1. What are some of the stereotypes (here you can include any reoccurring language/adjectives/ideas) that accompany the discussion around the kind of artist Richard Hambleton was and the way street art and street artists are understood?

ARTIFACT 2 - Photo: Photographer Unknown, richardhambletonofficial.com
Artist Richard Hambleton poses in front of one of his faded shadowman street art pieces. The shadowy figure Hambleton created here, feels very much as though it could represent the figure of Hambleton's fellow street artist, Jean-Michel Basquiat.

There are many stereotypes that accompany the discussion of Hambleton in both of the New York Times Articles. In Richard Sandomir’s November 4, 2017 article about Hambleton, Sandomir does spend a lot of time discussing Hambleton’s art production. Specifically, he opens his article by declaring how it felt like graffiti was everywhere in the early 1980s. While graffiti scrolled onto the sides of subway cars would reach various points of a city like New York, I’m not sure one could argue that every borough was overrun by graffiti.

Sandomir also describes Hambleton as being a Canadian conceptual artist, and the way it’s written makes it sound as if all Canadian artists are conceptual artists. Sandomir and the documentary also shows highlight how the artworld viewed Hambleton’s desire to branch out into painting seascapes, landscapes and other artworks (that became a part of his beautiful period) were nothing more than superficial venture of Hambleton’s, and not real art, as many of his supporters wanted Hambleton to concentrate on the kinds of work that made him famous. In short, Hambleton was shunned for his desire to explore different techniques, and his struggle feels very similar to the struggles of artists like Jackson Pollock (who was never able to branch out from his drip technique), or Gerhard Richter (who moved from painting into photography). In this case, the stereotype lies in the idea that there is an expectation that an artist should only explore the style of artmaking that made them famous to begin with.

The documentary and Sandomir also spend time on the idea that Hambleton was a tortured genius with a drug addiction, which is another stereotype that many artists must contend with.

Furthermore, the film SHADOWMAN opens on a scene where Hambleton is making his art, late at night, on the decrepit streets of NYC. Bob Morris too, in his article for the NYT, opens his piece in a similar manner, describing how street artist Nullbureau also went about painting a shadowman figure late at night. It feels like a possible stereotype to suggest that graffiti artists are always painting while hiding in the shadows. ARTIFACTS 1 & 2 features Hambleton posing with his famous shadowman figures (ARTIFACT 1 highlights an image created in studio, on canvas; while ARTIFACT 2 features imagery likely created on the street), which are similar to the ones featured in the SHADOWMAN film.

ARTIFACT 3 - Video: Sotheby’s. “Richard Hambleton: The Godfather of Street Art.” YouTube, 23 Sept 2021.

Finally, in both the documentary we screened, SHADOWMAN, as well as in the Sandomir and Morris articles, the concept of the artist as celebrity is played with. Specifically, Morris describes Hambleton as the godfather of street art, inspiring contemporary street artists such as Banksy. Sandomir draws connections between Hambleton and other celebrity artists such as Basquiat and Haring, and it feels as though Sandomir is suggesting that most graffiti or street artists of that era had celebrity status, which is not the case. Sandomir’s writing also seems to suggest that many graffiti street artists had connections to an elite party scene, at venues such as Club 57. To highlight the celebrity angle, both the film and the NYTs article describe Hambleton as being alluring, brilliant, cool, hip, and mysterious. A ladies man, who lives on the edge, an up and coming art star on par with the likes of Andy Warhol. But in considering how Hambleton would ultimately recoil from this, it feels as though Sandomir is playing with stereotypes in discussing Hambleton’s celebrity. Hambleton's status is further played with and revealed in very specific, carefully crafters terms as seen in ARTIFACT 3, a Sothby's YouTube video designed to advertise an upcoming auction.

2. What other reasons (besides Hambleton’s death) do you think contribute to the interest in Hambleton’s art, and his persona and way of being an artist? Why do you think his shadow figure works have found a new audience today?

The SHADOWMAN documentary, which is now easily accessible on various streaming platforms, has likely helped to contribute to the newfound interest in Hambleton’s art.

ARTIFACT 4 - Photo: Steven Lee, "Hambleton Screenshots." 17 May 2022.
*Three screen captures related to Hambleton's presence on the social media platform, Instagram.*

Instagram has been a vehicle that’s helped to push Hambleton’s legacy. There was an active Instagram account called @richardhambletonstudio but it hasn’t been posted to since 2017. Comments on the last posts made to the feed were full of “RIP” tributes. I imagine, had Hambleton lived, he might have been inspired to do work that saw him utilize platforms like Instagram in ways like how artists like Banksy have leveraged the platform. There is also an account called @richardhambletonfoundation which is active, with the latest post having been made a few weeks ago. The hashtag, #richardhambleton has 7,600 posts associated with it. In January 2020, there was another Instagram account that was posting regularly, with posts being made every other day, with work spanning from his entire career. I can’t seem to find that page today – although it is possible that it was what is now the Foundation page. ARTIFACT 4 is a compilation of three different screenshots highlighting Hambleton’s presence on Instagram.

The Morris article also dives into how tightly controlled Hambleton’s work is today. It feels very similar to how the estate of Jackson Pollock has treated the work of Pollock. The documentary also highlighted how there were art promoters who were travelling around the globe trying to collect past work of Hambleton’s. This is further emphasized by the Sothby's YouTube clip about Hambleton, shared above. It feels ironic to see the control exerted over his image today, as the SHADOWMAN documentary highlighted how his work wasn’t tracked well during his own lifetime, and he was often taken advantage of by people wanting to get their hands on one of his pieces.

All of this has likely helped to contribute to what Morris, in his article for the NYT, described as a proliferation of copycat artists, such as street artist Nullbureau, who are attempting to recreate the kind of shadowman imagery that Hambleton was famous for. Nullbureau approached the estate for permission to replicate the works on the street and received it. But it’s led to questions of authenticity, and many have criticized Nullbureau’s work as being very simplified in comparison to the work Hambleton initially made (Nullbureau doesn’t even use the same materials Hambleton used, as the article discusses how he used spray paint, whereas Hambleton himself used thick, tar like paint applied with a paintbrush to create his shadow figures). Hambleton’s former girlfriend, Mette Madsen described the recreations as “…a little neat and contained to feel authentic” and lacking movement. Madsen was not sure that Hambleton would have even approved of the recreations.

3. What have you found: 1) most intriguing about Hambleton and his story; 2) most disturbing about Hambleton and his story; and 3) the biggest take-away message or lesson for street artists today about Hambleton and his legacy?

The most intriguing thing about Hambleton for me was the high level and consistency of his production. He was a truly prolific artist who continued to produce work no matter what his circumstances were. Even homelessness didn’t stop his drive to create works of art. He also appeared to be very brilliant when it came to improvisation, especially when it came to sourcing art supplies. At one point, it’s revealed in the SHADOWMAN documentary, that Hambleton even used his own blood as a substitute for red paint. It feels somewhat romantic, or idealized, but this work ethic is something you hear a lot about. For example, in the 2018 HBO documentary JOHN MCCAIN: FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS, McCain says how: “The best cure for losing is to get to work, to get busy. That’s the only way to get over failure and loss.” And Hambleton’s practice seemed deeply rooted in that sentiment, as he constantly seemed to be able to create.
The most disturbing thing about Hambleton for me lay rooted in his addictions to drugs and alcohol. At one point in the SHADOWMAN documentary, it’s noted that Hambleton made his fellow artist drug users like Basquiat look like lightweights when it came to the high number of drugs each artist consumed. From listening to interviews with celebrities like Robin Williams, when you reached a certain level of celebrity the drugs just come flowing in, you never had to go looking for it as the celebrity culture of the 1980s was very enabling when it came to supporting ongoing drug and alcohol use. It’s a bit of a vicious cycle, as addiction is usually rooted in insecurities, fears, and a desire to belong. It can be driven by depression, and in turn, it can feed a depression.
Finally, the biggest take-away message or lesson for artists today would be if you’re suffering, please don’t buy into the myth that you must suffer for your art. You don’t. Get help. And don’t retreat. A 2011 article on Healthline.com called 10 Careers With High Rates of Depression lists artists, entertainers, and writers as one of the ten careers. Specifically the article states how:

These jobs can bring irregular paychecks, uncertain hours, and isolation.
Creative people may also have higher rates of mood disorders; about 9% reported an episode of major depression in the previous year.
In men, it’s the job category most likely to be associated with an episode of major depression (nearly 7% in full-time workers).
“One thing I see a lot in entertainers and artists is bipolar illness,” says Legge. “There could be undiagnosed or untreated mood disorders in people who are artistic…. Depression is not uncommon to those who are drawn to work in the arts, and then the lifestyle contributes to it.”

I do sometimes wonder had Hambleton or Basquiat reached out to get help to deal with their addictions, would that have hurt the fame they eventually received? Did their addictions feed their personas and the cult of celebrity that formed around them following their deaths? Having said that though, even as recently as June 2021, news outlets reported the death of street artist Hesh Halper, also known as the “New York Romantic.” Only one outlet, The Philadelphia Inquirer, in their story “Phily native and “New York Romantic” Hesh Halper, who drew colorful hearts with chalk on the streets and lifted spirits in Lower Manhattan, dies at 41,” reported that Halper had taken his own life by jumping off of the Brooklyn Bridge.

ARTIFACT 5 - Painting: Edvard Munch. "The Scream." Oil, tempera, pastel and crayon on cardboard, National Gallery and Munch Museum, Oslo, Norway, 1893.

Rute Ferreira, in her piece 4 Artists who Suffered from Mental Illness,' written in October 2020 for the Daily Art Magazine, quoted artist Edvard Munch, who stated how: "I cannot get rid of my illnesses, for there is a lot in my art that exists only because of them."

Ferreira further explains how:

‘Munch wrote that “sickness, madness, and death were the black angels that guarded my crib,” and he even came to be diagnosed with neurasthenia, a clinical condition associated with hysteria and hypochondria. His work is characterized by figures whose sense of despair and anguish are evident. The strokes and colors that Munch uses in his compositions often demonstrate his own state of mind."

So it’s probably not surprising that one can see distinct formal similarities to the figures Munch produced, as highlighted by ARTIFACT 5, and the Shadowman figures Hambleton would later produce, as highlighted by ARTIFACTS 1 and 2. Being formally trained, Hambleton would have been very familiar with the anxiety evoking imagery of artists such as Munch. And there’s such a frantic energy in the works of both artists which is both fascinating and frightening at the same time.

Instructor Feedback

NOTE: What is shown on stevelee.art are based on revisions made in consideration of Dr Barenscott’s feedback.

Specific changes to the Assignment 1 page include:

Removing the writeup of the assigned in-class questions based on the screening of the film SHADOWMAN;
Revising the discussion on Hambleton’s struggles with mental illness and depression by removing references to my own experience and replacing that with info about artists and mental illness;
Adding numbering to identify artifacts, with citations in the captions that better identify where each artifact was found; and
Making adjustments to the layout and creating a colour scheme to help differentiate sections that contain answers to different questions.

Specific changes to the ABOUT ME biography page include: