Perhaps no other art movement has undergone the expansive shift that urban art has experienced since the turn of the millennium. Today the subversive, disruptive and anti-institutional origins of graffiti and street art sit alongside, perhaps even behind, contemporary muralism, street art festivals, blockbuster museum exhibitions and urban art auctions. When considering this evolution from rebellious outsider forms with strong do-it-yourself ethics to an increasingly nebulous contemporary identity, aspects of Ōtautahi Christchurch’s recent and somewhat unexpected urban art profile provide the chance for reflection.

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