Graffiti Media
Long before modern-day graffiti was considered an art form, hand-drawn images graced the walls of caves and tombs around the world. Possibly considered the first form of graffiti, these paintings told a story through the use of a visual form of media. The same fact is true of the graffiti that we are accustomed to today. Particularly in New York, graffiti has created a culture and community rooted in expression through visual media. Beginning with the secret tagging of subway cars, the graffiti movement in New York started as an underground art scene. Artists would tag subway cars, leaving them much more colorful and interesting than they found them. What began as an underground movement of artists has now risen up as a worldwide art form with graffiti artists like Banksy gaining international recognition for their surprise pieces that pop up out of nowhere.
Photograph: Courtesy Elle Street Art
When we think of graffiti now, we are reminded of clothing brands and random words casually spray-painted underneath a highway. What we don’t see is the hard work that goes into the murals that we pass by without any thought to who created them and why. Those subway cars that started the graffiti movement in New York aren’t the only thing that we look to for inspiration and education about the history of graffiti. Nowadays, we’re seeing graffiti on nearly every street corner and even on trucks, sporting companies commissioned graffiti to grab the attention of potential clients.
Photograph: Time Out/Ali Garber
More importantly, graffiti has grown into a political and cultural movement. With the rise of the notoriety and importance of the Black Lives Matter movement, graffiti murals dedicated to those who have lost their lives to police brutality are everywhere. These murals use the art of graffiti to recognize black culture and to pay tribute to those who we have lost. They make a public statement and a political one. Using this form of visual media to bring attention to important causes brings the movement into the contemporary cultural space and allows for more people to be exposed to the causes that they should know and care about.
Photograph: Courtesy Mike Fernandez/National Audubon Society
What is surprising about the rise of graffiti is the newfound interest in graffiti as high art. Most famously, graffiti artist Banksy’s work sold at a Christie’s auction only to be shredded into pieces after the final bid was made. Artists like Banksy secretly put their pieces up all over the world to be discovered by fans and art connoisseurs. Without Banksy’s consent, their pieces have also been exhibited in museums around the world. The elevation of what was once seen as an illegal and unattractive form of self-expression has given graffiti a place in the world of high art and has given artists like Banksy and their peers more freedom to create and display their work on buildings and street corners around the world.
Written by: Media Smart Citizens Content Creator Miranda Gilbert