Slog
News & ArtsWednesday, September 5, 2012
City Dear Seattle Graffiti Artists
Posted by Cienna Madrid on Wed, Sep 5, 2012 at 3:03 PM
You have 84 square miles of walls, fences, buildings, benches, sidewalks, manhole covers, street lamps, electrical boxes, telephone poles, signage, rocks, sleeping dogs, bus stops, abandoned wheelchairs, roofs, bridges, train cars, and viaducts on which to tag, doodle, or otherwise practice your craft*.
All I am asking is that you leave our beloved fake grass playfields, which cannot regenerate or be easily cleaned or replaced, alone.
- I own this
- Bobby Morris Playfield didn't sign itself
Now then, please enjoy this compilation of ancient graffiti found in Pompeii's ruins, courtesy of Slog tipper Yelahneb:
Weep, you girls. My penis has given you up. Now it penetrates men’s behinds. Goodbye, wondrous femininity!
*Illegally.
3
I seem to remember The Stranger wasn't so keen on the fake grass before it went in. Glad y'all turned a corner on that one.
4
From now on, whenever I see some illegible gibberish scrawled on any wall I will imagine that scribbler intended to write your quote: "Weep, you girls. My penis has given you up. Now it penetrates men’s behinds. Goodbye, wondrous femininity!"
5
Isn't the transgressiveness of the act a critical part of the graffiti artists' medium? Like, if they're not defacing public property, it's not graffiti, is it?
Of course, in my estimation, that means not that it is okay if "artists" damage public utility, but rather that most taggers are just thoughtlessly destructive juvenile assholes and not in fact artists at all.
Of course, in my estimation, that means not that it is okay if "artists" damage public utility, but rather that most taggers are just thoughtlessly destructive juvenile assholes and not in fact artists at all.
7
Don't be a prude. Graffiti vandalism is graffiti vandalism. These people just don't give a sh.., and there's nothing that will ever change that. Learn to live with it.
8
Why does this need to be "cleaned or replaced"? It's plastic - can't somebody buy a can of nontoxic green spray paint that more or less matches and cover it up?
10
well, i guess we need more filthy homeless drunks sleeping on the playfield ALL DAY LONG. can't tag what you can't see.
11
Good thing walls, fences, buildings, benches, sidewalks, manhole covers, street lamps, electrical boxes, telephone poles, signage, rocks, sleeping dogs, bus stops, abandoned wheelchairs, roofs, bridges, train cars, and viaducts can all regenerate and be easily cleaned.
12
I can't tell you how many times my penis, saddened and discouraged by the hoo-hah of the hoo-hah, has sought out men's behinds. Although probably fewer times than my high school friends would have you believe.
15
After I clean up the graffiti around my house, I spread on just a little grease. Bearing grease, or crisco, whatever. You can't paint or draw on grease. It works great. Ruins their paint markers. Just put some grease on the field.
16
Don't call them artists. That only validates the behavior and demeans people with real talent or aspirations. This is closer to a dog pissing on the living room rug, and should be penalized similarly: by grabbing the offender by the scruff of his neck and rubbing his nose in it.
17
I hate taggers, but this tag isn't the worst in the neighborhood. I think it kind of blends in. It will wear off quickly when the rains come.
19
About tagging and art: There is a fascinating correlation between the growth/creation of tagging styles and the growth and creation of muslim caligraphy (during the years images where banned in certain parts of the muslim world). They are both built out of the same notion of not only complexity and beauty, but descriptive beyond the words they are actually writing. (the text itself is secondary)
Since "art" is as objective as "good" or "evil" its tricky to say whether someone is or isn't an artist. If "pissing in" is a disqualifier from the term "artist" then allot of classic artists would have to be removed aswell.
Personally I think its shit - but on the other hand I think allot of art is shit. I think billboards are shit aestheticly and the reasoning to decorate the city with ads is about as nasty as any amount of tag-bombing. 90% of all what-we-for-some-reason-call "industrial design" is shit.
And since the urge to - show your position in a social group, prove your existance or value to yourself or simply find an outlet and a way to protest or rebel against the society you live in - will always exist (just like oil painting hacks or people who "design" idiotic things like a knifestand that looks like something else because its so damn "fun")... then we might aswell find a way to minimize the damage instead of hopelessly trying to stop it.
Since "art" is as objective as "good" or "evil" its tricky to say whether someone is or isn't an artist. If "pissing in" is a disqualifier from the term "artist" then allot of classic artists would have to be removed aswell.
Personally I think its shit - but on the other hand I think allot of art is shit. I think billboards are shit aestheticly and the reasoning to decorate the city with ads is about as nasty as any amount of tag-bombing. 90% of all what-we-for-some-reason-call "industrial design" is shit.
And since the urge to - show your position in a social group, prove your existance or value to yourself or simply find an outlet and a way to protest or rebel against the society you live in - will always exist (just like oil painting hacks or people who "design" idiotic things like a knifestand that looks like something else because its so damn "fun")... then we might aswell find a way to minimize the damage instead of hopelessly trying to stop it.
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