JR has described himself a "photograffeur", he flypasts large black-and-white photographic images in public locations in a manner which is similar to the appropriation of the built environment by the graffiti artist. he states that the street is the "largest gallery in the world". He started out on the streets of Paris. JR's work "often challenges widely held preconceptions and the reductive images propagates by advertising and media.".
JR's work combines art and action and deals with commitment, freedom, identity and limits. JR calls himself an "urban activist", he creates pervasive art that he puts up on the buildings in the Paris area projects, on the walls of the Middle East, on the broken bridges of Africa or in the favelas of Brazil. As JR remains anonymous and does not frame his huge portraits, he leaves a space for an encounter between a subject/protagonist and a passerby/interpreter, and this is the essence of his work.
JR's work combines art and action and deals with commitment, freedom, identity and limits. JR calls himself an "urban activist", he creates pervasive art that he puts up on the buildings in the Paris area projects, on the walls of the Middle East, on the broken bridges of Africa or in the favelas of Brazil. As JR remains anonymous and does not frame his huge portraits, he leaves a space for an encounter between a subject/protagonist and a passerby/interpreter, and this is the essence of his work.