eleventh.transmission
July 3
-Comic Books
-Ghana pt. 2
-ryan fitzpatrick
-Digital Hollywood
-Operation
Eyesight Universal
Article
Graffiti will Prevail
by nobody
“The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.”
- Aristotle
“Progressive art can assist people to learn not only about the objective forces at work in the society in which they
live, but also about the intensely social character of their interior lives. Ultimately, it can propel people toward
social emancipation.”
-Salvador Dali
Art asks the question rather than forcing the answer. For this reason art has always posed a threat to structures of
power. It is my opinion that graffiti was and remains still a vital form of artistic expression, in that it creates a
dialogue and henceforth serves a purpose as a public forum for expression of ideas. Our contemporary society
has been incrementally fleeced of most all public forums for open discussion, favoring rather the one way supply
side system of television: Users linked to the collective – collectively atomized. As our society is further atomized
by technology that promotes isolation, such as TV & computers, alternate means for discussion and dissent are
necessary. Graffiti writing, among numerous other forms of art, is indispensable as an avenue for expression,
now just as much as it ever was, in a time when most political and artistic movements that stray from the
approved program of obsequious compliance have been thoroughly discredited and trivialized – (ex: the U.S. anti-
war movement of the 1960’s, the Black Panthers, American Indian Movement & the Rainbow Coalition, musical
movements such as hip hop, reggae, punk, etc., and many others…)
Avoidance is foremost in a list of methods used to preclude and compromise dissenting opinions. The most
expedient way to compromise any social movement that strays from the accepted curriculum is to propagate the
image as paramount, so as to avoid discussion of the real ideas expressed by artists, scholars, etc. If a particular
movement, artistic or otherwise, is able to garner enough attention that the public eye cannot be further averted, it
must be dealt with in a more tactile fashion. Rather than engage in open debate on the underlying questions
raised, it is much more efficacious to trivialize one’s opposition. Once a superficial image is brought to the fore, it
can then be compromised by extracting the image from its original context and associating it with approved
opinions & expressions. The co-opted image in turn becomes a subterfuge for the unwitting public.
If this method is at first unsuccessful, the image and expression can be methodically trivialized over time. Man’s
general shortsighted nature allows an expression to be corrupted, once it can be safely distanced from the time
and place of its inception. In this way the spirit and force behind an image can be progressively deteriorated by
sublimating it into the controlled atmosphere of corporate advertising, wherein it can be both proliferated and
subsequently discredited.
Such has been the case with graffiti art, as culture vultures from within the realm of advertising have recently
converged to exploit & co-opt the visual style of graffiti for its appeal to the lucrative youth demographic. No domain
is spared in the corporate search for wealth; advertisers are ever aware and probing for new sources of potential
exploitation. Now that the hip hop movement has been thoroughly co-opted, graffiti art (for the most part the New
York style) represents the potential for vast new sources of untapped revenue. The style of graffiti art developed
and perfected in the subways of New York applies the same theory that propels modern advertising, that a
particular piece (or advert) must be able to relate an idea or information in a generally brief frame of time. Since
the New York style was born and bred on the trains, which would only be seen for a short time by any potential
audience, it was necessary for a writer to create pieces of art that applied stark contrasts in chromatic value and
numerous colour combinations to entirely captivate that audience – in the span of a moment. Corporations are
now applying those same techniques to reach new audiences for their products & services. In turn they have
validated and legitimized the superficial image of graffiti art, making sure in the process to omit the radical &
recalcitrant nature of graffiti bombing from the equation. Herein lays the general aversion of the heart of the graffiti
movement by those who perpetrate the fraud of using the image to their own avail, but making no recompense to
true graffiti.
The rats will drown when the ship sinks…
Some within the graffiti community are currently striving to attain wealth and fame by colluding with the
establishment to create graffiti-styled advertisements & products.
Although I cannot begrudge another artist for their endeavors to promote graff, or to seek some form of
compensation for their artistic efforts, I also feel that they are doing the art form a disservice. Those who feel that
co-option of the graffiti style is an inevitability, and whose aim it is to legitimize graffiti by marketing its form &
image to the contemporary art community must consider: Illicit graffiti was and always will be innately legitimate in
its own right. Art does not require acceptance to exist; graffiti will always be legitimate to all who participate in its
proliferation. For this reason graffiti will survive the attempts by many to trivialize it as a social movement and form
of expression. Graffiti remains the first element of the hip hop movement, its inception predating rap & breaking,
yet it represents more than an element of this movement – it is a manifestation of the creative impulse that has
catalyzed all other movements in art throughout history.
As spectator and participant of this pursuit, I have cultivated a great respect for its roots and come to revere it akin
to the other dominant movements in art. Respect for not the image alone, but for the vocation of graffiti bombing,
for the varied disciplines requisite to such a calling: Dedication to craft, mastery of skill, preparation, intuition &
awareness, etc. Many begin writing graffiti for juvenile kicks, the calculated risk, but subsequently discover that
there are a multitude of other reasons to paint. Fame remains a driving impulse for some to create, but fame is
extraneous to the true essence of art; the expression. Graffiti art has always had to fight to remain viable, just as it
is a perpetual struggle for each graffiti writer to follow such a generally condemned pursuit. Writers who are
dedicated to their craft will continue to express themselves, challenge authority and power structures, and in turn
continue to challenge accepted ideas about society, the power of language, communication, artistic expression,
and freedom.
“True art is characterized by an irresistible urge in the creative artist.”
-Albert Einstein
“The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.”
-Pablo Picasso
www.artcrimes.com - (www.graffiti.org) - the essential site for all graff enthusiasts; comprehensive archives &
links worldwide...
www.visualorgasm.com - canadian archive of walls & trains.
www.bombingscience.com - montreal site... lots of trains.
www.50mmlosangeles.com - extensive archive of LA graffiti.
www.sleepylagoon.com - a good collection of placas & throwups from LA.
www.otherthings.com/grafarc/ - "graffiti archaeology"...really cool site showing the passage of time on some
wicked spots in SF.
www.at149st.com - "the bench"... site devoted to classic NY subway art.
www.stylewars.com - the quintessential graffiti film of old...
Ed. Note: Displaying true devotion to his/her craft and the values espoused in this article, the author of this
amazing essay has chosen to remain anonymous.
Calgary arts, culture, media, activism e-zine.
word, image, truth, love