Hostile Architecture

Heather Benjamin, Milton Croissant III, Drew Englander, Travis Egedy, Fluct, Stephan Herrera, Traci Lords, Shelby Sells, Lee Trice

Curated by Travis Egedy, known primarily for his DIY punk rave music project, Pictureplane, Hostile Architecture brings together a group of artists immersed in the subcultural underground of NYC and beyond. Classic to DIY community ethos, many of the exhibited artists work in other fields such as street wear, hardcore punk and electronic music, contemporary dance, and underground tattooing. Egedy collected these artists' photography, collage, painting, drawing, 3D digital work, and performance art videos to reflect the current state of freestyle expression and casual creative chaos in the contemporary creative scenes of underground culture. Hostile architecture is an intentional design strategy that uses elements of the built environment to guide or restrict behavior as a form of crime prevention and maintenance of order. Once imposed, hostile architectures often target people who rely on public space more than others, such as the homeless and youth, by restricting the ability to engage with the environment. Egedy felt this turn of phrase perfectly encapsulates feelings of encroaching dread and hostility towards artists in a society increasingly at odds with its marginalized, creative, and otherwise otherized denizens.