Only one person who completed our survey said that they didn’t regard Street Art as a legitimate art form. This demonstrates that people do respect Street Art as art. Furthermore, when asked which adjectives best described Street Art from the list of options, no one selected the words, ‘illegal’ or ‘vandalism’. This is interesting as the majority of Street Art in London is illegal, yet people would describe it as thought provoking instead of vandalism. Could the fact that it is illegal even make it more thought provoking?
When the survey asked if people would change their opinion on one of the pieces if they found out it had been produced illegally, nearly everyone said that it wouldn’t change their opinion. One of the appeals of Street Art is its lack of restrictions. One respondent of the survey wrote:
“No. I think one of the main aspects of street art, one of the things that makes it so intriguing and interesting is that sometimes the artist is doing it illegally and would rather risk it and transmit their message than not do it at all. It shows conviction and commitment on the part of the artist who really believes in what he does. I think what's so interesting and innovative in this art form is the fact that it's so free and that you can do or say anything with it.”
In the Infamy documentary, some of the street artists, such as Toomer, had been to prison but were still continuing to do Street Art. This shows that for some, even arrest and imprisonment do not impede their desire to continue producing art.
However, the laws on Street Art are ambiguous at times. Despite being illegal, Street Art is tolerated in some areas. Some pieces, for example works by Banksy, or other well-known artists, are protected, whilst others are painted over. A BBC news article discussing the removal of various pieces of Street Art in the lead up to the Olympics draws attention to the fact that the laws surrounding Street Art aren’t always black and white. Geoff Whitehouse from Very Nearly Almost, a magazine which documents street art said, “This is part of a wider issue where councils proclaim to a zero tolerance policy on graffiti as it is vandalism and deemed illegal, yet will also help protect work by Banksy”. The article also said, “A spokesman for Hackney Council said it took time to decide whether something was graffiti or street art which should be preserved.” This shows that these days, a distinction is being made between Street Art and Graffiti. However, definitions still often fail to categorize and separate the two.
New types of graffiti make the grey area of the legality of Street Art even bigger. Newer forms, such as yarn-bombing, eco-grafitti and reverse graffiti are evolving. Eco-graffiti involves the use of materials such as lichen, succulent plants, paper and leaf. Reverse graffiti describes cases when artists create patterns by cleaning dirty surfaces through water pressure or other means. These raise even more issues regarding legality. Authorities have attempted to prosecute people using these methods as forms of advertising. Reverse graffiti is an especially controversial area since it is temporary and non-destructive and therefore falls into a completely different category to painting walls. Cleaning is not illegal. However, if it is used for commercial advertisements in public spaces, legal issues may arise. In the Netherlands, it is necessary to have a permit for this. Yarn-bombing is also considered to be non-permanent.
When we asked people whether they could make a distinction between graffiti and Street Art many said that they couldn’t. People find it difficult to draw the line on what they consider to be art and what they consider to be vandalism. The businesswoman in interview 5 said that she would make the decision based on whether she found it aesthetically pleasing. Other people came to a similar conclusion that work they deemed to be beautiful, creative or that demonstrated talent, could be categorized as Street Art. However, that is subjective and therefore complicates this distinction. One thing that most people would call vandalism was tagging, or other marks that were illegible and were perceived to be pointless, although it is also worth noting that tagging is often how artists make a name for themselves.
Whether Street Art should be legal or not is a whole other issue. As it stands, fans of Street Art like the illegal aspect as they think it makes it less commercialized and more interesting. Authorities throughout history have tried to erase graffiti. Sometimes this means creating graffiti parks or areas where graffiti is tolerated. There are areas of London, such as Leake Street (see map below) where graffiti is accepted. In the Art Crimes video, one person when talking about graffiti said, “It is a form of vandalism. It can also be a valid art form, but it has do be done in approved sanctioned areas in order for it to be an art form”. However, street artists gain more street cred when they do work in unauthorised areas and many people think that it becomes meaningless since it is against the nature of graffiti and may cause graffiti to lose its potential for urban communication and interaction. (Gunnel, 2006) In public places, especially areas that are slightly run down, Street Art can help promote the area. A lot of people visit areas such as Brick Lane expressly to see the Street Art, whilst others enjoy stumbling upon it and seeing it change regularly. Many people believe Street Art is more legitimate in some areas than others. The man from interview 6 agreed that Street Art isn’t appropriate in all places, despite loving having it on his own front door and gave an example of someone painting on the side of the National Gallery as an inappropriate setting. Furthermore, the type of Street Art also has a big impact on whether people are happy for it to be in a certain place. Like most art forms, the interaction with the audience is essential. The excitement, unpredictability and uniqueness of Street Art are key to its appeal, all of which are in turn tied to its illegal nature.
When the survey asked if people would change their opinion on one of the pieces if they found out it had been produced illegally, nearly everyone said that it wouldn’t change their opinion. One of the appeals of Street Art is its lack of restrictions. One respondent of the survey wrote:
“No. I think one of the main aspects of street art, one of the things that makes it so intriguing and interesting is that sometimes the artist is doing it illegally and would rather risk it and transmit their message than not do it at all. It shows conviction and commitment on the part of the artist who really believes in what he does. I think what's so interesting and innovative in this art form is the fact that it's so free and that you can do or say anything with it.”
In the Infamy documentary, some of the street artists, such as Toomer, had been to prison but were still continuing to do Street Art. This shows that for some, even arrest and imprisonment do not impede their desire to continue producing art.
However, the laws on Street Art are ambiguous at times. Despite being illegal, Street Art is tolerated in some areas. Some pieces, for example works by Banksy, or other well-known artists, are protected, whilst others are painted over. A BBC news article discussing the removal of various pieces of Street Art in the lead up to the Olympics draws attention to the fact that the laws surrounding Street Art aren’t always black and white. Geoff Whitehouse from Very Nearly Almost, a magazine which documents street art said, “This is part of a wider issue where councils proclaim to a zero tolerance policy on graffiti as it is vandalism and deemed illegal, yet will also help protect work by Banksy”. The article also said, “A spokesman for Hackney Council said it took time to decide whether something was graffiti or street art which should be preserved.” This shows that these days, a distinction is being made between Street Art and Graffiti. However, definitions still often fail to categorize and separate the two.
New types of graffiti make the grey area of the legality of Street Art even bigger. Newer forms, such as yarn-bombing, eco-grafitti and reverse graffiti are evolving. Eco-graffiti involves the use of materials such as lichen, succulent plants, paper and leaf. Reverse graffiti describes cases when artists create patterns by cleaning dirty surfaces through water pressure or other means. These raise even more issues regarding legality. Authorities have attempted to prosecute people using these methods as forms of advertising. Reverse graffiti is an especially controversial area since it is temporary and non-destructive and therefore falls into a completely different category to painting walls. Cleaning is not illegal. However, if it is used for commercial advertisements in public spaces, legal issues may arise. In the Netherlands, it is necessary to have a permit for this. Yarn-bombing is also considered to be non-permanent.
When we asked people whether they could make a distinction between graffiti and Street Art many said that they couldn’t. People find it difficult to draw the line on what they consider to be art and what they consider to be vandalism. The businesswoman in interview 5 said that she would make the decision based on whether she found it aesthetically pleasing. Other people came to a similar conclusion that work they deemed to be beautiful, creative or that demonstrated talent, could be categorized as Street Art. However, that is subjective and therefore complicates this distinction. One thing that most people would call vandalism was tagging, or other marks that were illegible and were perceived to be pointless, although it is also worth noting that tagging is often how artists make a name for themselves.
Whether Street Art should be legal or not is a whole other issue. As it stands, fans of Street Art like the illegal aspect as they think it makes it less commercialized and more interesting. Authorities throughout history have tried to erase graffiti. Sometimes this means creating graffiti parks or areas where graffiti is tolerated. There are areas of London, such as Leake Street (see map below) where graffiti is accepted. In the Art Crimes video, one person when talking about graffiti said, “It is a form of vandalism. It can also be a valid art form, but it has do be done in approved sanctioned areas in order for it to be an art form”. However, street artists gain more street cred when they do work in unauthorised areas and many people think that it becomes meaningless since it is against the nature of graffiti and may cause graffiti to lose its potential for urban communication and interaction. (Gunnel, 2006) In public places, especially areas that are slightly run down, Street Art can help promote the area. A lot of people visit areas such as Brick Lane expressly to see the Street Art, whilst others enjoy stumbling upon it and seeing it change regularly. Many people believe Street Art is more legitimate in some areas than others. The man from interview 6 agreed that Street Art isn’t appropriate in all places, despite loving having it on his own front door and gave an example of someone painting on the side of the National Gallery as an inappropriate setting. Furthermore, the type of Street Art also has a big impact on whether people are happy for it to be in a certain place. Like most art forms, the interaction with the audience is essential. The excitement, unpredictability and uniqueness of Street Art are key to its appeal, all of which are in turn tied to its illegal nature.
Works Cited
Art Crimes video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgkghLjRsE0#t=256
Gunnel, Katherine A. “Street Art: Its Display in Public Spaces and Issues within a Municipality” (2006). Master of Science in Urban Studies Thesis, The University of New Orleans
Infamy Documentary http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcUMl5ohKN4
Rebecca Cafe - London 2012: Banksy and street artists' Olympic graffiti - BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18946654
Art Crimes video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgkghLjRsE0#t=256
Gunnel, Katherine A. “Street Art: Its Display in Public Spaces and Issues within a Municipality” (2006). Master of Science in Urban Studies Thesis, The University of New Orleans
Infamy Documentary http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcUMl5ohKN4
Rebecca Cafe - London 2012: Banksy and street artists' Olympic graffiti - BBC News http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-18946654