Laura Ortiz Vega: ‘Cosmograffiti’ Reinterprets Original Street Art Form

Laura Ortiz Vega “paints” by gluing colorful threads to a wood board using beeswax. Above, Detail of “Fire,” 2011 (thread and beeswax on board).

NEW YORK—At first glance, Laura Ortiz Vega’s work looks like standard street art, box-mounted and hung in a modern Chelsea Gallery. But her canvases—which feature graffiti-style lettering—are not created using spray paint. Viewers must stand within inches of her work to realize that the Mexico City native has created the pieces using string. “Cosmograffiti” at Lyons Wier Gallery “fuses traditional Mexican artisanal techniques with contemporary graffiti imagery.” Vega begins her process by photographing graffiti around Mexico city and then “re-contextualizes” the images using the threading techniques of the Huichol Indians. “Cosmograffiti” runs from Nov. 17 to Dec. 17, 2011.

Photos by Arts Observer

“GoldRedXL,” 2011 (thread and beeswax on board).

At left (being viewed), “Chacaloflow,” 2011; at right, “Quetzalcoati,” 2011 (both, thread and beeswax on board).