Street Art vs. Graffiti

By: Josh, Kyle, Lauren,Melanie, and Trevor

Introduction

• Basic differences between Street Art and Graffiti

• A brief history of street art and graffiti• How society views street art• How the artists view their work

What is graffiti?

• Vandalism• Generally words– Names of people– Gangs

• Sometimes offensive

What is Street art?

• Art that is made to be a part of a public place– Paintings– Posters– Statues

• Often used to raise awareness of social or political issues

Examples:

History

• Graffiti has really been around forever• American graffiti started in the 1960’s in

Philadelphiaand New York City

Basic History

• New York City is the real birthplace of graffiti• Gang art was the beginning but it soon

transformed into something more individual• Artists began “tagging” subway cars as a way of

gaining notoriety• Started off with simple names, but soon grew

into big, fancy designs• The goal was to show your dominance in the art

• At first, artists just wanted their name out there

• Soon they began developing masterpieces, or pieces, to further distinguish themselves

• Led to the development of different styles

Basic History (Continued)

Top to Bottom

• Artists tagged the subway car from the top to the bottom with there masterpieces

Throw Up

• No not puke• One of the original styles of tagging• Characterized by one color outline and one color filler

Softie Letters

• Bubble letters

Wild Style

• Incorporated arrows, curls, and connections• Made the letters look very mechanical

Metropolitan Transit Authority

• They did not appreciate the graffiti on their cars

• The government allotted more money to the anti graffiti division

• Led to the train yards being better monitored and harder to sneak into

• Cut down on the amount of graffiti and started cleaning cars off

• By 1986 most lines were running clean cars• Artists began returning to the streets• Today most artists paint on the streets but the

few who believe the only true graffiti art is on subway cars continue their fight against the MTA

Society’s View• Most people want to see it in today’s world• Museum of Contemporary Arts (L.A.) held exhibition• Drew over 200,000 visitors over a summer• Largest amount of visitors the museum has ever had

• Society has an unwillingness to find the art in its true form

• Found mainly in urban areas along with graffiti

• Artists can be paid or anonymous

• Can bring communities together• Rough neighborhood banded

together• Gang members, children, parents

and others helped paint mural

Artists’ Views

• Personal interviews with street and graffiti artists

• Asked them all the same questions:– Similarities/differences – Opinion on controversial aspects• Whether or not it’s illegal• Conflicts with society’s views• Conflicts between artists themselves

Artists’ Views

• Agreed on the technical side of street art and graffiti– Both are forms of public art– Graffiti has more rules– Graffiti is created on the spot, while street art

begins in a studio– Both have legal and illegal components

Artists’ Views

• Differences found in the artist’s motivation– Graffiti

• Exclusive and codified• Created for other graffiti artists in an attempt to make

themselves well known• Destructive

– Street art• Inclusive• Created for a larger audience• Aims to send a message without letting people know

who the artist is

Artists’ Views

• Age affects an artist’s motivation– Graffiti is more popular for young people • Rebellion• Respect from peers

– Many artists start with graffiti and become street artists later in life as they mature

Artists’ Views

• Others said there was no difference at all– Differences are just forced upon them by society– Everything has become too commercialized– Artists should be free to do what they want and it

is up to society to accept that

Conclusion

• The basic differences that separate graffiti and street art

• A overview of the history of this art form• How society views street art and the

difference they see between graffiti and street art

• How artists see their work