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Hi Madison, great job on your last blog post. I liked how you engaged us readers by asking if we will continue to spread awareness about graffiti. My answer is yes - I really enjoyed learning more about graffiti considering I had always been intrigued by it since I was a young kid watching graffiti-covered train carts whiz by my house. This course reinforced my stance on graffiti that I do believe it belongs in society. So far, I’ve been spreading awareness about graffiti when I am out with friends. If I see graffiti, I point it out to them which usually creates an interesting conversation (what is the graffiti trying to say? Why is it there? Who put it there? etc..). You mentioned that you will continue to spread awareness about graffiti. It would be interesting to hear you expand on this further and go into detail about how you plan on doing so. 

Best of luck on your exams in the coming weeks!

Blog Prompt 8

Based on what I’ve learned in this course, which includes how graffiti and informal public art is interpreted, how it is misinterpreted, its real meaning, etc., can impact society in a variety of ways. One of them being, is graffiti and informal art can be viewed as a helpful tool rather than a negative tool. Usually, the ones that are educated on the topic can see this type of art as a message that helps society come to the realization of the problems that occur and what we need to do in order to change. Or it can be viewed as a negative tool rather than a positive. This interpretation is an assumption that has been set by society that this type of art is “vandalism” rather than an art. There is a difference between vandalism and art. Vandalism is something that is written somewhere that harms others or on private property. Art is something that spreads a positive message and is put up for people to see and learn. People that are not educated have false views and can turn against this art because society has made it to be seen this way and individuals shadow the other meaning behind it.

How it can be used “for the betterment of society” is it brings the community together as a whole. This type of art is typically used to send a message to the community about factors to take into consideration on how us as a whole can make the world a better place. When one person works on spreading positive messages through the use of graffiti and informal art, others will tend to follow. Once others have followed all it is doing is nothing but spreading positivity and awareness. Although, it all starts with ones educated voice. One educated voice will lead to the betterment of society. Considering all of us are educated on this topic because we have taken this class, will you continue to spread awareness on this topic? If yes, how will you do it? If not, why not? Do you still think graffiti is wrong?

All in all, based on my experiences and education, there are many more benefits to graffiti than disadvantages. I will continue to spread awareness and will never stop. I am a very strong believer in graffiti and informal art because it is such an amazing way to spread an anonymous, positive message. Remember learning in our class specifically about Banksy? Banksy is an anonymous graffiti artist that has become very famous and looked up to due to his creativity, yet he is anonymous. This tells us that it is possible to change society’s perspective of graffiti in a positive manner, it can just start with one person and for people to continue to do it. I am very thankful for what we have learnt in this class from different interpretations of the types of art, different forms of art, digital films, etc., because it reflects positive meanings which is a huge eye opener.

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Blog #8: Why Graffiti Boosts Society

Based on what I’ve learned from the course, I believe that graffiti can be used to better society. After hearing Arthur Kerrey state that the “walls serve as a blank canvas for artists”, it made me think about how we could better use those walls in our local communities. I strongly believe that commissioned street art should be put on walls that may be susceptible to graffiti. Arthur insisted that walls covered in well-done murals can last up to 2 to 3 years before being vandalized. Besides, all commissioned street art brings forth a great opportunity to share all sorts of positives messages to society through mural images, stenciling, and lettering.

Next, I believe designated graffiti areas can create an atmosphere that can better society. These areas can act as a place where anyone of any demographic can explore and contribute to public art without the fear of repercussion. Perhaps someone needs to get their mind off of things after a long day of work or are looking to gain insight on different artistic methods - these designated areas will allow unique artistic methods to shine while presenting a place for society to come and relax, be inspired by artistic beauty, and have them make connections with surrounding people who may also be there for similar reasons. The ability to meet new people in this environment creates a new and unique circumstance for people to socialize. Often times, graffiti and public art may send a message in many different forms; forcing people to look at things from different perspectives. This can create great conversation amongst people at these designated public art areas which may allow people to create more friendships. In my opinion, people with great friends tend to be happier. If designated public art areas act as a place for people to make new connections, then I believe it acts as a place which can better society as a whole.

Overall, I really enjoy well-done graffiti and public art done by experienced artists.  I believe there will always be a time and place for Graffiti and public art as long as the art isn’t inappropriate. If you want to watch an interesting video, see the clip below which follows some of the graffiti “Gods” of Miami. It has accumulated almost 2 million views and is a great watch. The video is quite interesting and touches on a few important topics we discussed in class including why these artists tag their names, where they tag their names, and whether or not graffiti can increase the value of cities and their real estate. If you have time, please watch the video and let me know what you think!

Thank you all for being great classmates, I wish you the best of luck moving forward. Feel free to say hi if you see me out and about on campus.

Best,

Mark

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Hi Jessa, I thought you brought up some great points on how graffiti needs to be handled in our community. First, your idea to implement graffiti in the school curriculum is excellent. I agree that high school students would greatly benefit from learning about graffiti, its positive and negative outcomes, as well as other alternatives to express one’s feelings. I thought it was interesting that you got even more specific with the idea to incorporate a ‘unit’ into an art class that was similar to our UNIV1200 class. I would have enjoyed reading more detail about this and what you would specifically include in the class to help educate the students. What parts of our class would you have included in the art class curriculum?

Next, I like your idea of encouraging business owners to put up murals on their walls in hopes of decreasing the likelihood of graffiti. Since this may bear an expensive cost to business owners, do you think there should be some form of subsidy provided from the city or provincial government to help with the mural costs? Or do you think these business owners should pay for their mural entirely on their own? I guess the same questions could be asked in regards to graffiti-resistant paint... I would be interested to hear your thoughts on this.

Overall, I think your post was great. You covered a number of different opportunities for communities to deal with graffiti and took your time to go into depth to explain each one. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us!

Communities encouraging art and expression in youths.

I feel as though graffiti is not talked about enough. It is one of those things people try to ignore and only comes to light when a controversial issue involving it arises such as hate crimes. Since the majority of graffiti comes from teenagers, one way to minimalize vandalism would to address graffiti in schools and have it added to the curriculum, specifically for high school students. Youths should be taught about the impact of graffiti has on small businesses and other public spaces. Art classes should add a unit similar to UNIV1200, where kids can learn about different kinds of graffiti, graffiti artists and the different impacts and opinions surrounding the art form. Kids should also be shown different ways to express themselves that don’t involve destruction or vandalism. One of the best ways to understand an issue is to educate and start conversations about it. This would be one step toward controlling graffiti in a community.

As for monitoring and maintenance, as I have said before in these blogs, graffiti walls and alleys are an important part of keeping graffiti under control while still encouraging artistic expression in a community. These walls would have to monitored by city officials. Businesses should be open to commissioning young artists to do murals on their buildings in order to decrease unwanted tagging. When art is already on a wall the likelihood of further graffiti decreases out of respect of the art. Of course, these businesses would then have to maintain the art and replace it if vandalized. This kind of encouragement from communities would allow for unique beautification and a decrease in ugly tagging and vandalism. This system would also be encouraging art as a profession which will mean young artists will take their art more seriously and stray away from crude or ugly art. In order to achieve these advancements organizations will need to raise money and awareness about graffiti. The city must figure out spaces to install graffiti walls that will not interfere with other public areas. This operation will require a group of people who are passionate about the issue. In order to maintain the walls and alleys a usage fee may be needed.  

example of a graffiti alley https://planetgusto.com/20150606_145649/ 

There will however, always be controversy and unwanted graffiti, in these cases graffiti removal is necessary. Vandalism is a crime but usually not serious enough for police intervention due to the unlikely situation in which the artist will be caught. There are many ways to avoid and monitor graffiti but most of these ways are very expensive. In cities where vandalism is common it may be up to the community to come together and raise funds to protect their properties. Ways to remove or avoid graffiti include; graffiti resistant paint, security cameras, spot lights, power washers and painting over.  

Communities must unite in order to control graffiti. Art and expression should never be censored or discouraged instead graffiti must become a part of everyday life, something that gets talked about. Graffiti can become a positive part of a community instead of a negative.

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I believe graffiti should be addressed through local municipal governments in each town. The local municipal government must make an effort to have a policy in place for graffiti and public art. I believe there needs to be designated areas in cities/towns for graffiti where anyone of any age can post their work without fear of any consequences. These local municipalities must choose where this location(s) is and have a sign in that area to describe what it is and what it encourages. In doing this, I believe illegal tagging will decrease amongst the streets which will give the municipality a more appealing image. There might even be an opportunity to draw in tourists as millennials have taken appreciation to have their picture taken at public art murals and end up sharing it on their social media channels. Also, I believe these municipalities need to have a budget for implementing public murals and other forms of public art throughout their area. Unfortunately, this will come as a burden to taxpayers, but I would much rather live in a flourishing community with beautiful art versus a boring community covered in sloppy graffiti tags.

There will always be circumstances where inappropriate public art is displayed in any area of a town. Once again, there needs to be money allocated from the municipality’s budget to handle these problems. Unfortunately, this leads to more tax dollars used from citizens to cover other people’s problematic choices. I don’t think any citizen appreciates their hard-earned money being used to clean up someone else’s mess, but that’s the reality of the world we live in today. I believe this creates a great opportunity for people who need to complete community service hours. The municipality can create a program where one or two individuals take minors who are serving community service and teach them to clean up people’s public art wrongdoings. This is also creating an excellent opportunity to create a dual-learning purpose for minors completing their community service. Not only will the minors learn to be more responsible through doing their community service, but they will also be contributing to creating a cleaner and more appealing appearance in their local municipality.

It’s hard to figure out how much money should be allocated to pay the people who are taking the youth out to clean up the inappropriate public art. In this situation, the costs of paint and supplies also need to be accounted for. There may need to be a six-month or one-year trial period to get enough data in order to implement a proper dollar figure into the municipality’s budget. Either way, I believe local municipalities should assume responsibility for all aspects of public art in their surrounding jurisdictions.

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Hi Marin, I enjoyed reading about your opinion on how you interpret public artwork as ‘graffiti’ or ‘informal art’. In class, we’ve analyzed all sorts of different public art with all sorts of different techniques used to create such pieces. The guest speakers in class have allowed us to craft our own personal opinions surrounding this art culture. Although there is no right or wrong opinion, hearing the difference of opinion about how others perceive the same piece of art fascinates me. For example, the artwork that was subject in the H&M controversy could be labelled in many different ways. I would classify this piece of artwork as ‘graffiti’. In fact, I perceive graffiti as “any painted public piece of art that was done without permission”. I am not saying that I am right and you are wrong, but it’s neat to see how we have both studied the same content in this course and have developed a difference of opinion on how we perceive these certain pieces of public art. Last, your last sentence states. “Having a diverse collection of graffiti coming from a variety of artists with different backgrounds and experiences adds a lot to a city”. I like how you left this open-ended for the reader. I agree that public art can add character and charm to a city. You mentioned that you perceive graffiti as  “having the distinctive writing “font”/style of typical graffiti with the big curved letters and contrasting sharp lines and edges”. If you tie this to your blog’s closing sentence, are you saying that font and writing style types of graffiti would add a lot to a city? If so, this is a very fascinating opinion which may create many altering opinions from people who would rather see public art using pictures to lighten up their town versus artwork utilizing lettering. I would be curious to hear you further elaborate on this. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and opinions!

Curved, Sharp and Blurred Lines

Learning about the social, economical and historical applications of graffiti has been an eye-opening experience. One of the biggest things I’ve taken away from the course has been the motivation behind graffiti as well as the entire graffiti culture.

I had never previously considered the use of graffiti in cities as a means of gaining fame and recognition. This could be partly due to the negative connotations of graffiti that we’ve talked a lot about already. This attempt to acquire fame as a graffiti artist is definitely linked to the subculture that isn’t discussed quite as much. To passers by, the tags, stickers and less constructive splatters and designs seem to be quick, mindless additions to streets and dwellings. To other artists and other people that pay attention like police officers, volunteers and apparently, students like us, the frequency, style, placement and message of a tag or sticker all represent a certain artist in some way. These patterns all become really easy to identify with a little attention to detail and careful monitoring. So before this course I hadn’t realized that there actually were people that paid this kind of attention. That might have been a narrow-minded view of the graffiti situation but that’s why I took this course…

I also think that the lines between graffiti, informal art and even formal art are extremely blurred. There have been instances throughout the course where it has seemed as though we were talking about a piece that was clearly commissioned by a professional artist in the context of a piece of graffiti. If it’s on a wall outside does is it automatically graffiti? I personally don’t believe so, even it’s been commissioned professionally I think a piece needs to have certain characteristics in order to be considered graffiti and not a mural. I think it needs to have the distinctive writing “font”/style of typical graffiti with the big curved letters and contrasting sharp lines and edges.

This clearly shows what I mean by big curves as well as sharp points and creases.

Even when we talked about the piece that started the controversy with H&M, I didn’t consider it graffiti, more a piece done by a local, informal artist.

I agree that this is art and I’m not questioning the artist’s talent or skill, this is impressive and really aesthetically pleasing. Despite all of that, I don’t consider it graffiti. It’s possible that the artist had adopted several aspects of graffiti culture like seeing a space and using it regardless of ownership or permission and using designs that are unique and can be in some way traced back to them, regardless I don’t think that pieces like this are graffiti. This is what I mean by the lines between graffiti and informal art being very blurred.

I personally see value in professionally done graffiti, it takes practice, dedication and talent and I do consider it a specific kind of art form. Having a diverse collection of graffiti coming from a variety of artists with different backgrounds and experiences adds a lot to a city.

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Blog #6: How UNIV1200 Changed My Views on Graffiti

So far, our Expressions Through Graffiti class has opened my mind up to how I interpret graffiti. Certain views from Paul Deacon, Arthur Kerrey, and Sargeant Frasier have changed my opinion about how graffiti fits into our society.

I'll begin with my current views of graffiti - keep in mind, my views may differ from yours and I respect that some people view certain things differently than others. I am not against public informal art in some areas. I think it's neat to see informal art under bridges in remote areas (think in the country). To me, it adds elements of character to a rather boring structure. I would prefer more talented artists to do these tags and pieces, but there is no way to control this. Contrarily, I believe that informal art should be illegal on any downtown building, or structure for that matter. Instead, cities and towns need to carry out graffiti policies which allow anyone to make art on designated areas. Toronto has done an excellent job utilizing "graffiti alley" as a place for artists to gather and show their work with no fear of the law. Graffiti walls need to be mimicked in more areas around Ontario. In my opinion, these public art spaces will add character to the city/town while further increase tourism attraction from outsiders. Keep in mind, more tourists equates to more spending at local businesses benefits the economy of your town/city from increased tax dollars.

A visual of informal public art that I support in remote areas such as underneath bridges. Image retrieved from http://falko-werheid.de/images/graffiti-on-bridges

After blogging about Paul Deacon's work and hearing him speak in class, it is clear that there is a problem in Guelph on tagging of local businesses. Sargeant Frasier said that local police have more important issues to deal with versus trying to catch a graffiti artist. This brings a unique challenge; how do we decrease informal public art without any backing from the police? Implementation of public art spaces can address this problem and decrease the number of scattered tags on businesses in downtown Guelph.

Next, Arthur Kerrey presenting some interest thoughts and views on graffiti. He encourages the behaviour of kids going out, being rebellious, and tagging their mark around town. Arthur specifically stated, " there should be kids who are early in life and not sure what they’re responsible for but have the 'kahunas' to put a message up on a wall to show that they were there and to have an edge". This ties together with his opinion that "open walls belong to the public as anyone can wait until the night and put up whatever they please on said walls". Arthur also mentioned that he has seen positive impacts from murals - stating they "decrease informal public art and can last two to three years before being defaced". This statement was a big reason why I am an advocate for public art spaces.

Here, Graffiti Alley in Toronto is seen where anyone can go to do public art without any fear of any repercussions. There needs to be more public art spaces like this across Ontario! Image retrieved from https://www.toronto.com/whatson-story/4778308-7-cool-places-to-see-great-graffiti-in-toronto/

Overall, I will still enjoy seeing creative graffiti in remote areas such as underneath bridges but hope to see cities be more active in implementing spaces for public art. Having these spaces will increase creativity among our youth, potentially keep them off the streets during the night, and collectively bring towns together through artistic expression.

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Hi Kendra, I also wrote about mental health in my blog post this week. I’m glad that I’m not the only one who agrees that mental health awareness needs to be destigmatized. Your points about exam season make complete sense. I found myself feeling overwhelmed the odd time in the past few weeks as midterms and assignments were piling up. Mindfulness techniques that I've learned from psychologists have helped me deal with this stress.

You made a great point that stickering could be a good way of spreading the positive message about mental health awareness. I think a well-designed sticker could be given out to students. These stickers could be placed on the back of laptops or in students rooms to help remind themselves and others to be mindful of their feelings.

What would your thoughts be on allowing students to sticker positive mental health stickers around campus? Do you think it would be a good idea to have designated boards or areas around campus for students to get their fix and post their stickers? Maybe designated areas for murals would be an impactful way to broaden the mental health awareness message throughout campus. I recall Arthur speaking in class about murals and how they tend to last for 2-3 years before the paint fades or they get vandalized. Since Arthur believes there is a good amount of longevity behind these murals, do you think it would be a good idea to have some commissioned around campus to promote mental health awareness? Do you think there should also be murals around the town of Guelph promoting this message as well?

Graffiti for Mental Health

According to CAMH (The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health), 1 in 5 Canadians will experience a mental health or addiction problem for any given year. The age group that is most likely to experience mental health issues or substance use disorders is people of ages ranging from 15-24.

(https://www.camh.ca/en/driving-change/the-crisis-is-real/mental-health-statistics)

Seeing as the age group most likely to struggle with mental health encompasses the wide majority of university student’s ages, it is quite likely that a large percentage of students at the University of Guelph experience mental health issues.

Students are likely to experience mental health issues as many students often feel stressed out or overwhelmed, do not sleep enough, or become discouraged due to grades or workload.

(Image from http://www.queensu.ca/studentwellness/mental-health) 

The University of Guelph does have many mental health resources (https://wellness.uoguelph.ca/counselling/mental-health-resources) however due to the stigma surrounding mental health, a lot of students who are struggling may not feel comfortable reaching out for help.

In my residence building, I see a lot of signs around that provide students with accessible resources or ways to de-stress if they are having a hard time. However, people who are not in this building or who do not visit it often may not see the signs and posters and may not know of resources and lifestyle changes that are accessible for them.

I think if there was informal public artwork around the university regarding mental health, it would be beneficial as it would be seen by many more people, and help raise awareness of issues going on in campus. This would give students a way to talk about mental health, which could help end the stigma surrounding the issues and possibly lead them to be more comfortable talking to their peers about it.

(Image from https://fontsinuse.com/uses/16128/uokm8-campaign) 

A pretty simple way this could be implemented on campus would be to have messages regarding well-being or mental health resources posted on the message board beside the Bullring. Being a pretty central area on campus, there is a lot of foot traffic there and the messages would be seen by many students. This could be done using paint or spray paint, or through the use of posters and stickers, similar to the photo above.

These boards are changed pretty frequently, but seeing a message can resonate with someone for much longer. If someone were to see the sign when they are having a bad day, it could help their situation a lot.

(Image from https://salud-america.org/murals-with-a-message-bring-hope-in-mental-health-campaign/) 

I think if this were to be done during exam time it would be the best, because although people can struggle with mental health on any day, exam times tend to be the most stressful times for most students.

This initiative would give artists on campus a place to practice their artwork without facing negative repercussions, while spreading an important message to other students at the university, and starting a conversation that needs to be heard.

[mvuniv1200-blog]

Break the Stigma!

There is an ever-evolving issue surrounding mental health awareness amongst millennials. Increasing pressure from social media and economic conditions has put added pressure on our generation generating increased stress levels. People are feeling pressured to be socially accepted on social platforms such as Instagram. People usually post pictures mainly about the highlights of their life such as fancy vacations or bottle service at a club. It’s easy for people who can’t afford these luxuries to feel down and left out. This constant feeling of negativity may have the possibility of changing people’s thought patterns and opinions about how they perceive themselves.

I grew up in a middle-class home - I wasn’t spoiled, but I wasn’t deprived of things either. I’ve also lived a life of luxury travelling across the United States in private chartered planes, staying at the Ritz Carlton and JW Mariott’s in every major city, and ate out at some of the best restaurants in the country. I’ve also lived in run-down housing in a northern Kentucky blue-collar city. The first day I moved in, a cockroach crawled out of my bathroom sink and was climbing all over the counter - it’s safe to say that this was a big wake-up call for me! One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from these experiences is that none of it would have been fun or enjoyable if I didn’t have great people around me. To me, my happiness was driven by sharing these experiences with people who I enjoyed being around. I don't think it would have been fun flying on a private jet on my own and I do think I would've had a tough experience living in Kentucky if it weren't for having great friends around. Try to think of it from this perspective; it's pretty cool driving a Lamborghini for the first month or two after buying it, but after 3 years have gone by, do you think driving your supercar would still have the same appeal to you? These are all interesting questions that I’ve put a lot of thought into over the years to try and figure out what I need in life to be happy. What’s interesting is that people are beginning to perceive a “posh” life as something to strive for in order to achieve happiness. This couldn’t be any more false. It’s hard to make a lot of money and live the lifestyle of the top 1% in the world and it’s sad to see people ruining their mental state of mind trying to mimic lifestyles they see on social media. I'd much rather be poor and have great friends & family versus being rich and having no family or friends.

In school, we learn about science, math, and history, but we are never taught how to deal with our feelings and emotions. I believe the University of Guelph needs to a better job of breaking the mental health stigma and advertise programs that people and students can use to become more self-aware of their feelings. The school has programs in place but can still do a better job promoting these services. Last week, a blog post highlighted the street art of a Heinz ketchup bottle which stated: “Labels are for bottles, not people”. A campaign similar to this could be done through a large mural both on and off campus. The mural could include some humour in order to enlighten the topic and break the negative stigma. Also, a hashtag could be incorporated into the mural and this hashtag can be spread all across town via tagging. The repetition of the hashtag would be a great way to informally spread the message about mental health awareness. Ideally, it would be great for these murals to be mainstays on campus and in town to constantly remind everyone about the importance of living a balanced life.

A quick mockup I made of a mural that could be put up in a gym environment to promote mental health improvement.

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I think this piece of art sends an incredible message. Your post touched on a sensitive topic that a lot of people struggle with in this day and age. The growth of technology and mobile apps has brought a lot of great features to our daily lives and has increased jobs all over the world. With that, there are always challenges with something new. You're right, people are quick to label one another based on a single Instagram, Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter post. Social media hasn't only changed how we live our lives, but it has changed how we communicate with each other. I find it crazy how some people have the time of day to put another person down on social media - and they sometimes don't even know the person that they are commenting about! What is this world come to?! The cleverness behind this art is what I think makes it so great. How do you think the impact of the message would change if the quoted message was only painted on the wall in block letters? I think the impact would have still been there, but the ability of the artist to make the connection to a Heinz ketchup bottle could increase the odds of the art going viral. Do you think this art was done by a professional who tags buildings all over Ireland? Or could this simply be someone hasn't done any street art but wants to send a specific message? I'd be curious to hear the backstory behind this. Thanks for sharing!

What does this piece mean?

When searching to find a piece of street art, I came across this Heinz ketchup bottle, that is located in Dublin Ireland  that says “labels are for jars not for people”, this really stuck out to me. I felt this was a positive message given, and that it is a message people should live by. I felt this was such a good message because it does not just speak to a certain generation, it is meant for everyone.

Labels are something given to everyone everyday, from it being your sexuality, by the way you look and even just your gender. I feel like over the time we have tired to educate people on giving people labels. Although some people think because of time period we are in, people think we have changed from the past. I feel as though this day and age we are in, with social media it can get worse.

Labeling is going on every single day, when your walking down the street, hanging out with friends or even posting a picture online. Social media has been a very big influence recently, and that’s where I feel that is where most of the labeling is happening, and this labeling happens from when people post pictures of themselves, with friends, and things that they just like. People all over the world are seeing these photos and judging you from a snap shot and a moment that you personally like.  Making a judgement of someone and labeling them to whatever your first impression of them when they do not even know the person, it’s not right and it’s not fair to do.

I feel this will impact everyone that sees this art, because it is giving off a message that everyone needs to hear and needs to incorporate in their everyday life. Sometimes the first thing people do as humans is to judge and label people, which I feel needs to changes to better the world and for people to feel comfortable and welcomed, and we are who we are and we can not change that and we should not have to to fit into certain labels that society see as “normal”. 

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How a Small Bronze Statue Impacted the World

Image retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/fearless-girl-steals-the-conversation-1497864600

Dubbed "The Fearless Girl"; a small bronze statue of a girl faces a large statue of a charging bull on Wall Street. Wall Street is the financial capital of the United States and is where some of the wealthiest business transactions occur. The Wall Street financial district is known to be heavily dominated by men in the workforce. On March 7, 2017, a day before International Women's Day, the bronze statue of a girl popped up. There is a plaque below the Fearless Girl statue which states "Know the power of women in leadership. SHE makes a difference". The meaning behind this message is to encourage workplace gender diversity while encouraging corporate companies to add more women to their board of directors (the groups responsible for overseeing the CEO's major decisions). People all over the world were empowered by the statue. Reviews coming in were stating that the statue sent messages such as “symbolism of the resiliency of women and showing women - young and old - that no dream is too big and no ceiling is too high”.

Image retrieved from: https://news.artnet.com/art-world/fearless-girl-ireland-climate-change-summit-1362517

The statue was originally given a one-week permit which was then lengthened to 30 days. The outpouring of support from around the world was incredible. The media was creating a lot of buzz for the statue to remain on Wall Street. A petition gained large traction to keep the statue in its place and after 13 months, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced to the public that both the Charging Bull and Fearless Girl statues would remain on Wall Street permanently.

The large impact on society created by the small statue is what lead me to do further research on its history. A lot of attention in class has been put on art that involves paint techniques, postering, and stickering. I thought it would be cool to change it up and cover a unique type of public art that we haven’t yet spoken much about. The reason why this statue resonates with me is because of my Grandma's story. My Grandma grew up in a traditional Italian culture where women weren’t seen as people who worked - their job was to simply stay home and take care of the family and house. My grandma always tells me stories about things she wasn’t allowed to do in the past due to social norms. It bothers me that this issue still exists today which is why I think the Fearless Girl is such a powerful piece of art. The statue sends a message to men and women of all ages and the media coverage allowed this message to touch people all over the world. The statue represents a powerful reminder to everyone around the world that all people should be treated as equals.

In class, we’ve discussed what makes a graffiti artist gain notoriety -  repetition. It’s great to see the impact of ONE piece of public art and how the media can act as “repetition” to send the message to as many people as possible. It’s great to know that we can send a positive message to the world through public art and impact a vast amount of people using the media. I hope to visit Wall Street someday and will definitely stop by to see this statue in person.

Sources:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/fearless-girl-steals-the-conversation-1497864600

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2018/03/07/embargoed-37-8-am-the-fearless-girl-statue-turns-one-today-what-the-campaign-behind-her-says-its-accomplished/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e40dc2ed24d8

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Rikki, your blog post is very well thought out. You bring up a few important points about how graffiti can impact small businesses in Guelph. It's easy for people to identify illegal public art as a nuisance that could deter people from shopping at certain local businesses. 

What I am more intrigued by is how you brought up the costs for business owners to be constantly covering up graffiti on their buildings - I never even though about this! It must be an incredibly annoying occurrence for lots of small business owners across Guelph. This made me think about an interesting topic - most of these business owners don't own the real estate that they do business in. The small businesses carry a lease, like most of us would while renting a house in university. Usually, landlords (the principal owners of the property being leased) are responsible for damage done to buildings which aren't caused by the business. Do you think landlords should burden the expense of covering up graffiti on their buildings? After all, the tenants (businesses) are paying the landlord and most certainly have clauses in their leases which state the guidelines on keeping the buildings in the appropriate shape. I'm sure this might even cause turmoil between the landlord and tenants as an argument may occur pertaining to who has to carry the expense of covering up the graffiti. What are your thoughts on this? Imagine if you owned a business in downtown Guelph and were renting a unit on the strip where someone vandalized the bricks on the exterior of your store. Would you expect the landlord to cover the costs to cover it up or would you assume responsibility? Thanks for a great blog post!

Prompt 3 - A Melting Pot of Opinions

Guelph, like all cities, is full of all sorts of people – young people, old people, locals, people travelling from different cities, countries, or continents. There are people with all sorts of different cultures, beliefs, and life experiences. When you have so many people who all have unique experiences and points of view, it is impossible not to have a wide variety of opinions on certain topics, especially ones with no clear answer or moral line. Graffiti and street art are no exception. When people hear the word graffiti, I think one of the first things that come to their minds is the controversy of it. No matter where in the world you go, people always seem to disagree on whether graffiti is objectively “good” or “bad”.

               A brief search on the internet about graffiti in Guelph brings up plenty of articles about why graffiti is a “problem” or “a mess more than it is art”, along with links to sites providing instructions for reporting graffiti to have it removed. At a glance, it appears graffiti in Guelph is largely viewed as little more than a menace to society. And there are many people in Guelph who are strongly against graffiti, and place little to no value in it at all.

( Image found at https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/love-is-stronger-than-hate-guelph-church-tagged-by-racist-graffiti-holds-special-service-1.3553259 )

               The Guelph police service website describes graffiti as an “act of vandalism” that “places significant burden on the City of Guelph”. (http://www.guelphpolice.ca/en/crime-prevention-and-safety/dealing-with-graffiti.asp) They clearly state their views on graffiti, saying that it destroys property and reduces its value, makes people feel unsafe, and even increases fear of criminal activity in areas where it is found. They provide an array of tips for preventing graffiti and encourage anyone who witnesses a writer doing graffiti to call the police.

( Image found at https://www.guelphmercury.com/news-story/2790628-city-to-brainstorm-on-how-to-legalize-graffiti-art-street-art-in-guelph/ )

               Many business owners are also against graffiti, for reasons that make a lot of sense. Tags and sloppy throw-ups, especially vulgar or offensive ones, plastered all over a building might drive away potential customers, due partly to the “messy”, “run-down” look of buildings covered in poor-quality, possibly offensive art. The ashociation of graffiti with “sketchy” or dangerous places many people have also plays a role in driving them to avoid companies which have graffiti on them. It is easy to see why graffiti can be frustrating for business owners, especially ones who have small business and might not be able to afford to keep covering it up. Not only that, but it can feel a bit insulting to have a space that you have worked hard to make inviting and successful, and then have people go and deface it.

               Unfortunately, a lot of these negative opinions of street art seem to be focussed on tags, sloppy throw-ups, and other low-quality and potentially inappropriate graffiti. These groups are not really talking about pieces, murals, and other forms of informal public art. This might be due to a lack of awareness in Guelph regarding street art and its value. As was mentioned before, a brief google search of graffiti in Guelph brings up scores of articles angrily complaining about the menace that is graffiti.

(A video from the 2012 graffiti fest in Guelph)

               A little more digging, however, does reveal that there are some people who are in favour of street art, and recognize its value. The Guelph graffiti fest and street art walks like the one that was held on the 14th of September attest to the fact that there are people in Guelph who support informal public art and see value in it. Who are these people though? That’s a hard question to answer, because there is no one group of people who are doing and supporting graffiti. The majority may be young people, teenagers and young adults who have grown up in a more open-minded world, but the truth is that street art is done by and for everyone. People from all ages, cultures, and walks of life are making street art. I think the thing all these people probably have in common though, is that they have something they want to say, and street art gives them a place to say it.

      Events like the graffiti fest and the street art walk, which give people an opportunity to really see street art at its best and what it can be, and show the faces behind some of the artists, are the bets way in my opinion to increase the visibility and awareness of graffiti.

Sources:

https://www.guelphmercury.com/news-story/2735568-graffiti-in-guelph-a-problem-that-s-not-about-to-go-away/

https://www.guelphmercury.com/opinion-story/2779039-art-or-a-scribble-on-a-wall-/

https://www.guelphmercury.com/opinion-story/2773793-graffiti-a-mess-more-than-it-s-art/

http://www.guelphpolice.ca/en/crime-prevention-and-safety/dealing-with-graffiti.asp

https://www.guelphmercury.com/events/8886564–guelph-street-art-walk-jazz-fest-ed/

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Is there a love/hate for graffiti in Guelph?

In any town, city, or country, diversity plays a role in why people have certain beliefs. Canadian government has been increasing immigration amounts as Canada is slowly becoming one of the most diverse countries in the world. The increasing amount of diversity in Canada has fueled a broad demand for different changes across the country. Let’s zone in and focus on the town of Guelph. In fact, Guelph deploys a diversity strategy which includes goals to “Support a workforce that is reflective of the community we serve, ensure equity in our employment systems, and plan and deliver services that are reflective of our community’s interests”. With that being said, it’s fair to that Guelph’s diverse community will bring altering opinions on graffiti and informal public art.

Arthur Kerrey is a local street artist who is deeply knowledgeable with the roots of graffiti in Guelph. Kerrey states that graffiti in guelph stems from a “hip-hop” culture and includes art such as business promotion art pieces, traditional murals, stenciled art, sticker art, and even three-dimensional art. He then goes on to claim that graffiti in Guelph boils down to “fame”. Is this Kerrey supporting the works of graffiti artists who vandalise walls or is he more focused on the traditional, commissioned art? Kerrey actually runs graffiti camps for kids aiming to deter people from tagging illegally in Guelph. It seems like Kerrey has a passion for street art as long as it is commissioned and done with approval.

A person gets to try graffiti on a sectioned off wall in downtown Guelph during the Street Art Walkthrough. Image retrieved from: https://www.guelphmercury.com/community-story/8904197-guelph-graffiti-gallery-photos-of-street-art-from-downtown-street-art-walk/

There are a few instances where public art have been commissioned in Guelph to create rather large murals. I am a fan of public art, especially when it is professionally done. Since there has been commissioned public art done in Guelph, it clearly demonstrates an interest and demand from people in the community. Here are a few examples of the professional artwork done around Guelph:

Here, a beautiful mosaic masterpiece is seen in the Guelph Enabling Garden (art done by Goldie Sherman, Katrin Wolters, Barbara Guy Long, Lynn Chidwick, and various community members). This piece of art represents expressions of hope and healing from hundreds of individuals in the Guelph community. Image retrieved from: https://guelph.ca/living/arts-and-culture/public-art/public-art-collection/community-coming-together/

Here, a painted mural pays tribute to the famous carousel in Guelph which opened in 1919 - it still exists today! In 2002, Greg Elliott was commissioned to paint this piece. Image retrieved from: https://guelph.ca/living/arts-and-culture/public-art/public-art-collection/carousel-mural

These two pieces of art are some of many formal public art creations that can be found throughout Guelph. It’s important to note that the City of Guelph has a section on their website devoted to inform and promote all of the beautifully commissioned artwork. 

An interesting article appeared on Global News about a volunteer group of 20 volunteers who carried out the “Around Town Wash Down”. These volunteers tackled graffiti all over town and even used matching paint (supplied by the local business Dulux Paints) to make sure the cover ups looked professional. The people wanted to turn this into a yearly event which is yet to be seen. What’s interesting is a person named Deacon (one of the volunteers) stated he enjoyed cleaning up the graffiti, but also noticed the opportunity to spice up boring walls in Guelph with professional murals. Here, we have a volunteer covering up illegal graffiti throughout town, but still advocating for professionally done artwork. In my opinion, this is amazing - it’s the best of both worlds. The cities sloppy/illegal tags are getting taken down, while people are demanding more professional public art to create more liveliness in Guelph. I am one hundred percent on the same team as Deacon. His opinion needs to be spread throughout the city as I would love to see more murals go up in Guelph.

3 of the 20 volunteers who took part in the “Around Town Wash Down” sponsored by Dulux Paints. Image retrieved from: https://globalnews.ca/news/4290848/guelph-graffiti/

Sources:

https://guelph.ca/plans-and-strategies/diversity-strategy/

https://www.guelphmercury.com/community-story/8904197-guelph-graffiti-gallery-photos-of-street-art-from-downtown-street-art-walk/

https://globalnews.ca/news/4290848/guelph-graffiti/

https://guelph.ca/living/arts-and-culture/public-art/public-art-collection/

[mvuniv1200-blog]

Damn, I must say that I've noticed a big difference from your hometown of Ottawa (a city of significant size) compared to my hometown which has a population of roughly 12,000 people. I agree with what you have to say about some of your public graffiti being amusing. The picture with the two people and deer look incredibly well done. I would stop to take a look at that art if I was taking a stroll through that area of Ottawa. I've also seen other appealing informal public art from other classmates who are also from Ottawa as well. It seems as though the larger the city, the more talented the graffiti. The only way I can put sense to this is that people tag objects in small towns for fun or to be rebellious. Whereas, people tag places in larger cities to attract attention to their artwork (due to the increase in population and traffic of people amongst the streets). Have you ever been to a small town and notice graffiti anywhere? I feel as though informal public art is more scattered and done in a vandalous way in small towns. The scattered tags in small towns don't seem to serve a purpose, act as a masterpiece, or have much meaning. I have noticed that bigger cities are home to not only more public art but to more graffiti that will stop you in your tracks to take a second look. Good post, Ottawa seems to have a good amount of informal public art!

Demographic of Graffiti

In Ottawa, the graffiti is very unique and is always being altered, due to this reason I find it difficult to come up with a demographic but in my opinion I believe that the artists who are putting up graffiti are young teenagers to young adults, so around the ages fourteen to the age of twenty five. I feel as if the graffiti is being put up by both young males and females who feel as if they are different or maybe even feel as if they don’t belong or don’t feel as if they are understood. I also believe that this demographic created involves youth of many different cultures, not focusing on just one. I say this because there are many different types of traditions in other cultures and in Ottawa, I have seen different forms of graffiti that involves different holidays or celebrations in many cultures. For example, I have seen graffiti of holidays like Christmas to graffiti of celebrations like Carnaval which is celebrated in south american cultures.

The graffiti that has been put up by these artists are very colourful and vibrant pieces and I believe that maybe these young individuals are putting up their graffiti so that people can see a different type of culture that they’ve never really seen before. I’ve started to believe that these young artists are not rebels but young people who do not believe with the norms of society, maybe these individuals are just trying to make an attempt to just be heard by society. Maybe these artists range from students in highschool to graduating students in university because there isn’t a set age where people stop trying to get there message across so maybe there is students in university that are still trying to be understood.

I do not think that these young teenagers and young adults are all the same as Ottawa is such a big city and the graffiti is all so unique, there is no way that there is just one young boy or girl just walking or driving all around Ottawa making stunning graffiti so there is no way that the artists don’t change. In reality Ottawa is a pretty big place, it may not seem like it but the distances from district to district is pretty large. Maybe if the city was a place like Perth or even a small town smaller than that then it would be more probable that the graffiti that keeps getting put up is by the same person every time but in Ottawa it is borderline impossible for only one person to but up all of the city’s graffiti.

The graffiti in Ottawa is very interesting and sometimes very amusing to look at, the work that gets done looks often very nice and eye-opening. As stated, I do believe that the graffiti that is done in Ottawa is done by both young teenagers in high school to young adults in university. These artists are individuals who are just wanting to get there message or voice out their so that they can feel understood.  

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How a new skate park turned my hometown into a graffiti Mecca

I grew up in a small town called Waterdown. It actually gets its name from a big waterfall near downtown which used to be a mill. There are also railroad tracks that run through the town core. The advantage of the mill and train tracks meant for a bustling town ever since the 1830's. Since then, only fragments of the train station and mill remain, but the charm of Waterdown is still as strong as ever.

Growing up, the demographic in my hometown was not diverse. Most of the town consisted of young families with kids. On my street alone, we had enough people to play three street hockey games at once - it was great! Just after my tenth birthday, we got a brand new skate park in town. I remember how clean and legit it looked when it first opened. It only took about a day before the skate park began to fill up with all sorts of graffiti. There was tags, large block letters, and solid painted sections. Whatever could have been imagined ended up being painted.

In the image above, you can see the scattered graffiti all over the skate park. None of which looks very professional or appealing. Image retrieved from: https://ep1.pinkbike.org/p4pb2667807/p4pb2667807.jpg

Each week, graffiti would be covered up by someone else’s new masterpiece. It was common for the skate park to look a certain way and then have an entirely different look a month later due to all of the graffiti. Since skate parks mainly attract teenagers and young adults, I figure this same demographic were the ones decorating the skate park. Also, there didn’t seem to be any repetition which would have indicated someone who was heavily into portraying their own public art. None of the art seemed to look professional which is why I attribute the demographics to a younger age.

After a while, people started to complain about the graffiti in the skate park and claimed a negative reputation was increasing due to this informal public art. I would imagine that these complaints came from the older folks in town. What would you expect when putting a skate park in the most popular part of town? Social norms are at an all-time high for public art and this was clearly demonstrated at the skate park. Finally, volunteers gathered and the town council approved a paint job to be applied to the park in order to clean it up.

Here, you can see an extreme difference form the last photo. A volunteer is seen painting the skate park to look more appealing. Image retrieved from: https://www.flamboroughreview.com/news-story/6115001-volunteers-give-waterdown-memorial-park-skate-bowl-a-fresh-new-look/

Since Waterdown was such a small town while I was growing up (under 12,000 people), I figure the demographic spraying graffiti was the same - teenagers. One time, my friends and I were exploring along the railroad tracks. We came across a bridge just past downtown and the under part of the bridge was littered with graffiti. It was the classic mumbled paintings scrapped together - none of it looked professionally done, there was no repetition, and the art wasn’t very appealing. I can’t imagine anyone older than 30 would be using their time to paint graffiti under this shady bridge, or anywhere else in my small hometown of Waterdown.

Another picture of the aftermath from the volunteers once they were done covering up graffiti in the skate park. Image retrieved from: https://www.thespec.com/photogallery/6213401/

Another look before the park was re-painted by volunteers. Here you can see random tags scattered across the park. The skate park itself looks weathered and gives off the vibe that it has seen better days. Image retrieved from: http://www.middle-age-shred.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=13970

[mvuniv1200-blog]

Hi Marin, thank you for sharing all of the unique graffiti in Ottawa. I've travelled to Ottawa a lot and used to stay near the Rideau Centre - I loved it there! One of my favourite Italian restaurants is called Tony Capone's. It's a little outside of downtown Ottawa but it's worth visiting. They have a wall of pictures showcasing celebrities that have eaten there before (including some high up mobsters) which is pretty neat. I highly recommend you check it out if you haven't been.

I wanted to comment on the rock sculptures that you have pictured in your post. I like to go camping and always enjoyed making sculptures like these. One time, a hiker gave me a heck because apparently making these sculptures hurts the environment. It boggled my mind and I honestly didn't know how to react! I went home and did some googling and found some facts on why this person may be correct. The internet told me that making these sculptures can hinder micro-species as well as have a negative impact on how a river properly erodes/restructures its river bottom. Pretty odd stuff if you ask me. I understand where these people are coming from and it makes sense some sense. But, I do enjoy seeing rock sculptures as I perceive them as art and a form of self-expression. What are your thoughts on rock sculptures? Do you agree that they are harmful to the environment or do you think they should be welcome in our society?

Ottawa: Not Toronto But We Still Have Art

My name is Marin and I’m studying Bio Sci here at Guelph! I signed up for this course because of the laid-back style as well as the topic; graffiti is something that everyone has experienced in one way or another so it’s a very inclusive subject. 

I grew up in Ottawa where there’s a lot of public and informal art. An example of formal public art Ottawa is really well known for is the sculpture “Maman” by Louise Bourgeoise, which belongs to the National Art Gallery of Canada. 

Most students in Ottawa are introduced to this sculpture at a very early age so it’s one of the earliest memories I have of art and art in urban communities. The gallery is right in the middle of downtown where most of our art culture is located. It contrasts the architecture of the building pretty obviously, the gallery is made completely of glass window and has many sharp angles, it’s very modern. I definitely remember thinking there was no way this sculpture was art, for a couple of reasons.

 It wasn’t on a two-dimensional piece of paper and it was also really creepy and menacing. 

If you actually think about it, it’s just a mother carrying her babies but my initial, juvenile reaction to it was a something giant and ugly. It took a few years for me to understand why this piece got so much attention, the scale is really impressive and it is also an ode to all mothers. Louise dedicated it to her own mother, who weaved tapestries (spiders weave webs) and was also strong and protective (reference to spiders eating mosquitoes that carry disease). 

Some of my favourite art in Ottawa that is more informal than “Maman” are the rock sculptures around many of our beaches.  

The sculptures on the left pretty clearly resemble feet and there’s one that looks like a person and a few like mushrooms. My thought on the sculptures is that they draw attention from the fact that the water at most Ottawa beaches is disgusting. The Ottawa River has been compared to sewer water on more than a few occasions! Beaches can be about more than just swimming so they are definitely a distraction from the disease-ridden water and provide something beautiful to think about instead. 

I’m also a fan of their simplicity. I don’t think they’re necessarily minimalist art but their concept is pretty basic. Stacking rocks in specific configurations doesn’t take a mastermind to come up with which makes the pieces really accessible to anyone. Their location also isn’t out of the ordinary. A beach is a sort of natural setting so it wouldn’t be unusual to see groupings of rocks. I like the way they enhance the natural beauty of the setting rather than making it into something it’s not. This is just personal preference, others might like beach art to be more modern, I don’t know.  

A big source of traditional graffiti we have in Ottawa is this large mural along our bus transitway, facing a dog park. It probably has a name because it’s a legitimate graffiti wall but I don’t know it, frankly. It’s been there for as long as I can remember, I would see it anytime I’d go to work downtown with my mum and then everyday when I had to commute pretty far to my high school. The reason I say it’s legitimate is because every few years it gets painted over and a new set of artists gets to come and refill it with big, vibrant graffiti. I don’t fully know how the process works or how the artists are selected, I would assume there are guidelines on respectful messaging but that’s about it. 

When it was explained to me that people were allowed to do graffiti here, it was my first time appreciating that graffiti is a form of art. If not on someone’s personal property and there are no hate-messages or ideas that could make people uncomfortable, graffiti is something that is really unique to interpret and also a talent that takes a lot of skill and practice to do well. 

[mvuniv1200-blog]

My Journey of Discovering Graffiti.

Hi y’all, I’m Mark. I’m a mature student who just retired from playing hockey professionally for 5 years. I’ve lived in 10 cities throughout Canada, Europe, and the United States. Out of all the places I’ve lived, I’d say Scottsdale, Nashville, and Budapest rank amongst the top of my list for the best cities. I’m incredibly fortunate to have had such unique experiences which include achieving my dream of playing for Team Canada and playing in the National Hockey League (NHL). One of my biggest lessons that I can share is to NEVER let anyone tell you that you can’t do something. This has been some of the best fuel I’ve had my entire life. Do the extra reps, search for every resource to improve, and push yourself to your limits. Do what others won’t so you can get to places where other people can’t. It’s a hell of a conversation with those who doubted you once you get to the top. 

My first experience with graffiti was self-inflicted at a young age. I grew up behind a railroad track which meant staring at trains with immense focus and fascination. Imagine your first experience as a kid seeing a crazily dressed and somewhat creepy clown for the first time - you probably just stood there, stared at the clown, and tried to figure out what the hell was going on. That was my reaction when these massive steel carts with blaring train horns whizzed behind my house (the noise trauma was real - I can now sleep through almost anything!). As I grew older, I quickly began to notice the graffiti on the side of the train carts which caught my attention. I don’t remember thinking much of it at the time except that I thought the graffiti was interesting. I realized my fascination for graffiti on such train carts during 10-minute delays at railway crossings. See, usually sitting in the car at a railway crossing would test my patience. But instead of cursing my lungs out for having to wait out the train, I found myself to be in the zone, analyzing every piece of graffiti as each cart rolled on by. It didn’t cross my mind that these exuberant paintings on the train carts were an act of vandalism until I grew older.

Image retrieved from https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-carriage-clouds-daylight-358167/

To this day, I believe graffiti is a form of public art that displays one’s creativity and personality. In the right spots, graffiti can bring character to a certain area and even draw tourist attraction. I’ve seen extravagant street art in cities such as Nashville but I’ve also witnessed awful stickers while living in Kentucky that stated: “Lock Her Up”. The stickers were in reference to the most recent United States Presidency run where Hillary Clinton allegedly mislabelled ‘classified’ emails. This could have lead to the wrong people seeing private government information.

Imagine seeing these stickers slapped up all over the place? There were ones that were even worse than this. The US is an interesting country, that’s for sure! Image retrieved from https://imgur.com/gallery/OcHe7

I’ve always accepted graffiti as someone trying to create a story. I’ve never put much thought into how this ‘art’ may affect people, businesses, societies, and so on. I look forward to diving into the nitty-gritty details about graffiti and hearing about everyone else’s opinions!

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Disclaimer:

This blog was created for UNIV 1200, University of Guelph.

The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of the University of Guelph.

The University of Guelph is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information supplied by this blog.