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Grateful for graffiti

We should pay closer attention to the spray-painted messages that “vandals” aim to communicate. By Dessi Gomez, Staff Writer

Por Dessi Gomez

24 de February de 2016

Bright Colors

It‘s 3 AM and pitch dark. A mysterious figure clad in black emerges from the shadows, can of spray paint in hand. After confirming that the coast is clear, the artist gets to work. Time to create. Time to communicate.

The graffiti artist steals furtive glances back and forth as he hastily illustrates his ideas. The goal is to escape unscathed with the artwork complete so that the chances of someone seeing it will rise. But Fate dictates the short life of these paintings as their creators are looked down upon by many. Instead of soaking in the beauty and creativity of the message, many scorn it as defacement and look to cover it up as soon as possible.

While many deem graffiti as “vandalism,“ claiming that it violates property, there are more pros than cons.

A big problem with the perception of this artwork is the association it holds with gangs. The shadow of gang culture over graffiti negatively influences many opinions. The immediate assumption that graffiti results from gang members attempting to mark their territory causes the desire to get rid of it as soon as possible. Although it may be a violation of property because it is done without the owner’s permission, it does not directly harm or fatally wound anyone. Although there is a cost for removing it, wisdom is gained from the message of the artwork itself.

Graffiti brightens our world. It pleases the eye with vibrant hues that augment a once plain and boring wall. The spray-painted art draws attention to places that normally would not receive a single glance.

Graffiti stimulates the brain. It challenges artists and viewers to think creatively in order to communicate and interpret the message behind it. With this in mind, it seems that graffiti artists could be considered geniuses rather than criminals. They have the power to provoke philosophical thinking without saying a single word.

Different types of graffiti achieve different things. The biggest difference for me is the presence or absence of words.

My sister and I can’t help jumping for joy whenever we find beautiful graffiti. This mural of colorful shapes highlights a wall in Chicago, Illinois a couple blocks away from the Hilton Hotel on Michigan Ave.

My friend Beatrice Marshall and I found this eye-popping painting in New York City near Canal Street. The blended brush strokes and calmer colors bring a sense of peace to the viewer.

Coffeeshop walls

This mosaic is featured in Crave Espresso Bar in New York on Canal Street. Not only is it worth looking at, but it contains cute little sayings and puns involving coffee and tea. Although it is not necessarily graffiti, it reminds me of the type of artwork you would find out on the street.

This wall is directly across from the previous wall in Crave. The words really catch my eye in this collage of coffee vocabulary.

The Strand Bookstore

The walls outside of The Strand Bookstore in New York present an artistic puzzle to solve. Bold drawings are supported by bright backgrounds in these cleverly designed murals. It is fun and challenging to decipher the illustrations and plays on words.

My favorite kind of graffiti is artwork that asks a deep question or addresses a serious concept. This kind of street art stops me in my tracks and really makes me think. I appreciate its presence because it interrupts my sometimes tedious train of thought.

Street Surrealism

The world is a graffiti artist’s canvas. This amazing painting is also in Chicago. It is a form of surrealism because a moose does not normally chew on bubblegum. This picture would definitely cheer me up on a bad day.

Love in london

I stumbled upon this Picasso-like piece on a MUN trip to London. Unfortunately, this artwork was on a construction cork-board wall, so it is only temporary and won’t last forever. It may already be gone.

This brings to mind another problem with graffiti. It never reaches all the eyes that it should because it gets covered up or painted over. I believe that graffiti should be left the way it is so that it can inspire all who see it.

simple yet effective

This is one of my favorite pieces because it is the simplest one, but also the deepest. I’ll leave it up to you for interpretation and agreement or disagreement with what it is saying.

Maybe graffiti artists do this because they do not know how to express their ideas in words. Maybe they draw it because an illustration speaks louder than a string of words. The difference between commissioned art and graffiti is that professional artists get paid for their work. I find graffiti so much more interesting than artwork on display because the story behind it remains a mystery, and it comes out of nowhere.

Instead of immediately thinking of violation of property when we see graffiti, freedom of expression should come to mind. Wisdom can come from anywhere, including side streets and alley walls.

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