Graffiti Tagging Names

Graffiti - Graffiti Tagging Names

It doesn't matter where you live in the world, chances are you've seen graffiti somewhere around your local community. It seems to spring up in every culture, although it tends to be more prevalent in big cities.

But is it vandalism? Or is it art? That's a difficult question to answer, mainly because there are so many different types and styles of graffiti. The most basic form of graffiti is "tagging" - which is usually a simple graphic, usually letters, perhaps a play on the creator's initials or nicknames. Often small and monochrome, it's probably one of the most annoying and frustrating types of graffiti, because it is small enough to deface almost any surface, and is almost universally condemned as having no artistic merit.

Graffiti, however, isn't restricted to tagging. On larger surfaces, many graffiti artists employ multiple colors and intricate designs to create their pictures. This is the type of graffiti that starts to cross the line into being artistic. It's this type of graffiti art that is now being showcased in a number of art galleries, both in the USA and around the world.

The other problem with graffiti as art is that the issue is clouded by the location of the art. If some of these stunning designs were created on a canvas, or a wall specially set aside for the purpose, then it would be easier to recognize them as art. Unfortunately most graffiti is placed on private property, without the owner's consent, and so is less likely to be viewed as a welcome addition.

Around the world, communities and governments have become more vigilant in their attempts to reduce the amount of graffiti. In many places there are community groups or government funded teams who guarantee to clean up graffiti in 24 hours after it's reported. Trains in New York were given new coatings that allowed paint to just be "dissolved" off their surfaces.

In my own local area, the sale of spray paint to persons under 18 is illegal, and all spray paints are kept in locked display cupboards. Another area has a team of painters who regularly go around and repaint any fences that have been covered in graffiti. One homeowner I know has had his fence repainted 7 times so far! Over time, however, the amount of graffiti reappearing is reducing, which is a victory for the opponents of graffiti.

Still, simply removing the problem may in fact be a loss to the artistic community in general. If graffiti is considered in its most highly refined form, then are we in fact stopping artistic development in its tracks by making it impossible for budding graffiti artists to practice their craft?

When you illegally deface someone else's property, no matter how beautiful the art you create, you have still committed a crime. Maybe what we need to do is find ways that graffiti artists can learn and practice their craft, without needing to deface hundreds of properties in the process. Some communities now provide blank spaces and invite local graffiti artists to paint them. Others have graffiti walls, where anyone can paint whatever they want.

Maybe there needs to be a shift in the thinking of graffiti artists, so they can discover the value of painting on paper, rather than walls. Would the great painters of the past still be as famous today if they had painted on walls, rather than on canvas? The problem is complex, so finding a solution that makes everyone happy is unlikely to be simple.

1. The Community Engine Blog: xFolk Entry 0.4 — Microformat for decentral...
... the same, but the attribute names have changed or been ... ÄúextendedÄù> ÄúThe graffiti artist Banksy has managed to ... s recently begun self-tagging efforts are almost identical ...
http://thecommunityengine ...5/xfolk_entry_04.html

2. FakturaGalleryExhibitions
... include the names along with these quotations: ARTIST ONE Graffiti is the original attack on consumerism. Just as much a method of displaying territory, alliances or subculture fame, tagging is one the ...
http://homepage.mac.com/k ...alleryExhibitions.htm

3. BBC NEWS | UK | Should people be jailed for graffiti?
... stop." I just don't notice the tagging, I don't care about it and I ... 39, agreed. She said: "I like graffiti. I think most people do. I'm ... about it when they write their names over my front door. "It's grim ...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4422137.stm

4. Connect 2 Edmonton :: View topic - Graffiti
... does not have. I agree that "tagging" ó the ugly spraypainted names ó is most often unattractive ... ... was pretty slick: Studies in Clandestine Graffiti Back to top Fell Joined: 06 Mar 2006 Posts ...
http://www.connect2edmont ...m/viewtopic.php?t=147

5. Bridget Prentice - News
... up and prevent graffiti and tagging. I am fed up of seeing 'tags ... a local constituent during a graffiti sweep at Lewisham Station ... I'll be posting the winners' names on this website. The prizes ...
http://www.bridgetprenticemp.org.uk/news.asp

6. Darwinian Web posts tagged as: genw
... political expression. Anyway, graffiti is a late Boomer or even Gen ... mp3 msm music myspace mysql names namespace netscape newspaper ... tabblo tag tagcloud tagging tailrank techcrunch ...
http://darwinianweb.com/tag/genw.html

7. http://db.gamefaqs.com/console/ps2/file/grand_theft_auto_sa_n.txt
... 12A.2: Tagging up Turf 12A.3: Cleaning the Hood 12A.4: Drive-thru 12A.5: Nines and AK's 12A.6: Drive-by 12A.7: Sweet's Girl 12A.8: Cesar Vialpando 12B: Ryder 12B.1: Home Invasion 12B.2: Catalyst 12B.3 ...

8. flyte: web marketing strategies for small business: February 2006
... aren't necessarily household names, but these people are well ... can also add some Technorati graffiti to your site, including a ... among other things. (More on tagging later.) Even if you're not a ...
http://www.flyteblog.com/flyte/2006/02/index.html

9. Library Juice 2:36 Cuba Supplement
... I asked the teachers how they were able to prevent graffiti and tagging and what measures they took to minimize violence, drugs, weapons, and gang activity. To my amazement they looked at me blankly ...
http://www.libr.org/juice ...vol2/LJ_2.36.sup.html

10. Graffiti
... French soldiers carved their names on monuments during the ... by the advent of airplane graffiti, including the nose art made ... 20th century, non-gang-related tagging became more common, practised ...
http://graffiti.iqnaut.net/

11. Reference.com/Encyclopedia/Graffiti
http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Graffiti

12. Green Party stokes Graffiti hysteria and calls for repressive measures - Ind...
... advertising hording. Asinine ìtaggingî adds nothing to our everyday ... first excavation of NewGrange graffiti was added, within 5 years of ... of time writing their own names in a variety of colours ...
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/76542

13. There is no 5p00|\\|
There is no 5p00|\\| 2006-04-18 Tagging of Air Force One Filed under ... an artform.¬ I suppose that graffiti with a great deal of time ... viruses in attachments with names like annakournikova.jpg.vbs¬ ...
http://blog.thestranathans.com/

14. BBoy Zone.com - breakdance move guides, breakdance forums, breakdance videos...
... The suspects' names were not listed on the site but the officers were able to track them down by their tagging signs and by investigating a group called "Graffiti Artists." Police say two of the ...
http://www.bboyzone.com/