 by putting up street art in Melbourne, Australia–commonly referred to as the capital of stenciled graffiti. Meek paints socially controversial messages with efforts to bring change and draws inspiration from the works of another reputable London-based street artist named Banksy. Similarly, these street artists face clear dangers that normal citizens do not experience. When sharing their creativity with the world, street artists often have to hide from local authorities because their method of advocating for change is illegal. If caught by said authorities, Meek and Banksy could face severe criminal punishments.

Despite the risk of imprisonment, Meek boldly stenciled the piece of art that he is most known for, Begging for Change. The homeless man was stenciled at ground level to realistically reflect the height of someone who is truly homeless. Disrupting the viewer’s expectations, the man’s sign reads: “Keep your coins, I want Change.” Meek’s clever pun compels viewers to recognize the problems that the disadvantaged face, thus awakening society to the need for a fundamental change.

By spray-painting this controversial message on a wall at an Australian train station, Meek sent a “Mayday” message to individuals of all socioeconomic standings, bringing focus to a problem of homelessness that many are conscious of, but choose to ignore. The message serves to stimulate concern and initiate empathy in people who often disregard and walk by under-privileged citizens on a daily basis.  The homeless people frequently passed often suffer from mental illnesses or have other disabilities preventing them from finding long-term employment. The same unemployable citizens of many diverse countries find themselves struggling for sustenance. By spreading awareness about homelessness to a vast audience, Meek’s art is designed to initiate change.

While constructing this controversial piece of art, Meek wanted to make sure that he did not offend the disadvantaged with his design. It took him a while to perfect the image and feel comfortable with posting it somewhere thousands of people would see. Meek’s art piece was momentous and memorable because the message expressed the silent thoughts of many citizens without painting the homeless in a negative light. Meek’s street art forces one to realize that simply donating money to displaced individuals only offers temporary relief. The powerful message resonated with many and showed how truly ineffective our efforts for helping the homeless have been.

When Begging for Change was produced in 2004, Australia faced a recession in which 1 in every 154 Australians sought help from assistance services for the homeless.  The image became so well known that Meek’s clever design has been printed on clothing as a part of a human right’s campaign. Some fanatics have gone as far as tattooing the image onto their bodies. Meek has created his brand from this piece of art and continues to rise as an artist in Melbourne. Although his more recent artwork is not as socially active, Meek managed to initiate transformation in a grandiose way for his level of experience.

Although relatively new to this style of art, Meek’s stenciled graffiti has been showcased at three locations. The locations include the Melbourne Stencil Festival in 2005, Backwoods an exhibition of the Ever Fresh Studios at Wooden Shadow Gallery in Richmond, and in the National Gallery of Art in Canberra, Australia. Begging for Change drew a lot of attention to the Melbourne area although often confused as a piece by Banksy. This specific piece can even be found online with Banksy’s signature attached, even though it rightfully belongs to Meek. This is most likely a consequence of both artists focusing on stenciled street art.

In order to create their art both Banksy and Meek follow a technique used by print-makers called relief printing.  Using a stencil like a woodblock cut, the artist creates the image by using spray paint, as opposed to ink, to fill the empty spaces of the stencil. Most street artists use paper or cardboard to create images that can easily be reproduced or placed at desired locations and on various surfaces. In most cases, multiple stencils are used in order to give the image depth or create other illusions.

Although inexperienced, Meek has established his art as a vehicle for social change. Begging for Change was made to help create awareness for the horrid state the homeless face on a global scale. Like Meek, many up and coming freelance artists have started to use art for social activism. Change is the result of an individual’s ideas, hopes and dreams. For Meek these three things were the catalyst for his inspirational artwork that began in the streets of Melbourne, Australia.

AMV

Citations:

“Meek Begging for Change.” National Gallery of Australia. NGA, n.d. Web. 15 July 2015. < http://nga.gov.au/exhibition/SPACEINVADERS/Default.cfm?IRN=162193&BioArtistIRN=33679&MnuID=4&GALID=33679&viewID=3&DTLVIEW=TRUE >.

“Meek (Street Artist).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 16 July 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meek_%28street_artist%29>.

Coslovich, Gabriella. “Www.theage.com.au.” Our Colourful Underbelly. The Age, 4 Dec. 2005. Web. 16 July 2015. <http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts/our-colourful-underbelly/2005/12/03/1133422148230.html?page=fullpage>.

“Stencil Graffiti.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 16 July 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stencil_graffiti>.

“Relief Printing.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 16 July 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relief_printing>.

“Homelessness in Australia.” Homelessness in Australia -. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 July 2015. <https://homelessnessaus.wikispaces.com/>.

Ruppel, Logan. “Homelessness: I Want Change.” Social Active. N.p., 28 Feb. 2011. Web. 15 July 2015. <https://socialactive.wordpress.com/2011/02/28/homelessness-i-want-change/>.