Dedicated to critical cultural production at the intersection of art and activism.

Update: Daniel Tucker pointed us to this video of the action, featuring Jesse giving a mud stencil demo.

(Milwaukee-based street artist and object maker Jesse Graves is a guest blogger for Groundswell.)

My Name is Jesse Graves, I am a Milwaukee-based street artist and object maker. Two years ago I invented mud stencils for use as street art. My initial motivation in developing this medium was to solve the problem of how to put environmental messages in public spaces without using a toxic substance like spray paint. Mud it the perfect medium for this because it is earth. I am using what sustains us to raise consciousness on how we can sustain ourselves. Other benefits of mud are it surprises and confuse people. Is it Illegal? There are certainly no laws specifically against it. This makes it extremely effective for street art and public awareness campaigns. I post stencils in the day, in public places and talk to people about what I am doing and the content behind my work. Directions on how to stencil with mud, and photos of my work can be found at my website.

I recently collaborated with Tamms Year 10, a collation of concerned citizens that is working to reform Tamms prison. Tamms is a Supermax prison in Southern Illinois that has been condemned in its human rights abuses by Amnesty international, Human Rights Watch, and New Yorker. The maximum-security portion of Tamms holds prisoners in constant solitary confinement leading to horrific mental deterioration. This prolonged solitary confinement is state sanctioned torture. I was especially compelled to collaborate with the campaign to reform Tamms Prison after reading testimony from prisoners held there. Prisoner testimony, and other information can be found at the Tamms Year 10 website.

To support the efforts of Tamms Year 10, myself and a few other Milwaukee artists cut stencils and brought them to Chicago to post in a tactical media campaign. The idea to raise public awareness about Tamms through the use of mud stencils came from Nicolas Lampert, member of Just Seeds Radical Art Cooperative. This is the first time I have used mud stencils to address an issue that is not directly related to natural environments. Using mud gave us the freedom to post work during the day. We had over 30 volunteers working in groups of 3-4 to post stencils throughout Chicago. No one was even stopped by police. Working during the day allowed us to Dialog with community members. My group ran into several people who had friends of family in Tamms prison. They were happy to see that there are people who care about prisoners.

Related posts:

1. A Call to Stencil with Mud
2. Urban Revitalization & Street Art: Jeremy Novy
3. Groundswell Talks: Rebecca Lerner, Urban Forager
4. Paths Through Utopias – Video Editor Urgently Needed

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