What Is Art?
This second article in the series asking the question "What is Art?", looks at the genre of graffiti.
Living in London, there is no shortage of street graffiti with one of the best examples located at Leake Street in Waterloo. After an evening at the Tate Modern Gallery viewing a Damien Hurst art collection, I wondered over to the "graffiti tunnel" known as the Old Vic tunnel underneath Waterloo station.
This is a legal spot allowing street artists to express themselves. I spoke with an artist by the name of Alex who gave me some insights. He explained that to create a 20 foot stretch of art would cost in the region of £40 in spray paint. The 12 foot high art involved using ladders and would often only last a few hours before another artist came along with their own art as there are no rules at this vibrant spot. Alex mentioned that certain artists have gained a level of respect which meant other artists would avoid overpainting their work. If you are looking for a constantly changing canvas, I believe this is an ideal gallery of living life.
There were however signs of gentrification or as the government likes to call it, regeneration. With new trendy coffee shops and restaurants within the tunnel, I can see this tunnel eventually turning into the sterilised Shoreditch area of London where the soul and heart has disappeared.
Let's start with the hot topic of political graffiti art. Graffiti can be traced back through history to the Greek and Roman Empires. There is often a debate as to whether graffiti is considered art or vandalism. In recent times, street artists such as Banksy and Jean-Michel Basquiat have displayed and sold pieces in galleries, therefore, some argue legitimacy exists. However, it's hard to ignore the deliberate and illegal defacing of someone's personal property.
Art can tell a story and make us think
Kalen Ockerman in 2012 created a thought provoking live mural in Shoredich, East London. His mural highlighted the inequality between the "0.01% vs 99.99%", the ruling class, the bankers, the elite. He wanted to inspire critical thought, he got exactly that early on from some angry passers by that threatened to paint over the mural.His experience was intense, as more and more people engaged with him as the days past. The mural was eventually vandalised (kind of ironic) and received worldwide attention and was eventually painted over after a few weeks. This political and social expressionist piece was clearly thought provoking.
What do you think?......send us an email with your thoughts:
Warning: swearing and bad language is used in some parts of this 7 minute time-lapse video.
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