The Gift

From the perspective of the graffiti scene, events such as the Secret City Festival are a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the event contributes to the promotion and decriminalisation of those involved. On the other hand, the remodelling of public spaces leads to the disappearance of older images, which in certain cases have a high sentimental value for the scene. Pumba thematically addresses this dichotomy in his work on Padersteinweg. His concept is made up of three different elements, each of which is based on three different basic forms of urban art. On the left-hand side is a chrome bombing. Here, large letters are ‘bombed’ onto the wall in a short space of time using chrome-coloured cans. The silver-coloured letters are a homage to classic street graffiti. In the centre is the purely motivic graffiti of an octopus, as is typically found in street art. The design on the right-hand side reflects Pumba's own style. Here he mainly works with neon colours and intense lighting effects, which he creates with a spray can. This technique makes his lettering and monster figures reminiscent of old neon signs and neon tubes. These three levels of the work are united by the full-surface wrapping paper and the surrounding ribbon. The message behind this is possibly that the remodelling of urban spaces should be seen as a free gift for the people of a city. The work is rounded off by the large red metal bow that was finally placed on the pump house.