Showing papers on "Graffiti published in 2006"

'Our desires are ungovernable' - writing graffiti in urban space

Abstract: Our aim in this article is to contribute to the body of research on graffiti by considering some of the hitherto hidden aspects of graffiti culture. Drawing on detailed interviews with graffiti wri...

Graffiti media and the perpetuation of an illegal subculture

Abstract: From the early 1970s to the late 1980s graffiti murals graced the outsides of New York city subways. This controversial form of name-based painting began as simple ‘tags’ or signatures done with magic marker and quickly evolved into complex aerosol murals, which writers called masterpieces, or ‘pieces’ for short. A writer’s reputation was based on the frequency and the style of ‘getting up,’ which in turn produced subcultural fame.1 While this movement drew the interest of teenagers, gallery owners, journalists, filmmakers, photographers and artists, it drew the ire of politicians.2 New York city mayors declared two separate wars on graffiti-writing urban teens, insisting that such writing constituted harmful vandalism (Austin, 2001), and New York politicians utilized the ‘broken windows’ model to argue that graffiti, not poverty, created an environment for subway crime.3 By the late 1980s painting on New York subways had nearly ceased, but the movement had made a significant mark on kids all over the world. In 1989 the New York city train era officially came to a close. The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) refused to put painted trains into service, and so the subways could no longer be used as a medium of communication. Soon thereafter writers stopped painting exclusively on trains because they no longer produced fame. Although writers quickly began to paint on walls all over the city, there were no longer central locations, like the so-called Writers Bench at 149th Street, where writers could view graffiti. The movement, though, found a new medium for producing fame: photographs. Photographs made ephemeral graffiti pieces permanent, allowing writers to view the work of others without attachment to a specific place or time. The inclusion of these ‘flicks’ in magazines created a space where graffiti pieces from all over the world could come together to be judged, critiqued, and offered as instruction.4 The transition from moving underground trains to city walls, and then to the world, by way of photographs and magazines is a significant development which has received scant attention. Many observers, and even some practitioners of the graffiti culture, trace a slow decline from its early heyday. Yet the end of the train era also freed writers from underground tunnels, and turned them into graffiti experts known in cities around the world.

Federated Virtual Graffiti

Abstract: Technologies for creating and viewing virtual graffiti using federated devices. The technologies allow users to associate virtual graffiti with geographic locations and restrict access to the graffiti to particular users, groups, federations, or the like. Users with appropriate access rights may be able to discover and view graffiti associated with a particular geographic location via a federated device when they are present at the location. Users may also access such graffiti from lists via federated devices.

The mural as graffiti deterrence

Abstract: This study investigated whether the use of a colorful mural as a passive thematic prompt could significantly reduce new graffiti attacks in an area prone to graffiti. A control design with a preceding baseline tested this hypothesis. It was predicted that the mural would reduce the proportional amount of new graffiti that appeared on the mural area compared with a blank area. Acolorful muralwas painted on the section of a wall that had attracted the most graffiti during baseline. Data consisting of numbers of instances of new graffiti were recorded by two observers. Eight new graffiti attacks were recorded on the newly cleaned area with the mural after weeks (vs. 14 attacks in the fortnight of baseline). The main control section of wall was subject to significantly higher levels of graffiti during intervention than the mural section.

In Praise of 70K: Cultural Heritage and Graffiti Style

Abstract: This article investigates recent framings of graffiti as forms of cultural heritage in Melbourne, Australia. Consideration of the heritage value of graffiti began in 1999 with a proposal by the Nat...

Bahamian ship graffiti

Abstract: In the Age of Sail the Bahamas was on major routes between the Americas and Europe. Bahamians developed a way of life using their location to advantage. Ship graffiti are the first archaeological evidence of Bahamian shipping activity. The graffiti are unique in the region, being incised into a variety of stone surfaces, and probably other surfaces which have not survived. Images depict locally-built vessels such as sloops and schooners as well as larger, ocean-going ships. Graffiti locations are predominantly associated with people of African heritage and lower socio-economic status. Details suggest artists were familiar with ship construction and rigging. © 2006 The Author

The Contested Gallery: street art, ethnography and the search for urban understandings

Abstract: This is a paper on street art and its role as a form of artistic insurrection that challenges popular understandings of public space and urban visual culture. I would like to think of it as a field guide to urban seeing, a means of revising the way in which we view the cityscape and its imagery. It is a way of imagining the city as a canvas onto which ideas may be inscribed and reinterpreted, where resistance percolates up to those who look for it. It is here, in what Kathleen Stewart has called a “place by the side of the road” that the work of the street artist exists, slowly gurgling up through the cracks in the sidewalk and briefly illuminated by the yellow-white glow of the street lights. Street art most often takes the form of adhesive stickers, spray-painted stencils, and wheat-pasted posters, and while it shares many similar aesthetic and cultural characteristics with graffiti, street art embodies a unique ideology. Graffiti represents a territorialization of space (‘tagging’, or reclaiming urban spaces through the use of pseudonyms as territorial markings); street art represents a reterritorialization of space. Rather than taking space, street art attempts to re-purpose the existing urban environment. This paper seeks to reflect the changing dynamic of urban space through an analysis of the practice of street art. By examining the roles that street artists play in disrupting the flow of visual noise in the city, I will illuminate the cultural value and significance of this form of urban artistic resistance.

Making their mark: A psychodynamic view of adolescent graffiti writing

Abstract: This paper seeks an understanding of the levels of meaning and purpose behind the overt behaviour of adolescent graffiti writing and the paradoxical way in which adolescents make public statements by employing private activities. Having identified it as a predominantly male activity, the author explores the links between the excitement and difficulties of the adolescent process; and calls on a range of theoretical thinking to move between its meaning for the individual, gang society and the adult world at large.

Historical Ship Graffiti on the Walls of San Juan's Spanish Defence System: an Interim Report

Abstract: This project intends to document graffiti identified on the walls of the defence system of San Juan, Puerto Rico, in a collaborative effort between the author and the National Park Service. The initial proposal envisaged a maximum of 8 or 9 ship drawings previously identified by the Park's personnel. Fieldwork has hugely expanded that number—so far over 400. Preliminary evaluation of the ship-types identified suggests the presence of a visual representation of ship-type evolution, at least from the 18th to the first half of the 20th centuries. © 2006 The Author

Shaping user input in speech graffiti: a first pass

Abstract: Speech Graffiti is a standardized interaction protocol for spoken dialog systems designed to address some com-mon difficulties with ASR. We have proposed a strategy of shaping to help users adapt their interaction to match what the system understands best, thereby re-ducing the chance for misunderstandings and improving interaction efficiency. In this paper we report on an evaluation of our initial implementation of shaping in Speech Graffiti, noting that our baseline strategy was not as powerful as expected, and discussing proposed changes to improve its effectiveness.

The art of the everyday

Abstract: About the book: This volume examines ideas about creativity and various approaches to its study. It explores the argument that we use language creatively and the link between creativity and literary language. Chapters examine poetic language, narrative and performance in conversation, and a range of written genres (from graffiti and text messages to online chat).

A Tale of Two Bodies: On Aesthetic Condensation in the Mexican Colonial Graffiti of Actopan, 1629

Abstract: Dressed in black, his body slides down the polished wall: arms in the air, a man with glasses falls, head first, in the corner of the room (fig. 1). We can almost hear the noise of the crash, but just as his hat hits the ground, the force of gravity is eternally arrested by an invisible hand that transforms the descent into a drawing. The rapid strokes capture the vertiginous height and speed of the fall. Along the intersecting walls, a profusion of figures, buildings, paths, and scribbles crowd the falling body in a seemingly disorganized jumble of episodes (fig. 2). But as if filmed in slow motion, a pictorial narrative unfolds as each detail emerges. We are in the Mexican village of Actopan (fig. 3), in the latrine of the Augustinian monastery of San Nicol?s deTolentino, founded in 1546 and generally regarded as one of the key monuments in the history of New Spain.1 Although the building has been the object of significant studies?especially as the repository of mural paintings valued as masterpieces of colonial art2?the graffiti3 drawn on the walls of the latrine have never received serious attention.4

London Street Art

Abstract: This first-ever guide to focus solely on London street art proves that the city's graffiti culture is clearly thriving. Shot in a riot of color by press photographer Alex MacNaughton, "London Street Art" presents a broad spectrum of writers and graffiti artists from crews all over London, including Hoxton, Shoreditch, Camden, and Hackney. Providing a lasting record of the best artists on the London scene, it captures pieces that last only a matter of hours or days before they are removed. From vast free masterpieces on walls, quirky stencils on doorways and pavements, to subtle stickers, tags and signatures, "London Street Art" is as hilarious as it is political and showcases some of the most current, exciting and fresh urban art forms in the world.

Gender Differences in Jail House Art and Graffiti

Abstract: This paper examines the differences in art and grafitti produced by men and women who were detained at the Porter County Jail from approximately 1991-2002. The purpose of this investigation was to determine through a content analysis if the drawings and writings of maile and female detainees differed in significant ways. Results of the study indicate that the amount, content and form of the artwork produced differ significantly by sex. Theories of gender role socialization and communication are used to explain the patterns found among the words and pictures.

Method of Removing Graffiti from Surface of Concrete

Abstract: The appearance of buildings and towns is ruined by graffiti drawn on walls made of concrete or brick. Much money and labor are spent in removing graffiti from such rough surface. This paper is a comparative study of the laser irradiation method and the high-pressure water jet method for removing graffiti from the surface of concrete. The former uses a YAG laser beam and the later uses water containing sodium bicarbonate particles. The graffiti were drawn in nine colors on the surface of concrete specimens using oil spray paint and emulsion spray paint. The main results of this study are as follows: Graffiti drawn with oil paint is easier to remove than that with emulsion paint. Yellow and orange colors are harder to remove compared to other colors. In both methods (laser irradiation and water jet) of removal, the surface of concrete is damaged only slightly. Overall, the laser irradiation method appears to be more effective for graffiti removal than the water jet method.

Writ Large: Graffiti and Praxis in Pedagogical Third Spaces

Abstract: This was a culture composed of teenagers who’d been handed the legacy of the civil Rights Movement and managed to make something out of it together. Our neighborhoods were hard[ly near]by each other’s and we all met on the subway...race relations were both strained and vital. There were legendary, and maybe just rumored, incidents between the mostly white GO Club and the mostly black Pearls, but there were also scores of white kids listening to Parliament and Sly Stone, and black kids, like EZE 1, digging Zeppelin and Sabbath.

Jean Dubuffet : works, writings and interviews

Abstract: As an enemy of culture and of the art of museums, Jean Dubuffet (1901-1985) was also an anarchist, an atheist, anti-military and unpatriotic He was an explosive force, a rebel who rejected labels and categories, resolute in his quest for freedom from all constraints, and not incidentally one of the most remarkable artists of the twentieth century Over an extraordinarily productive career from 1942 to 1985, Dubuffet found himself drawn to the art of children and madmen, which he endowed with legitimacy and credibility as "Art Brut" This in turn inclined him towards extreme forms and the expressive scrawls and scribbles of graffiti, and prompted him to begin experimenting with materials such as bitumen, sand and plant fibers, which made him one of the earliest and most prominent Matter artists As a prolific writer, and sometimes a cruel polemicist, Dubuffet left a storehouse of written work that offers invaluable insight into his vision of art

‘Getting it up’ with mobile virtual graffiti

Abstract: Since the first appearance of modern man one trait of human behaviour appears to be an inherent desire to leave our mark on a particular object or space and controversial ‘SprayCan’ graffiti that appeared in the 1970s is but a modern extension of this phenomenon. The Mobspray project started out looking at the possibilities for allowing environmentally friendly location based virtual graffiti tagging using mobile phones equipped with a RFID reader/writer. However, our experiences produce aspects akin to the ‘tagging’ behaviour of ‘real’ writing crews and indeed behaviour often associated with gaming. This demonstration will show how both how simple and easy to use mobile phones equipped with RFID technology are, and how tangible objects can be used to create interesting mixed reality experiences for the modern urban landscape.

Graffiti: Overground archaeology or environmental crime?

Abstract: ‘In a city that belongs to no-one, people are constantly seeking to leave a trace of themselves…’ (Sennett 1990:205) Graffiti, by its very nature, is inevitably temporary type. Whether due to chemical cleansing agents deployed by local councils and property owners, or simply the effect of the wind and rain over time, at some point, it will, sooner or later, disappear.The word graffiti means ‘little scratchings’ and it comes from the Italian graffiare, which means to scratch and for thousands of years ancient cultures have engaged in this form of written expression. (Reisner 1971; Abel & Buckley 1977). When studied, the older examples of graffiti have often been used to provide insights into society – Pompeii being an obvious example (Abel & Buckley 1977:4). There is something about graffiti in this context that is somehow acceptable – visitors to Pompeii don’t complain that the graffiti is destroying the landscape they simply view it as part of the history of the place.

Graffiti zwischen Kunst und Ärgernis: empirische Studien zu einem städtischen Problem

Abstract: Empfohlene Zitierung / Suggested Citation: Sackmann, R. (Hrsg.). (2006). Graffiti zwischen Kunst und Ärgernis: empirische Studien zu einem städtischen Problem (Der Hallesche Graureiher : Forschungsberichte des Instituts für Soziologie, 2006-1). Halle: Universität Halle-Wittenberg, Philosophische Fakultät I Sozialwissenschaften und historische Kulturwissenschaften, Institut für Soziologie. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-113506

"Trazados de edificios moros": graffiti medievales en los subterráneos de la torre de Comares de La Alhambra

Abstract: We intend to present, through this work, a study of several medieval graffiti found in the underground of “Torre de Comares”. This is a first step at the research of this kind of signs located at different places at the Alhambra and Generalife. Its study suggest that the graffiti’s authors are real master-builder participating in many works done at this same place at the “Palacios Nazaries”, during the first half of the XIV Century. A qualified staff who highly know about geometric applicable to the Architecture, floor design and about buildings elevation as well. Based on the motifs of the graffiti, we suggest a double theory about its authors, they could be Christian workers (captive or free) who participate at this work, or maybe they were Muslim master-builders working in the manner of the Christian, as well.

What's in a Name? Graffiti on Funerary Pottery

Abstract: Fascicules 7 and 8 of Roman Inscription of Britain II, dealing with samian and coarse pottery respectively, contain some 60 examples of graffiti associated with funerary contexts. Most graffiti are personal names and traditionally these were thought to record the names of the deceased. Analysis has revealed, however, that the names are more likely to be those of mourners or gift-givers. This is suggested by case-endings (graffiti that indicate possession are relatively few), the presence of multiple names in single graves, and the observation that many names were inscribed on ancillary vessels, rather than cinerary urns.

non-conventional perception and (tranS)formation of urban Space: the Study of vilniuS graffiti WriterS

Abstract: This article examines graffiti as the illicit strategy of contemporary urban space formation and presents the non-conventional cityscape perception of the graffiti subculture members. The findings of the study based on detailed interviews with graffiti writers from Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, reveal their motivations towards illegal spatial practices and their attitudes towards politics of urban structure and design. The main difference between traditional perception of urban space and the views of graffiti writers lies in the distinction of ‘free’ and controlled, public and private, striated and smooth space experience. The social context of the struggles over ‘free’ urban space is determined by the emergence of symbolic economy in post-industrial city and its hyper-aestheticised and commercialized cityscape that enables the visual resistance – a subversed form of production of symbols known as illegal graffiti practice.

Boston's north end : Negotiating identity in an Italian American neighborhood

Abstract: Caffe Graffiti is a bar on Hanover Street, the central artery of the North End, the Italian American1 neighborhood of Boston. It is an "Italian" bar,2 where people sit, especially in the morning for an "Italian" break fast, (usually coffee?or cappuccino?and pastry). Or they might order an aperitif, probably a Campari Soda. People do not stay long, just the time to drink their coffee and eat their pastry. Sometimes they do not even have their pastry there, but in another site: nearby, at Mickey's Place. People gather around the Caffe Graffiti, because there are tables inside and benches outside. It is possible to sit for a while, every morn ing, talking with friends, or waiting for other friends who may be coming. They also chat with the owner or the waiters (they speak Italian, loudly, so, I think, everybody can recognize the place as an Italian place). Hanover Street is the heart of the North End, and, for me, Caffe Graffiti is the heart of Hanover Street It has become a sort of headquar ters for my fieldwork. One morning before returning to Italy after three weeks of fieldwork I wanted to say hello to my friends in the North End.3 We were drinking a cup of coffee, a very nice "Italian" espresso, in the morning. There were four or five old men talking, sitting on a bench outside, enjoying that sunny 3rd of July. At the end of their conversation one of the group said goodbye to the others in this way: