Use of Public Spaces As Creative Acts. Phenomenology of Street Art in a Cross-Cultural Perspective

Contemporary forms of street art are re-shaping and de-structuring the ways of experiencing and consuming public spaces. Through an extended ethnography, our study analyzes the multiple forms of creativity and messages that street artists are developing in several cities in US, Italy, and UK. The analysis and discussion of findings allow us to unpack the nature and the meanings ascribed to different forms of creative acts performed by these artists. A sense of altruism, an investment in critical thinking which imbues these practices are transforming the consumption of public space and celebrating new ways of consumption. A new ecology of creativity thus emerges when we consider the impact on consumption. Finally, it identifies new ways of production and consumption of public spaces that are transforming the sense of place and collective identities.

Citation:

Stefania Borghini, Luca M. Visconti, Laurel Anderson, and John F. Jr Sherry (2007) ,"Use of Public Spaces As Creative Acts. Phenomenology of Street Art in a Cross-Cultural Perspective", in E - European Advances in Consumer Research Volume 8, eds. Stefania Borghini, Mary Ann McGrath, and Cele Otnes, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 362-365.