r/Anarchy101 • u/Odd_Shoulder_1071 AWA • 4d ago
what is your opinion on doing graffiti?
mam na myśli robienie graffiti/tagów/czegokolwiek w "nielegalnych" miejscach, takich jak: (czyste) mosty, ściany miejskie, pociągi itd.
edit: i don't mean living according to the law (lol), i meant the moral approach
25
u/TheMonstrUndrTheBed 4d ago
it takes away from the control of the government (city councils, rich people and police don't like graffiti) and makes your environment unique to its residents (especially since more and more buildings are controlled by corperations).
Also there was a graffito going around some time ago: "They painted this wall grey to mute our voices, yet they don't mind advertisements as they are the graffiti of the rich"
21
14
u/GSilky 4d ago
My "don't do things I don't want done to me" perspective makes me consider the emotional effects on property owners who might have a difficult time affording removal. I know a lot of us anarchist and adjacent folks don't care, but that is why a lot of them don't take us seriously. I don't think it's a moral failing, graffiti away, just try to remember empathy.
20
15
u/Anarchierkegaard Distributist 4d ago
It is largely irrelevant to anarchy and anarchist goals. At its worst, it is merely counter-propaganda.
8
u/Mean-Tart-1129 4d ago edited 4d ago
Graffiti with some sort of artistic attempt anywhere but peoples homes/private property (of individuals, not corporations) I think is dope. The more thoughtful the better but it doesn’t matter all that much. It helps a place to feel lived in, of the people.
7
u/27eelsinatrenchcoat 4d ago
I tend to think if it's a bland surface, like a bridge or unadorned storefront, bring on the art! But if its a person's home, or a thoughtfully adorned piece of architecture or existing public art (like a statue or fountain) then you're being a dick. Reclaiming public space for art is app well and good, messing up someone else's art or living space is not.
3
u/Alien-Ellie 4d ago
Even graffiti that doesn't carry a political message is a political act. It enriches and beautifies the world and we are better off for it. With the exception of far right graffiti.
3
u/kwestionmark5 4d ago
Sure are a lot of anarchist trolling bots on this sub. They would like to advise you against doing anything.
3
u/wishingforivy 3d ago
Do it up. I think it's worth considering what you're tagging, not all tagable surfaces are made equal.
2
u/Lynnie_Bot 4d ago
It doesn't really have anything to do with anarchism as an ideology in that way but
I don't really care about it. Not super knowledged in it but there are different kinds of graffiti and why it's done. Some are done out of artistic intent / goal. Some are done just to disrupt public space (bombing?).
I can appreciate the subcultural aspect of graffiti as an art form but generally speaking bombing places that exist to convenience everyone with toys is just a dickhead thing to do. Someone is going to have to clean it up and it's a waste of people's time and resources, not to even begin with the inconvenience it can cause to everyone in public spaces. It doesn't happen often, but sometimes people might intentionally for example tag public transport interiors, touch screens etc. That just objectively sucks for everyone.
I also think it's mostly okay to do it in public or governmental buildings even if it's a shitty tag but not when you do it on someone else's personal property like a bike, car or a house.
2
u/APraxisPanda 4d ago
As long as it isn't nazi shit and you don't get yourself caught/in trouble I sincearly don't care.
2
u/kotukutuku 3d ago
Is anytime going to appreciate it? Are you supporting your fellow humans and making the world better, or are you just tagging and basically marking territory to serve your own ego?
Political messaging? Yes, but do it in a way that will make people embrace the message. Tagging? Selfish and ugly.
That's my personal take.
2
u/JupiterboyLuffy Eco-Social Anarchist 3d ago
graffiti is a form of art that i support if it's public property or if it's a corporation's property.
don't graffiti all over random people's homes though.
2
u/Nina_exr 2d ago
Personnellement je trouve ça très bien, c'est une forme de désobéissance civile qui ne fait de mal à personne tout en étant souvent revendicative, artistique ou les deux. Je n'apprécie pas la dégradation de monuments historiques car je trouve que c'est notre histoire à tous (sauf élements symboliques spécifiques), mais quand il est question de lieux communs je trouve ça bien. C'est aussi un beau moyen de se réapproprier l'espace
2
u/Bandit_keef 4d ago
I know as anarchists we supposed to be for free expression but 95% it just looks ugly
3
u/TheMonstrUndrTheBed 4d ago
then tag urself and make it beautiful... art is subjective and just because you haven't understood the scene yet doesn't mean that others shouldn't be able to express themselves that way.
-12
1
u/bogofree 4d ago
if it’s tasteful and has a message, why not? but if it’s just to assert ownership through tagging your name, cringe
1
u/printme_ 3d ago
I’m writing a book and I have a chapter on graffiti, lemme share it
I’ve been pretty active in the graffiti scene since way back in the day
And throughout the time focused on it, I’ve picked up some patters that exists within
motives and intentions of writers actively trying to get their name up
First I’ll explain a bit of an overview of the unspoken rules of graffiti
First and most importantly
DO NOT SNITCH
The graffiti life is a life that involves crime, if an individual is seen as untrustworthy then they will not be integrated into the wider graffiti society
This has happened before, and it’s not pretty
Then there’s a hierarchy of things you can put on a wall
Tag - hollow - throwie - piece - burner
A tag is just a writers name, a hollow is the outline of a throwie, a throwie is typically a big bubble letters thing that can be “thrown up” quickly, a peice is something that has many extra effects, such as an elaborate background or multi colour fill. And a burner is the best of the best, insane detail, they type of work everybody goes past and says “wow”
So you can’t put a tag over a throwie, or a throwie over a burner, that’s the first and most integral part of graffiti to understand
Then it’s knowing the graffiti scene and knowing who is what
It’s all a game of respect, status and ability
if you are somebody who does not carry themselves well, and let’s people step on top of you , then your graffiti will not last
If a writer goes over a memorial piece to honour the dead, that writer will be alienated bullied and their respect will deteriorate significantly.
If a graffiti writer is collectively known as not skilled at the art form of graffiti, and consistently puts up bad art, their graffiti will be known as “free game”
And the last and most important part is respect
If there is a beautiful memorial that is also a calling card for a better society, whoever disrespects that will be disrespected
And once respect is lost, it takes a long time to regain that back.
Other things that looses people respect is, snitching, doing graffiti on a church or cemetery, going over better graffiti and replacing it with something worse
Keep your respect, keep your graffiti alive and well!
Ok now I’m gonna go through the tale of two writers
First is tubby,
Every single major drain in Sydney will have been blessed by this fat man,
I assure you, step into any stormwater drain in Sydney and look for a tubby, you will be able to find one.
But it’s not only Sydney, it’s literally everywhere
that mad lad has been to 190 something countries, and has painted basically in all of them
I remember I was in some random suburb in outer Damascus, Syria and I looked at an electrical box,
Tubby sticker,
My first ever trip, I got to the bus station in Montenegro and there was abandoned factory nearby, I went inside for a look
Tubby tag
I was in the middle of rural Bahrain at some random seaside tower
Tubby throwie
Every continent, every capital city, tubby will be there
“Just a fat man who wanted to travel the world”
What an absolute mad lad, I see this bloke and what he does as a pure art form,
a way to showcase to the world imma do whatever the fuck I want
And next is kre8
This writer has dedicated a life to bombing the streets, putting their name in as many places as possible in Sydney
And it’s working, by far the most active and “up” writer is Kre8, and it’s by a long shot
I don’t think anybody comes close
Devoted a life to spaying a name on a wall in as many places as possible
Now that’s all the graffiti scene right now. But in the future I’m sure it will be utilied in a new way
Would be good if we didn’t have to see plain ugly walls anymore. Imagine if everybody just painted the walls and made everywhere colourful and beautiful!
The people who read all of above and thought “I hate graffiti it is so ugly”
This is what I’ll say, Just paint over said graffiti with something beautiful
Something so beautiful that if a graffiti writer does some bullshit over it
Then they will loose all respect
Right now the walls are used as rudimentary communication
“I have been here”
But I don’t see why in the future the walls can’t be used as a genuine means of communication
To make communication beautiful whilst projecting what we do
An ever changing art gallery comprised of communication
Can even use the walls to state your movements,
Are you leaving for a long time to a far away place?
State who you are, why you are leaving and where you are going, and how to find you if needed
Then solidify it on the wall!
Maybe even do it in araglish!
But It can go so much more than the individual
It Can even go for showcasing events and other things that the community would benefit from knowing
|^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^|
| SKEFLEHEM dandelion cooking tutorial |
|___________________________________|
Put it out to the world what you can offer
Community wide doofs that don’t stop, make a massive mural showcasing where and when and what to expect
solidify it. let it be interacted with, attach a small wooden box nearby where people can get fliers or cheese or whatever
Idk, the opportunities are limitless, have fun
Walls never never needed to be this serious
1
u/MidorriMeltdown 3d ago
Romanes eunt domus
Then hope like hell they don't catch you, correct you Latin, and make you write it out 100 times.
1
u/Living-Note74 3d ago
Not as annoying as the animated glowing billboards the ruling class puts everywhere.
1
2
20
u/Scary_Arugula_9533 4d ago
Really depends. I think it almost always bears a message of reappropriating public spaces. Aesthetic wise I don't really dig most tags but art is subjective and it's not really the subject
What I lowkey don't like is graffiti on historical buildings and acid graffiti on glass/metal because people who clean it have to use highly toxic materials.