After watching Style Wars last Thursday, my perspective on graffiti was somewhat altered. I always thought graffiti was interesting but also insignificant. Clearly most, if not all, writers would strongly disagree with my past self. I never knew how something I've overlooked all the time could have such a deep culture behind it.
The key aspect of graffiti culture that the documentary stressed was that it isn't just the art itself but also the act of doing it. A form of rebellion against the society that spurns them. Freedom of expression in a life that restricts them. You could tell how serious each and every one of the artists were through their descriptions of how important their work was to them and how it feels to see it displayed. The doc really emphasized the advantages of train graffiti over the "traditional" wall graffiti in that the former allows for coverage all over the city.
It got me thinking, if something means that much to you, why don't you try to preserve it? Why not canvas instead of public property? Why not make money off of it? I asked these questions but right away I knew the answers. Who wants to be a sell-out? But is it really selling out when you're just trying to help your struggling situation?
An equally important part of the culture is the unspoken honor code similar to that of music. The greatest disrespect in the community is passing off someone else's masterpiece or style as your own. The fact that this is more of an offense than to erase or take down further shows how graffiti is more like other (more widely-accepted) art forms than many people think.
From my viewpoint, graffiti hasn't made nearly as much progress as rap in its progression and evolution but it certainly hasn't stopped. Although you could still make an argument that graffiti isn't art, you definitely can't reduce something so elaborate and rich to mere vandalism or defiance.
I think the main reason for its existence rather than the use of canvas is the rebellious nature of the art form that is attractive to any teen. There is an inherent risk involved with the creation of every piece.
ReplyDeleteI would definitely agree with you that this documentary really stressed the process by which graffiti is created. I found this really interesting as it is something I never really thought about, in my mind graffiti just kind of "appeared". As a result of thinking about the process, I began to fully realize how graffiti is art.
ReplyDeleteIn my mind, graffiti is just as much about making a statement as it is art. The point of it is to shock individuals and draw attention, and bombing on public property or venues is the best way to do that. I think that is part of the reason I appreciate graffiti so much. It is an art form, but also a way of conveying and portraying one's ideas and protest.
ReplyDeleteThis might be a stretch, but I feel like not preserving graffiti or not selling it is the point of graffiti. It's a way to be a part of something bigger and to get your name into the world. From the movie, the writers made it seem like a creative challenge. Take a random name and show how beautiful and intricate it can be (kind of like a "There's more than meets the eye" sort of dynamic). I'm not as convinced that graffiti is created for the purpose of being rebellious, but then again, I'm not a graffiti writer so I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteI agree that rap seems to have gone farther than graffiti has. I bet it's harder for visual art to get really big, because music is something that everyone can buy and enjoy, whereas art is cool but less valuable/usable to most people. I don't know if this is true, but it seems to me that while rap has carved out a very unique and specific niche for itself, graffiti has progressed into being more varied. People don't just write names anymore, they draw pictures, which is cool, but as far as I can tell, there isn't one defined style that is graffiti anymore. It's graffiti because of where it is, not what it is, unlike rap.
ReplyDeleteI think part of the reason why graffiti artists didn't try to commercialize their art is also because of the origins of the trade. Graffiti (along with the graffiti artist's new nickname) was something that allowed anonymous expression. I think, for many of them, emerging into the world of commercial art would mean turning a hobby or passion into a job.
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