|
|
|
|
Graffiti - Guide To Tagging Graffiti
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.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Some Other Useful Web Resources
|
1. Graffiti Art San Francisco on LookSmart San Francisco
... 2006 4:39:35 AM San Francisco Tagging Graffiti Art experts opinion ... e-mail newsletter covering graffiti, urban art, and culture in ... www.toseeka.com San Francisco Guide Check out our San Francisco ...
http://www.looksmartsanfr ...ee&x=41&y=4&vcat=cat4 |
2. cbs2.com - Write On? Mother Accused Of Heading Tagging Crew
... Accused Of Heading Tagging Crew CBS 2 - KCAL 9 ...
http://cbs2.com/watercool ..._story_240215053.html |
3. South Sound Entertainment
... trip has to start with a good guide. Consider the reliable Letís ... cozy. How about Spleen? No? Graffiti? Not hip yet? Let me school ... America. They have been seen "tagging" antennae, signposts, door ...
http://www.theolympian.co ...tion?Category=ENT0702 |
4. Observer's Log: 8 May 2001 * Visiting Vancouver, Blue Jays and Mariners Base...
... lot, but otherwise it was the same. Tagging (a form of graffiti) was very prevalent, especially at ... ... a restaurant Mark had learned about in a travel guide. One day, I will finally obtain proof that the ...
http://www.sowrey.org/journals/20010508.shtml |
5. bigbluemeanie
... Slow - (2) The Thames - (2) Graffiti in Oxted - (2) The drought ... some other guys and ended up tagging along. The above photo is ... book on Paris is The Insiders Guide to Paris Im posting this at 9 ...
http://www.bluemeanie.org/weblog/2003/12/ |
6. OnVideo Guide to Home Video Releases: October Calendar of Releases
... created by Good & Associates Guide to Home Video Releases ... to focus on the subject of graffiti -- the only art form that ... of "bombing" -- the art of "tagging" clean walls with your ...
http://www.onvideo.org/calendar/cal_oct.htm |
7. JS Online:Cousins charged with felonies in Holy Hill vandalism
... Health/Science Religion Cars Travel Visitors' Guide AP COVERAGE National World Business Sports ... ... very terrible thing" but comparable to "tagging" or graffiti, and "not an assault on the Catholic ...
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=434119 |
8. Chino Hills News
... catching a suspected Lenwood tagging artist after following ... Dispatch | Thursday A weekend graffiti spree occurred at Jasper ... at HomeGain. Chino Hills City Guide areaguides.net Chino Hills ...
http://www.topix.net/city/chino-hills-ca |
9. del.icio.us
... Have It dabs.com The Myspace Graffiti Experiment Dogear retrieves ... tuaw.com Much To-Do About Tagging - MediPost Publications Cell ... Warehouse x The Sportsman's Guide x The Vitamin Shoppe x The ...
http://cyberspace.com.ph/news/del.icio.us/ |
10. dallasobserver.com | Music | The Beatdown
... Home | Restaurant Guide | Menu Guide | Esubscribe| Latest In ... snotty, late teenage years tagging bridges with the moniker ... dance fans, they traded their graffiti for gyrating hips in 1996 ...
http://www.dallasobserver ...2/music/beatdown.html |
11. Tattoos - Fish Tattoo
... virgo ... chinese tattoo topics guide - China-Lifestyles.com ... Man who flooded city with his graffiti is sentenced to clean it up ... made his mark on Baltimore, tagging "Oricl" on hundreds of light ...
http://tattoos.simpleresearch.info/fishtattoo/ |
12. Thug Life Army Blog
Tha Spot Hip-Hop and Urban Culture Online Community Welcome to Tha Spot Sign in | Join | Help Home ...
http://thaspot.thuglifear ...rts_blog/default.aspx |
13. 105 Service Businesses to Start Today
... Get Wired Sweepstakes Corporate Guide to Benefits Managing Cash ... clients with your own graffiti-removal-and-abatement ... from the removal of unsightly "tagging" in their districts. Golf ...
http://www.entrepreneur.c ...0,4621,324154,00.html |
14. free full version pc games
... year is out that we will be allowing for the tagging, sharing and storage of home video. Who ... ... But the writing is on the wall. And it’s not graffiti; the feeds are spam-free—though advertising ...
http://www.pc-notebooky.c ...-version-pc-games.php |
15. What's That Noise?! [Ian Kallen's Weblog]
... Mark Ecko In Gitmo" airforceone graffiti homelandsecurity humor tagging ( Apr 19 2006, 09:29:21 AM PDT ... ... Buffy do? : the vampire slayer as spiritual guide. Buh! books buddha buffy ( Apr 11 2006, 10:52 ...
http://www.arachna.com/roller/page/spidaman/ |
16. BBoy Zone.com - breakdance move guides, breakdance forums, breakdance videos...
... them down by their tagging signs and by investigating a group called "Graffiti Artists." Police say ... ... by Abaddon Squishy presents: Flares, The guide by BboyInfinity anyone here plays ddr/itg/piu ...
http://www.bboyzone.com/ |
17. Encyclopedia of Rap and Hip Hop Culture — www.greenwood.com
... collections. The All Music Guide to Hip-Hop includes 20 essays ... DJ, MC, B-boy, graffiti artist) and illustrate the ... as sampling, censorship and tagging. MetroLA February 14-27, 2006 ...
http://www.greenwood.com/catalog/GR3058.aspx |
18. Mike’s Thoughts » Anthropology
... protected habitat and our guide out there, Mr, Norwood, knew ... A friend of mine studied graffiti art for awhile and thought ... of it went far past simple tagging but may have related rites of ...
http://www.lnxpowered.org/?cat=7 |
|
|
|
