Streets of Love TVBOY x La Roca Village

Streets of Love is much more than an exhibition. It’s a declaration of principles, an invitation for reflection, and a celebration of the shared values upheld by The Bicester Collection and TVBOY. This unique initiative coincides with the ‘TVBOY.

This summer, the Village is your museum, with an open-air exhibition reflecting on universal rights and current affairs. What messages move you as an artist?

I’m moved by refugee rights, the fight against racism, sexual discrimination and homophobia, the environment... basically, social issues and universal values that affect everyone. I always use a positive outlook, as I don't like to be catastrophic. When faced with a problem, I prefer to look for a possible solution that motivates us to improve.

From female empowerment to the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, is street art a powerful form of vindication?

Yes – no doubt about it. Being in the street allows everyone to see it. Moreover, it’s a language that’s understood by young and old alike. Street art challenges the public, questions preconceived ideas and sheds light on today's problems, injustice and abuse of power.

The future, dreams, love, respect, hope, equality... If you had to choose just one, what would it be?

I really like the future and hope, because I often think about the future we’ll leave to our children.

Do you think your work - and your message - changed with age and parenthood?

Of course! And my point of view has also changed.

With many of your works, there are messages of love, reconciliation and hope. Can street art break down walls?

For me, love is the starting point. I was inspired by the renowned “Socialist Fraternal Kiss” on the Berlin Wall between the leader of the former USSR Leonid Brezhnev and East German leader Erich Honecker to develop my work around the concept of a dialogue. We live in a society where everyone defends a position and social networks amplify hatred, so we must find common ground beyond the messages of division and tension.

Do you think the goals of today’s art are to shake consciences and bring it closer to new generations?

Yes, this is one of the objectives. Museums and galleries shouldn't be perceived as elitist places that are scary to enter and the street can help to bring art closer to young people.

You're a late X-gen from 1980 with a distinct signature of that time. A child with a TV head harks back to the ‘90s, when TV – although now potentially obsolete - was a mainstay in every home. How has your work evolved since you first collaborated with La Roca Village thirteen years ago?

It has changed quite a lot. In the beginning, I was more linked to pop, Keith Haring, American art, and logo graffiti. Today it's more figurative and encompasses social themes. In a way, my art has matured with me. Although I miss the energy of the street art movement at the beginning – when everything was a novelty and didn't have so much media coverage – today it finally has the recognition of the art market and it’s probably one of the most important genres in contemporary art.

How can an art form that’s often considered ephemeral endure over time?

Through social media photographs, in the press... It happens with censored works of art, like the kiss I made of Rajoy and Puigdemont, which was erased in a few hours. That went viral. When you want to hide something, you get the opposite effect, and the work becomes even more valuable.

Over the years, the initial innocence, playfulness and fun are left behind; in their place comes irony, daring, provocation and struggle. What elements do you play with to attract attention in an urban environment like the street or the Village?

Although I always try to convey a positive message, I like to define my work as satirical. Irony is a way of trying to catch the spectator, leading them to elements of criticism and analysis. I like a work not to have a single reading, but to be interpreted from different points of view.

In the age of hype, where artworks often function as memes, do you want people who come across your work to want to post it on social networks and add ‘likes’?

This is an important and controversial issue. It's true that I’ve gained a reputation as an artist through the "social" networks, but I don't think we should not give it too much importance. If you only create in order to receive likes, you end up doing stupid things.

What role have social networks played in your career as an anonymous urban artist?

With social media, a work made in Barcelona can reach the rest of the world. It happened with Messi and Ronaldo's kiss, which was my first work that created an international echo.

Your work gives voice to humanitarian work and solidarity projects, such as My Future for DO GOOD by The Bicester Collection. Why is so important today?

I started working with Open Arms two years ago. My work, Open Arms, would be the first image that people who had just been rescued would see, so I understood that art has the task of giving hope. Then, my second project was with EMERGENCY in Italy. In Emerge, I depicted one person reaching out to another to help them out of the water. More recently, I collaborated with Cesvi, an NGO that provides protection and psychosocial support to the most vulnerable affected by the conflict in Ukraine. It was a life-changing experience. Despite the shelling, I left fifteen murals on the streets of Kyiv, Bucha, and Irpin.

Of all the collaborations and projects that have brought you together with La Roca Village, which one is still thought-provoking?

This last project is undoubtedly the most important. It isn’t just because of its commitment to the city and to society, but also because of the collaboration with Brides do Good, an initiative that raises funds and helps work to end child marriage. I think it's a project that people will really like.