Why is Arte Agora missing from our cultural institutions?

Wheatpaste and sticker artists should be celebrated in museums

Look around in places of density, and you will see Arte Agora: art made, placed, or sold in the public way. And despite being one of the most widely-practiced art forms in the world, it is the least visible in world museums.

Arte Agora examples in Paris, France.

We’ve encountered Arte Agora all over the world but we’ve never seen a museum exhibition that celebrated this ubiquitous art form.

Berlin, Germany, is chock full of Arte Agora.

From small cities like Findlay, Ohio, near the farm where my mom grew up, to places like the United Arab Emirates, we’ve found a vibrant practice of Arte Agora.

Smaller cities, like Findlay, Ohio, also feature Arte Agora artists.

Examples of Arte Agora in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Don’t these artists deserve recognition for their contributions? All you have to do is walk outside to find many examples of artists sharing their work, for free, on our streets.

From San Francisco to Seattle to New York City, Arte Agora is everywhere across the U.S.

We think it’s high time that museums recognize the contribution these artists make to the art ecosystem. They are integral to the artistic conversation everywhere and should not be ignored by our cultural institutions.

Let’s change this!