Re-Writing the Streets 2.0: The International Language of Stickers

Co-curated by Catherine Tedford and Oliver Baudach.

In the last forty years, street art has evolved dramatically from the aerosol and painted mural graffiti that peppered subway stations, back alleys, and train yards, and which was typically seen as vandalism. Today, new forms of visual communication are created in public spaces, often attracting viewers in more contemplative and/or interactive ways. Street art stickers have emerged as a provocative vehicle for self-expression and an effective way to engage passersby.

Stickers may be used to “tag” a space and make it temporarily one’s own, to sell products or services, to publicize social media sites, or to offer social commentary and critique. As one of the most democratic art forms, stickers can be hand-drawn or printed on paper or vinyl as silkscreens, stencils, linocuts, Xeroxes, and offset lithographs, and are distributed quickly, cheaply, and widely. Some artists create homemade do-it-yourself (DIY) stickers in small numbers, while others mass-produce hundreds at a time.

Measuring about 2x2 to 3x4 inches, stickers are “hidden in plain sight” on street signs, telephone poles, dumpsters, and windows. In urban sites dominated by commercial advertising and corporate logos, publicly placed stickers, by their very presence, re-write the streets and produce what curator Nato Thompson calls elsewhere “creative disruptions of everyday life.” Representing a diverse array of voices and perspectives, stickers offer a spirited “ground up” alternative to an often “top down” media-saturated environment. And although ephemeral by nature, stickers capture the creative, cultural, and political pulse of time and place.

Incorporating the finest examples from two collectors, Oliver Baudach in Germany and Catherine Tedford in the United States, the exhibition includes over 900 original, unused stickers grouped by artists, themes, dates, and geographic locations. Based in Berlin, Oliver Baudach is the founder and director of Hatch Kingdom, the world’s first museum devoted to sticker art. Representing three decades of work, his international collection numbers over 30,000 stickers spanning genres from character design to skateboarding, streetwear, and music. With an extensive network of artist contacts, Oli is a leading expert in the field. Catherine Tedford, gallery director at St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, has been collecting stickers since 2003, and her collection numbers over 15,000 stickers from around the world. She writes about contemporary and historical political stickers on her research blog Stickerkitty.

Individual artists and artists’ collabs in the exhibition include Cupco (Australia); Hoplouie (Denmark); Flying Fortress, Haevi, Ping Pong, Prost, Tower, 24/7 Crew (Germany); Bust, Sol Crew (Netherlands); Dignidad Rebelde, Evoker, Obey Giant, RobotsWillKill, Zoltron, and 14Bolt (United States). Artists like these use humanoid figures, robots, zombies, food, animals, insects, eyes, hands, and other imaginative designs to tag the streets. Artists also play with type fonts and graphic design elements to subvert corporate logos in what’s known as “culture jamming.” Stickers in the exhibition that serve as social commentary and critique include subjects such as animal rights, civil liberties, the economy, environmental issues, identity, political protest, and sports.

In 2015, Oli sent out a worldwide call-for-entries to create the original Re-Writing the Streets exhibition and to add to St. Lawrence University’s Street Art Graphics digital archive. A second worldwide call was issued in 2024 for the expanded 2.0 edition of the exhibition.

Courtesy of St. Lawrence University (Canton, NY) and Hatch Kingdom Sticker Museum (Berlin, Germany).