Since its inception, street art has seemed like a boy’s game. It all started back in 1970, on subway trains. Back then, everything that involved spraying, wheat-pasting, stenciling on walls or tagging was illegal, and competitive men who wanted to demonstrate their hyper-masculinity preferred to participate. The rules have changed nowadays, and street art is now accepted and promoted across the globe. This means that a lot of women have also picked up the secrets of the trade, but because the aliases are so ambiguous, you might not have known that they are actually female street artists.
Recommended Read: 10 Street Artists to Watch in 2014
We might not yet now how many women artists are out there, but we know at least ten that we would like to share. Finally, the time has come for graffiti art to receive a feminine touch. Here are ten girls that have managed to push the boundaries of urban art.
1. Hera from HERAKUT
Number one of our list of female street artists is Hera, a member of Herakut from Germany. She has been collaborating with Akut (Falk Lehma) since 2004, and together they have perfectly blended their extremely different styles. She builds the skeleton, while Akut adds flesh and skin to portray and edgy fantasy realm.
2. Lady Pink
Not only is she considered the best female writer of her generation, but she has also managed to prove that girls can not only do street art, but actually do it better than boys. Her colorful surreal paintings have been displayed at the Brooklyin Museum, the Met and the Whitney. Her last work was part of the Welling Court Mural Project.
3. Maya Hayuk
To be honest, I have always been a huge fan of Maya Hayuk, but even if her name is clearly feminine, I never thought she was a woman. Her unique style is characterized by intricate models with bright colors. Her large-scale murals can be seen all over the world. The only place where they will never be displayed are galleries with less than 10% female artists.
4. Gilf!
Do you think that you can change the world through art? Gilf! Is one of the people who believes you can. Her polar bears wear floaties, guzzles fruit punch and interesting 2D murals can be found all over the Statue of Liberty and other locations. She even painted a mural called “All I see are Naked Emperors” outside the Chelsea gallery. Her most important quality is that she manages to bring artists together to collagorate on walls.
5. MYLA
Myla and Dabs, from DABS MYLA are a married couple of street artists that have been working together for over 12 years. Their styles are so similar that you can’t tell one from the other. Their signature style includes clear lines, interesting color palettes and a distinct cartoonish appearance. Myla is one of the most consistent female street artists at the moment.
6. SWOON
Another example of extremely talented female street artists is Swoon. You might know her from the life-sized wheat paste prints which adorn the abandoned buildings of Brooklyn and Manhattan. All of her works reflect the social and environmental issues of the planet, and everything she creates draws its inspiration from folk and historical sources (eg. German expressionism and Indonesian Shadow puppets).
7. CBLOXX
You probably had no idea that CBLOXX is one of the most popular female street artists in the world. Her style is so different from what we have seen before, that it would be impossible not to recognize it. CBLOXX grew up in Yorkshire, Huddersfield, is a high-school drop-out and self-taught street artist. Most of her work is surreal and depicts phantoms, voodoo characters, skeletons etc. In contrast with the city it generates a creepy atmosphere.
8. FAITH47
Another self-taught artist from the female street artists category is Faith47. She is from Cape Town and extremely cherished for her socially engaged murals. All of her work has a lamentable mood that is impossible to miss.
Sources: WideWalls & SocietePerrier