Multiple Graffiti Artists

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

The value of any message or work of art, whether it is hanging on the wall of a gallery or a subway, lies on the intensity of the artist’s or vandal’s beliefs. Graffiti is an uncertain issue in respect to its virtue. While the voice of the individual must never be lost in a society of shouts growing larger and louder every second; graffiti is such a public medium that its integrity must be of great concern. Graffiti is a vast wasteland of indefinite opinions. Foremost graffiti is illegal and a form of vandalism, it invades peoples privacy and destroys their property. However, graffiti can be a means by which one may permanently express one’s self. It has the potential to convey a powerful, relevant

Graffiti has always been stigmatized as vandalism. Throughout history, unwanted markings on buildings has been seen as unlawful, crude, and unartistic. From the stone ages to the rise of gang graffiti in the 1970s, the word graffiti has had this negative connotation attached to it. Now, in the 21st century, people still associate graffiti with vandalism and negativity despite our growth as a society. The line between vandalism and art has been burred for some time, but in today’s society, graffiti is not simply petty acts of vandalism, but art and should be treated as such. People who think graffiti is only vandalism even in today’s modern society need to realize that modern graffiti is no longer tied to gang violence and is actual quite similar to modern advertising techniques. Also, if graffiti is legalized it would stop the government from wasting tax dollars to remove the graffiti and protect the artist’s creative freedom and first amendment rights.

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”.

If you walk through almost any city, the buildings, bridges, and any other available spaces are seemingly filled with colors, picture, and words that are not part of the original architecture. This graffiti, which is a mix of tags, stencils, pieces, and freestyle, seems to have almost taken over cities across the world. Some of this graffiti, such as tags, are eyesores, but some pieces, such as the High Line “Love Is the Answer” and “Kiss” murals in New York City, are sites that have become iconic pieces of artwork. Unfortunately, pieces like these are also starting to be covered to a seemingly astronomical rate, which is causing outrage among those who visited to them.

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

According to Boyd, through Graffiti is essential to understand as a form of art that crosses the boundaries of location, method, and motivation. He acknowledges that graffiti might include “racist remarks, empty slogans and illegal signatures.”(Boyd 251) Boyd’s piece is also very informative because according to the author, there are two methods for creating this form of art: murals and tagging. The most popular one is tagging because it can be found almost everywhere from fence posts to trains, street walls to buses. The main goal of graffiti writers is to put their signature tags in places to be recognized by their

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)

Linda Ngo, author of the opinion piece “Graffiti is a Beautiful 'Crime'” (2017), argues that graffiti should be legalized on grounds that it is an artistic expression of free speech. Ngo uses many comparisons between graffiti, which she claims is harmless, to many legal activities that cause people harm. Her purpose in writing this paper is to establish a legal form of graffiti to protect graffiti artists from legal action. Ngo's target audience for this paper is peers who may have different views on graffiti and its purpose.

Graffiti artists should be able to express themselves without being fined for their own creativity. Unfortunately, cities seek clean-up for street art, in which artists find themselves being charged for a $6,500 fine or prosecuted (Newsela). Painters should not be charged for putting their time, effort, and heart into a painting for others to enjoy. Not only are these paintings for enjoyment, but bring attention to issues that need to be resolved. The skill of an artist should not determine if they can or cannot paint street art. Although it would be understandable if their artwork was inappropriate. Luckily, not all cities are banning graffiti, Buenos Aires is a city where the paintings on walls tell stories of the past and represents “resistance

The US Government should consider making graffiti completely legal. Graffiti should be legal for a couple of reasons.

Imagine walking around, most places there is a mess on every wall, but some people see art. Art called graffiti, which everyone mistakes as trash. Many graffiti artists are not trying to do a crime, they just want to share their talent with the public. Graffiti is a way to express feelings and should be allowed, because graffiti can have strong meanings the community can relate to.

Graffiti should not have such hard punishments or any at all it is unbelievable that graffiti became such a big crime it isn't affecting anyone in a negative way, it is a way for people to get away from everything and just make something they enjoy. In paragraph 2 it states “eight members of London's well-known DPM crew were tried in court for $1.3 million in graffiti-related damages. They were sentenced to a total of 11 years in prison. This was the biggest prosecution for graffiti that the U.K. has ever seen.”Graffiti is a beautiful form of art that is just filling up a dull wall and turning it into eye candy for the public.Graffiti is a beautiful form of art that is just filling up a dull wall and turning it into eye candy for the public.Graffiti

“Legal or not, as graffiti seeps into the fabric of neighborhoods, it becomes a natural part of everyday life in the city” (The Guardian). There is graffiti everywhere nowadays and the government takes down the ones that do not follow their expectations. Governments should allow people to do graffiti because people use graffiti to express themselves and their art styles.

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.