Street art at the Demersprong

The graffiti at the Demersprong are an initiative of youth centre De Klinker from 2015. Both the tunnels on the Eastern Ring Road and this bicycle and pedestrian bridge were tackled. Today, the beautiful drawings and paintings in the tunnels are no longer noticeable. They were painted over with the intention of creating a neat place and a clean look. The result is that a new canvas has been created for illegal painters where we once again see the classic forms of throw-ups, quickpieces and scabrous texts.

On the bridge of the Eastern Ring we see a work by Matthew Dawn above the water with the text 'cobblestone stompers'. The link between the text and the legend of the cobblestone stompers is clear. The accompanying figures seem to be completely separate from it. They have a very childlike feel and contrast with the personal work we see of Dawn elsewhere in the world.

Matthew's artistic growth didn't begin until he entered college. He digitally designed just about everything, from spaceships to warrior costumes. Supported by an online community, Matthew began to develop his skills. His real name is Matthieu Vermeylen and he graduated in Digital Arts and Entertainment in 2010. In his personal work, Matthew gives free rein to his emotions. His art is an escape hatch into which he dumps all his frustrations, anger and fears. Painting calms him down. Both Basquiat and Lautrec can inspire him. His works are usually colourful and figurative. Interesting is his 'crown series', a collection of works inspired by fame, ego and self-loathing. He creates clear works with a sense of reality that is not often found in graffiti.

Through some friends, Matthieu rolled into the world of graffiti. Since he has always had a passion for art, it was just a matter of learning the techniques. By practising on the street, people would come up to him and ask if he wanted to make graffiti for their interiors. That was the trigger to market his art and become a graffiti artist.

It wasn't so much a conscious choice to make graffiti. After his studies at DAE, he even did an extra course in animation and business administration and started his own T-shirt label. This gave Matthieu his first experience with entrepreneurship, sales and customers. Graffiti was an opportunity that fit into the business model.

At the Demersprong we see beautiful work by DinDin with some clear references to sculptures by Roland Rens and Jan Rosseels in the CC Het Gasthuis. The scenes are figurative and painted in colour tones that blend in with the background of the bridge and its surroundings. The figures are not elaborated in detail: the outlines and proportions are realistic and the juxtaposed 'shadow puddles' of different shades suggest the structure and anatomy of the figure.

For artist Dindindin, street art is a way to express herself, but she avoids provocative images. She was already familiar with the graffiti scene in the 1980s. "The street is my gallery. I am aware that you have to be careful with provocative works. Yet there is often a critical undertone in my work. I think my images add value to the city. I'll never get rich from it, but that's not so important. I'm especially happy that I can draw every day. I set the bar very high for myself."

DinDin is a real street artist from Leuven and one of the few female street artists in our country. She has been active for over 10 years. In 2015, she was still working illegally in Leuven. Dindin was never apprehended by the police. "I paint my work on thin rice paper, cut it out and glue it to the wall. This gluing only takes a few seconds, and I'm gone." Not all of her work is immediately noticeable. They can be small hand-drawn poetic stencils covering a dilapidated door or window. Those stencils are often based on photos. It is not uncommon for her to weave funny details and winks into her work.

Another thing: DinDin is the African name of Vera.

Jan Rymenams