Please Help Support Nicholas Ganz's Groundbreaking New Book "Street Messages"

What is the project about?

„Street Messages“ is the first book, that will present the world-wide scene of artists, who  exclusively work with texts, poems or slogans in public space. It will show the history of the written word in public space since the beginning of mankind and it’s importance until today.

Since the beginning of the history of mankind, human-beings have written or painted their living environment or thoughts on walls. Whether it had been ancient cave-paintings, where mostly animals have been depicted or the giant reliefs by the Mayans or Egyptians, where whole stories are being told. Political campaigns have written their slogans on walls throughout the whole history and called for resistance or criticised deficits in society.

Today huge billboards with advertising and empty messages are dominating the image of our streets, but there are many artists who leave their personal, philosophical, lyrical or political texts. Whole cities decorate their facades with poems and political organisations use the methods of graffiti and the advertising industry to spread their messages to a wider audience.

The book “Street Messages” will be released by Dokument Press from Sweden at the end of 2014 (most likely in spring 2015) and will be accompanied by a website or a facebook-page to continue to publish the communication in public space even after the release of the book. The website will give an opportunity to present current works in the internet and the book will be the root for it.

For this reason, we are already asking for your kind support today to fully realise the project without any borders.

"Street Messages“ is the first book that portrays artists from all around the world, who work with texts in the streets. By nature, artists from countries with a long graffiti tradition will be highlighted, but the light also goes to countries that have been partly neglected during the graffiti boom. Countries such as Bangladesh, Singapore, Nepal or Israel will find their place as well as countries like Lebanon, Egypt or Yemen where graffiti and written messages play an important role in the resistance against the suppressive regimes.

Nicholas is an author, who is putting his heart, love and full attention into each of his projects to realise a deep presentation that is preferred by him. For this reason we kindly ask for you support to help realising this project in all it’s depth.

- See more at: http://www.sponsume.com/project/street-messages-book#sthash.69L1VZlk.dpuf

What is the aim?

The aim of the project is to finalise the book with almost 150 to 200 pages. The research for the book is almost finished and the representatives of this art-form have been contacted and they already sent in a good amount of images and material. Currently Nicholas is negotiating with different publishers for the release of the book. The layout and the writing of the texts will start in January 2014.

After a successful funding of the project, author and photographer Nicholas will go on the necessary research-travels from March 2014 onwards to gather the last material with his camera and to interview the remaining artists and people. After his return, the book will be designed and finalised.

Why should you support this project?

Currently there is no book, that is presenting the written word in public space in such depth. No other book is portraying the representatives and historic backgrounds in such an extend. “Street Messages” will be the first book about graffiti and street art that documents the artistic story of mankind. Countless archaeological findings that date back to 40,000 BC give a clear proof that mankind has always painted and written on walls and in public space. With this background, the book is laying the basis for an evidence of the historic importance of this phenomenon, that today is known under the terms graffiti and street art.