TAG Heuer Names Street Artist Alec Monopoly Art Provocateur

You might not have heard his name or seen his face. He likes anonymity, often sporting a low-slung hat and a bright bandana to cover his countenance. Yet, chances are, you know his work. He is famed for his graffiti renditions of Mr. Monopoly – the suave banker from the eponymous board game – that humorously expose Western culture.

He is Alec Monopoly, the street painter who started out in New York, moved to Los Angeles with the onset of the financial crisis of 2008 and has since rendered a scrum of entertainment and political icons. Reveled by many mavens of contemporary art, his paintings have found patrons in the likes of Robert De Niro and Adrien Brody.

As of November 29, the urban artist is also the newly-named art provocateur of Swiss avant-garde watchmaker TAG Heuer. The collaboration, in fact, commenced months ago when TAG Heuer CEO Jean-Claude Biver not only picked Alec Monopoly for the position, but offered him an assignment much in line with his true calling – street graffiti.

The outcome is the vibrantly transformed façade of Tag Heuer boutique in Miami’s Design District. Just in time for Art Basel Miami, Alec Monopoly has given the store a graffiti uplift. The responsibilities of his new appointment do not end here, though. As art provocateur for TAG Heuer, Alec Monopoly will actively participate in all of the brand’s creative operations.

“With Alec as Art Provocateur within my team at TAG Heuer, I would like not only to continue to reconnect the brand with the younger generation, the millennials, but also to pave the way for new areas of expression, in all domains from the products to marketing and communication to distribution,” said Biver in a press statement on the occasion.

Alec Monopoly is already busy at work – ahem, at spraying. On November 30, he joined Biver to unveil his first TAG Heuer-supported graffiti installation at the Mondrian Gallery within the Mondrian South Beach Hotel in Miami.

“I have always had a passion for watches,” Alec Monopoly said. “I am excited by this great opportunity to put my creative ideas to work for TAG Heuer. This is a perfect opportunity to combine my artistic abilities with my love of timepieces.”

Here’s a video recap of the festivities that took place this weekend: