Graffiti - A term widely used to describe any type of art displayed on another's property without prior permission; most often an aerosol medium and is usually accompanied by some form of negative social stigma… The writing on the walls was once a way to tell tales and document instances worthy of noting, ultimately for the purpose of recalling and sharing them… Now the tales have turned to advertisements of tangible items that offer even less stimulation or satisfaction than graphics you ingested when you initially saw the ad… Backed by corporate budgets, the financial war zone that is "Ad-Space" is becoming more and more treacherous, as they fine tune their sights via information we gladly give up with our mobile date usage for instance… But, there's static in the wave…
What once was very primitive, has evolved into an entirely different monster that's still growing day by day - But there are many different lanes on the graffiti highway… The motives behind each writer vary, but I can say that no matter the motive behind the writings, it shows that a city's alive!! The graffiti scene within a city actually can tell a lot about it… The frequency, quality, style, scale, location, and colors all lend hints as to what's going on within the culture of a given area… Some places have great freight scenes, others nice freeway spots, others landmark spots, and others with hardly any graffiti at all; all of which are actually dependent on the writers themselves…
With this evolution, things have become different for writers now also… Far from the Hip-Hop roots that acted as the initial accelerant to the art form, which at the time was only a few flickering flames in the night, it has become a worldwide phenomena that reaches across many lifestyles and personalities… With writers backgrounds and motives varying so drastically these days, the desired (and often times actual) results are equally varied… Sadly what started as a method of communication has slowly become flooded by those with the mindset that graffiti is a romanticized "game" of internet tag, where toys (naive, disrespectful, ignorant writers) try to outdo one another until they're out of high school… Luckily there are always a few in each wave that learn the ropes, respect the scene, and push the culture in a positive direction and away from the negative stereotypes that often accompany graffiti… Generally speaking though, for an evolved writer, it's still a communicative device, but less so a direct message to others, and more so an artistic expression of self and reflection of current life status… There are exceptions to the rule as always, and graffiti is no different, with very renowned writers who could give a fuck less about "art" and are simply stating their presence on any given surface…
I could go on and on about how to dissect the graffiti world, and I most likely will as time goes on, but I think that would detract from current focus… And that focus is on graffiti and what it is in it's most purest form: which I believe is "I was here, this is a visual representation of my voice, and this is the statement I was able to make…" Whether it's a new writer catching their first sketchy write with a racked stock tip can, or REMINISCE busting a single color horse hollow with extremely admirable fading, they both deserve a humanistic critique, one where the critic drops their ego and simply tries to depict the message contained within each executed piece… Because one possesses more aesthetically pleasing can control skills, is their message any less important than someone who's message may possibly have more impact, but is delivered in a less pleasing manner?? Those are questions I feel each individual could answer based on their personal moral grounds, but strip down morals and it still comes down to each painting representing themselves in a public forum… "We've all got a voice, and it's valuable… Remember that" - Sentrock
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