The National, 15.10.15
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One of the young artists involved in the exhibition is 32-year-old Haakon Rist: marketing and brand strategist by day, graffiti artist and rapper by night.
He has contributed a pair of illustrations based on the once-controversial video game Mortal Kombat – which pits fighters in semi-supernatural battles to the death.
"The first one is a piece called Scientific Wins," he begins. "It's set in the world of Mortal Kombat and it's essentially my rapper alias Scientific, – who I portray as a sort of urban-arts superhero, and the values he stands for, which are tolerance, education and creative expression – winning over ignorance."
Scientific is stood victorious over ignorance, similar to the way in which Mortal Kombat fighters pose after winning a bout.
The second piece, Hero, also features Scientific, but is based more on Guitar Hero and Def Jam's Rap Star, games that draw more on rhythm and musical talent.
Rist says although graffiti has a criminal past, springing out of inner city gang activity, it has since changed — with urban art often reflecting positive values.
“You have artists, such as Rescue from New York, who has a lot of online videos where, first of all, he provides how-to guides on graffiti for young people, and he speaks about his background. He was sort of rebellious and he reached a point in his life where he had to make a decision about what to focus on.
“That resonated with me, not in terms of my past, because I have a very spotless past – I never did any illegal graffiti, I was always commissioned or,” he laughs.
“But I believe that when we create art, we put such energy into it, which comes across, and in my opinion it’s really important to infuse it with positivity.”
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