Luca Man

When I was in college, our campus was blanketed with artist Shepard Fairey’s famous “Andre The Giant Has a Posse” artwork.  They were these stickers featuring professional wrestler Andre The Giant with the word “Obey” under it.  I liked it because I thought Andre The Giant was funny. “Anybody want a peanut?”  But I think Mr. Fairey’s subversive intentions were a bit lost on my Normal Illinois sensibilities.

Well, now I’ve been thrust back into the street art scene with the introduction of “Luca Man.”

Luca Man is the creation of Luca Hamann.  He’s been wallpapering our house with these little crayon drawings of two eyes and a slit of a mouth.  Not too happy.  Not too sad.  Just meh.  Occasionally, he’ll throw a shock of hair on top.  And sometimes our sitter Hannah will write a caption like, “This is a ghost.”

I’ll admit, I’m simply mesmerized by what the Luca Men are thinking.  Why do they find my kitchen so uninspiring?  Are they all ghosts?  Or just the one?  What is it going to take to make these guys crack a smile?

I’m also much happier with this form of graffiti than the other art project happening in our house, “The Banana Sticker Infiltration.”  Someone has been taking those little circle stickers from our bananas and hiding them all over the house.  In couches.  Under radiators.  On fish tanks.

The artist behind this hasn’t revealed himself yet, but I imagine it’s the famed Elijah Hamann.