(Fake) Smile

About the artist

Berlin based artist ALIAS belongs to German Street Art veterans and is active on the streets around the globe for more than 15 years. Completely relying on the stencil technique to get his points across to the viewers, this stencil art pieces mainly present subjects bewildered by harsh situations, confronted with terrifying issues.

His portfolio is highly intimistic and focuses on one individual at a time, presenting us with their small, oftentimes tragic stories in a collective epic tale we call life. Staying true to the stencil origins, Alias mostly utilizes nothing but black and white within his compositions, accentuated with small touches of red color. This stylistic decision works really well when paired up with the themes and graphically designed figures this stencil creator is so fond of – such as heartbreaking scenes such as a child riddled with bullets or a crying kid with a backpack who is hiding his weeping face from the viewers.

Despite the prevailing oblivious conformism, fact is that our contemporary societies are full of similar scenes and this is what makes this artist’s work so poignantly effective. It’s easy to relate to and reflect on the depicted subjects, as we reveal bits and pieces of ourselves within these emotional scenes. Alias’ interventions are so layered with inner and reflective compassion as all of us are wired to naturally react to injustice.
Due to the tragedy infused view of innocent victims, Alias art was often perceived as politically fueled but, in reality, this is not the case.

Stencils created by Alias target the viewer much more directly, acting as an instigation of analysis of self. Various tragedies, injustice inflicted upon those who are defenseless, feelings of loneliness and isolation are the means through which this street painter hopes to alter each state of mind individually. He deliberately targets our emotions, toys with them cutting his stenciled design in order to create a better world from the very within.

All Artworks by ALIAS