[above: put this back in your next mass-mailed business reply envelope!]
If the comments on this article are any indicator, Shopdropping is controversial to say the least. Still, whether they amuse, inspire or disturb you, it is hard to argue with the sheer gumption and creativity behind these strange, subversive and interactive urban art projects.
Shopdropping was probably the last kind of giving on most people's minds as they shopped during the holiday season. Shopdropping, also known as droplifting, is the incredible act of reverse shoplifting: going into stores and putting things onto the shelves. Banksy is probably the best known shopdropper, famous for putting out his own subvertised versions of Paris Hilton's CDs and hanging his subversive art in galleries.
The subject of graffiti often brings out strongly polarized reactions from urban dwellers, who either support it as art or criticize it as vandalism. Brandon Baunach of DesignCrack has developed a project based on an idea of Drew Heffron that has amazingly drawn both fire and criticism from both sides: Graffiti Report Card stickers for rating urban street graffiti.
As you walk through a city, how often do you stop to think about the signs, symbols and advertisements that bombard your vision from every direction? There seems little doubt that we live in a society increasingly dominated by visual information. However, refection on life is a prerequisite for living, and the cultural, political and commercial symbols of our times are well worth rethinking on a regular basis.
