When Martyn Reed started the Nuart Festival in Stavanger, Noway back in 2001, the street art festival was to serve as a companion to the Nu Music festival that Reed was already producing. Flash-forward nearly 20 years, and street art has become one of the most beloved and international art movements... perhaps ever. Reed has been at the forefront of contextualizing that rise into a historical context, how the true origins of street art are more in-line with outsider and rebellious art forms than what most street art festivals and street-themed corporate projects would suggest (although, in the end, Reed has made those connections as well).
On the eve of the start of Nuart Aberdeen, the festival's third year in Scotland, Reed gave a rare interview to MZM Projects at the close of the 2018 Nuart in Stavanger. Here we get a glimpse into his philosophy and the ever-changing movement that he has focused his life on.
Nuart Aberdeen will take place April 18-21, 2019.
