Space, Race, And Place: An Analysis

Graffiti has been used many times in history to preserve and show political and religious ideas of the past. Street artists are preserving the history that is deemed “illegal” at this time. Graffiti itself is history, and it tells stories as well as preserving cities and adding a creative aspect to everyday life. The “...first forms of scripture and storytelling … were through drawings on walls. Stories passed through generations… were preserved on rocks or walls.” (Lloyd, Alexis). Now street artists are simply doing the same, whether it’s murals, tags, or people just messing around; They are preserving the unique cultures that we have today, or trying to make a name for themselves through art, or portray a political message. 85% of graffiti is just tags. (Akbar, Airfa). People's names or words made to look interesting. People trying to preserve their name through art. And this is considered a crime. Splashing your political views on a building through a mural to some people is offensive and the fact that this is illegal is a violation of the 1st amendment. Making graffiti or street art illegal is limiting an expression of people's ideas and religion.

Graffiti has been around for more than half a decade and practiced worldwide. However there is debate between whether it is a form of art or vandalism. Graffiti artists’ debate that many do not understand the reason most graffiti artist take the risk of incarceration, fines, injuries, and in some cases death to paint a wall. A graffiti artist can have the simple desire to become recognized, or to create a piece that speaks to their audience as a form of self expression. Because graffiti is associated with gangs and acts of destruction to some many cannot see the history and importance graffiti can have on a worldwide scale. Due to the fact that graffiti is usually produced illegally, meaning it is

Most people can argue that there is a fine distinction between what is recognized as art and vandalism. The individual is often faced with uncertainty when the topic of graffiti arises. The public often portray graffiti as a destructive act towards his or her surroundings however; graffiti can also be considered a form of self-expression. Many questions can be made pertaining to the graffiti movement, but the main question is graffiti a crime or an art? The answers lie in the complex phrase of “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”.

Known for his contempt for the government in labeling graffiti as vandalism, Banksy displays his art on public surfaces such as walls, even going as far as to build physical prop pieces. Banksy does not sell photos of street graffiti directly himself; however, art auctioneers have been known to attempt to sell his street art on location and leave the problem of

Generally most people look and take graffiti as a form of destruction and wanting to cause violence, but in the artist’s mind they want to be creative and help the people around them by making art to cheer someone up or create a sense of creativity in others. They don’t do it to go to jail or because they want to pay a fine they do it because they are open minded and creative. For instance, “A lot of attention is given to the ‘broken window’ theory, which says that signs of disorder like petty vandalism, fare jumping … and yes, graffiti, open the window to larger crimes,” Verel told The Huffington Post. “But little is paid to the ways graffiti is harnessed for good in a form that’s both constructive and authentic”(Patrick Verel). They are taking this broken windows theory too far and only saying it can cause bigger crimes. Some graffiti artists are trying to uplift the neighborhoods and the people they live around with creative art. Also not all graffiti is bad enough to want artists to commit a crime. While making this art or graffiti I don’t think that these artist are trying to harm the buildings in any way, but they should ask for permission if they aren’t allowed to be painting on these buildings. This is to let the owner of the building know that they mean no harm to the environment or their workplace. For example, “Adam Cooper, cultural strategy officer for the mayor of London, thinks

You see it everywhere. You see on buses, on walls, on trains, everywhere. It has made many gawk while others just don’t see a reason to it. Graffiti has many connotations, some good and some bad. It’s the thrill that drives these crazy risk-takers to get their names known. Seeing graffiti through the eyes of an artist who only sees his masterpiece. Graffiti has been here longer then you think. Though you may see destruction of property he only see his art and freedom of expression. Being a graffiti artist is about feeling the rush of a finished masterpiece and not getting caught. Some are the quieter type but are still well-known. It has been here since the 1960s.

Art has been around ever since the ancient city of Pompeii. The people of Pompeii used graffiti as a way to display their cleverness; from poetry contests to playful recombinations of the letters that form Roman Numerals. In the early ‘70s, graffiti was used as a way for young teens to mark their territory. During that time, many people – especially in New York City – saw graffiti as vandalism and prohibited it. Even though graffiti has been misused in some occasions, as long as the purpose is not to deliberately mischievous or malicious destruction, graffiti is art.

As stated by Taki, an influential graffiti artist when addressing the concern authorities held about his graffiti writing, “Why they go after the little guy? Why not campaign organizations that put stickers all over the subways at election time?” (Chronopoulos 2011, pg. 81). Though, graffiti is deemed as legitimate when it is used to generate profit, which is seen through the recent increased demand for graffiti with the purpose of beautification and gentrification. Evidently, the growing concern over graffiti in public spaces is driven by the conflict graffiti creates when obstructing advertisements, which generate increased consumption and profit. It also demonstrates the lack of tolerance the dominant class has for the promotion of dominance by the lower class. Moreover, constant “public proclamations” which urged people to see graffiti writing as a social safety issue, has certainly influenced the demand for anti-graffiti efforts and the attitudes upper and middle class whites had towards Blacks and Latinos (Chronopoulos 2011, pg. 87)

Most people think of graffiti as vandalism or the defacing of private property by wild teenagers with spray cans. I had never really thought about graffiti or art for that matter until I found myself defending something I didn’t know about because I liked what I saw on the sidewalk in Memphis, Tennessee. Now, that’s sounds crazy but I did my best to explain using simple words that I hoped they would understanding.

In the summer of 2013, a graffiti artist by the name of 'Lady Pink' had police barge into her house in Queens and arrest her husband for vandalism. They took her art supplies, photo archives, and many of her prized possessions. She had to sit there, helpless, watching police take away her things. In today's world right now, expressing yourself creatively is one of the most important things you can do to help figure out who you are. A part of creative expression is art. Art makes people happy. Graffiti falls into the art category. For some people, graffiti is what they do to express themselves. Graffiti is art and shouldn't be illegal. Expressing yourself creatively shouldn't be a crime.

The cutting edge of the public art development, connected with the hip-hop society of breakdancing and rap music, began with African-American and Latino teenagers in Philadelphia and New York in the late 1960s (MacDonald 1). At that time graffiti to most, was considered to be a form of art work. Regardless of those that thought of it as art, there were and are still numerous individuals that loathe the graffiti movement. Works of art have been dependably charming for ages, as it is a method for self-expression and inventiveness. Artistic expressions have advanced in many ways, such as public canvases offering an approach to modern day unique artwork. Graffiti is progressively turning into a hobby. Although one of the major controversies of graffiti surround the statement that it is not art and considered vandalism, graffiti allow artists to display grateful meanings, skills and expressions to the public.

In the 70s graffiti was just tags or small pictures but it quickly turned into and “art movement” (Eickmier). This means that the young and the old artist had finally found a way to express themselves and were spreading it around cities like wildfire. In other countries the amount of graffiti shock american tourists, it is seen as a good thing. “Instead of walls being used to separate people from each other, graffiti brings people together and keeps conversations going.” (Wark) Graffiti has value as art and it tells a story worth reading. (Wark) Most teens resort to graffiti as their last option, and most people see that as wrong, but it lets them express themselves in a really different

Since the late 1980s, various public and private-sector actors in the United States who do not write graffiti have practiced anonymity and sought fame to suppress and promote graffiti. Most non-writing public-sector actors have cracked down on graffiti as a criminal act that blights urban surfaces, while, in response, many non-writing private-sector actors have promoted graffiti as a profitable consumer good and art form. In the public sector, police officers and politicians in New York and then Chicago and Denver have prosecuted graffiti as the illegal vandalism of property walls and other surfaces; over time, police officers have learned to adapt plainclothes dress to patrol environments, capture writers, and destroy graffiti. In the private

This negative shadow on the art form of graffiti has caused the decline of the graffiti movement. As many have predicted, “graffiti may eventually disappear” (“The Writing's on the Wall; Graffiti”). Graffiti has already begun to dwindle from what was once a flourishing art movement, to an almost disesteemed hobby. However, a soiled reputation is not the only culprit in the murder of authentic graffiti. The occupation of the current generation with technology and social media has caused many artists to focus solely on selling their work and gaining attention through social networking platforms. Another, perhaps more common, reason for the decline is the improvement of police work and punishments for those indulging in the illegal form of graffiti (“The Writing's on the Wall; Graffiti”). Because of this decline in authentic and prohibited graffiti, artists have channeled their work into new forms and established their own artistic community.

Graffiti has put a major impact on the way people look at their everyday life. It was not used so much here in the United States but was used overseas. Overseas, graffiti, or street art, was used or played as a sport, just like baseball is Americas sport. There are different laws that are put over there than what there are here. They can get away with some of the things that they paint or make over there. If we tried some of that type of work over here, we would get in trouble and possibly serve time for vandalizing someone else’s property. There are many biased outlooks on graffiti, but it should be considered art in all places because of all the time, effort, and design the artist put into their work.