52 INTERVIEW
2007.10.29

Name: 52
Age: 29
Occupation: stencil artist
Current Location: Seoul, Korea

TNG: Did you do a lot of tagging in the past?

52: Not really.  I wasn’t really that into it.  I didn’t feel like I was able to communicate a real message or meaning through tagging alone.

TNG: How is tagging different from stenciling?

52: Tagging is all about getting your name out and on the streets.   And the writing often looks similar.  Only the people that are involved in the scene and the graffiti community know the meanings and understand the tags.  So when random people see writing on the street, they often don’t have a strong reaction.  I think stenciling is a bit different.  It’s a bit more accessible to the public.  I’m trying to integrate some elements of tagging into stenciling.  Even if my stencils don’t show my name, if people recognize my stencils, it can almost be like my own tag. 

What I really want to do with stencil art is get a message out to people on the street.  Throwing up a complicated graffiti piece takes a lot of time and is more of an individual artists’ work.  Through making and reproducing stencils, you can easily and quickly spread a message to a wide audience.

TNG: When did you start stenciling?  Did you do other types of art before stenciling?

52: I think I started about 2 or 3 years ago.  My major was advertisement design in school, so did mostly design-based art.  Around the time of my graduate exhibition, I first started looking at Banksy’s work. I think that’s when I really got interested in stencils.  At that time, I really wanted to do something like he was doing. 

My work is pretty simple and straightforward.  I just want to make something that will make people feel good when they see it on the street.  A place like Hongdae is so cluttered with posters, advertisements and graffiti, it can be quite messy.  I think I’ve always wanted to make something clearer, simpler.

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