Because street art is very physical, it’s regularly thought of as masculine. But it’s not just men who are running away from cops, climbing fences and buildings, and dabbling in this often-illicit activity. Women are also out there making political and social commentary with their art, but they have the added hassle of dealing with street harassers and doubters. As one of the few women who’s hung with the boys since the 80s, iconic artist Sandra Fabra, aka Lady Pink, has had her fair share of haters. “[I’ve been told,] ‘You can’t climb that ladder because you’re a girl,’” she said. “What? You need a penis to climb a ladder?”
RELATED: 5 Latin American Street Artists You Should Know
Filmmaker Alexandra Henry aims to highlight women like Lady Pink – who got her start bombing NYC subway cars at 15 – in her documentary, Street Heroines. Henry followed street art for years before she came across Txar from Barcelona and Miss 163 from the Bronx collaborating on a piece, which immediately made her curious about how two women from different backgrounds ended up working together. She set out to learn more about the courage and creativity it takes to create these public works, and it led her to many Latina and Latin American women. For three years, she collected their stories in order to talk about their experiences within the global street art movement that hardly recognizes their contributions.
In the interview-driven documentary, she features 25 women, including TooFly, Anarkia, Fio Silva, Magrela, and Martha Cooper – the photographer who helped legitimize graffiti as an art form. It’s definitely the kind of woman-empowering film we can get behind, but Henry still needs help to finish it. The documentarian turned to Kickstarter to raise the $53,000 she needs to finish production, edit the film, and begin post-production. Currently, she is about $3,000 shy of her goal, and the last day to donate is Friday, July 8.
Part of the money will go toward finishing interviews, and ultimately, bringing this important story out to the world. “With a team in place, Street Heroines will continue to follow artist such as TooFly (NYC/ECUADOR), Magrela (Brazil) and Fusca (Mexico), whose art offers solutions to issues such as gender disparity, sexual harassment and human rights violations. Filming artists who use graffiti and street art to change their local culture, Street Heroines reveals our common ground by sharing their experience, strength and hope. Underscoring the importance of celebrating beauty and creating community, these women also uncover a deeper meaning within our social structure.”
This project will only be funded if at least $53,000 is pledged by Friday, July 8 at 2:30 p.m. ET.