Graffiti on Granville by Kimi Yoshino

Graffiti or ‘street art’ has come a long way from being marginalized as the ‘graffiti problem’ in the ‘70s – ‘80s, to recently, where it has been elevated to the status of ‘normalized art.’ Behind this phenomenon is the ascension of corporate power/culture and restructuring of networks in the public and private sectors. Street art has been gaining momentum as it is seen by the mainstream media as the manifestation of the ‘creative class,’ expressing their identity in juxtaposition to their environment (whether this be in regards to capitalism or anti-immigration policies) in the form of sanctioned art. In regards to this specific piece that I discovered on my way to Granville Island in Vancouver, because it resembles First Nations’ artwork its significance may lie in the issues of regaining the sense of ‘belonging’ in the contested areas of Vancouver. As described by Banet-Weiser, graffiti often reflects “subcultural energy and artistry” (Banet-Weiser 2011), celebrating the urban cities’ grit and character. Its value lies between the real, material world (to the residents and workers), and an “abstract space for capital investment” (ibid). Artists operate between these binaries, as this art becomes a way for them to craft individual identity by gaining self-agency and distinguishing himself/herself from the collective, to establish entrepreneurialism. This, in turn, contributes to the tourist revenues and the city’s reputation. As this graffiti was situated at the entrance of Granville Island (a hot tourist destination), this could relate to the corporate elites’ attempt to converge the economic with the cultural sphere, creating a new discourse –a trend- that paves way for more innovative concepts to discuss what it means to be ‘creative,’ or even ‘authentic’ today.

References:

• Banet-Weiser, S. (2011). CONVERGENCE ON THE STREET. Cultural Studies, 25(4/5), 641-658
• Kramer, R. (2010). Moral Panics and Urban Growth Machines: Official Reactions to Graffiti in New York City, 1990–2005. Qualitative Sociology, 33(3), 297-311.
• Taylor, M. (2012). Addicted to the Risk, Recognition and Respect that the Graffiti Lifestyle Provides: Towards an Understanding of the Reasons for Graffiti Engagement. International Journal Of Mental Health & Addiction, 10(1), 54-68.

 This photograph of “latrinalia” (Cole 1991:403) was taken in a women’s washroom stall in Buchanan. The privacy that this location provides has contributed to the formation of a community who, although strangers, communicate via the stall door. The privacy of the stall allows for an increased anonymity, and due to the gender-specific location, women are “able to share interests and experiences they may not generally share with men” (Cole 1991:403). Entitled the “SEX DOOR,” this particular graffiti contains a frank commentary about sex that might be considered inappropriate if verbalized. One comment reads, “Nothing wrong with anal.” Another asks, “Does sex actually feel good? Because fingering doesn’t feel like anything. Is that normal?”
The responses form the community. Some people offer contrary opinions: one person suggests that people who engage in anal sex are “confused about where it should go.” Others answer queries and provide support. Responding to the question above, someone writes, “It’s normal for fingering not to feel like regular sex. It’s a finger, not a penis/strap-on/fist/whatever you’re into. Sometimes fingering is better than sex, sometimes it isn’t. It depends on you. :)” Another suggests, “Try to get him/her to do stuff w/your clit.” Cole likens similar communities to consciousness-raising groups, whose primary purpose is to allow women to discuss issues that affect their gender (Cole 1991:403). Ultimately, the anonymity offered by the location and the informal nature of graffiti allow women to express themselves to one another more freely than would be expected in a face-to-face situation.

Cole, Caroline M.
1991  ‘Oh wise women of the stalls . . .’ Discourse & Society 2(4):401-411.

These two pictures were taken underneath the Granville Bridge on 4^th and Anderson Ave. The first one can be classified as typical graffiti, whereas the second one could be viewed as something more respected and classified under art. The second one is also sponsored by the Bill Reid art gallery, leading us to think that it has a more prestigious background. Both are part of a Vancouver community program trying to eliminate unwanted graffiti showing up in Vancouver neighborhoods. It is thought that having legal art displayed on public walls, otherwise known as ‘murals’, deters graffiti artists from tagging or spray painting on top of the mural. “Once art goes up on a wall it’s generally respected by the community. It’s just kind of a street level law where you don’t tag art.” (Darren Trach, Vancouver Mural Competition Video) It is interesting that Vancouver has found this way of helping the artists showcase their talents, while dealing with the graffiti problem in the city. However, with this program there are conditions and limitations. The city states which walls around town can be painted on and what the art can depict. Art featuring logos, advertising, or religious and political statements is not allowed. So although this program aims to address issues with graffiti artists and the architecture of the city, it seems that what is considered ‘art’ is still being classified and defined by the government.

By Jennika Efford

GVTV.ca
N.D. Graffiti Mural Competition. City of Vancouver. http://vancouver.ca/Greaterdot/video/05-GraffitiMuralComp.wmv/, accessed on February 6, 2012.

I love the temporality and changing accessibility of this location. In order to write here, you would have to time your arrival at low tide, and it is only visible either from the beach at low tide or out on the water. The only way to view it from above, and therefore from the million dollar Kitsilano homes under which the pieces appear, would be to exit your backyard, perch on the foot-wide seawall and look straight down. This is not somewhere that you pass by each day on your way to school or work, this is a place that you have to seek out.

“Pasoe” tags are very common in Kits and Point Grey. As is often the case with any distinct and replicated graffiti art, once I was shown a “Pasoe” tag I began to see them everywhere. I’m fascinated by the idea of how well known an artist can be in an area or neighborhood (notorious) without necessarily being known as a person (anonymous). Halsey and Young talk about the act of writing graffiti as a way of connecting “self” to the “world”, and about the impact of recognition within the graffiti community as impetus to continue participating (Halsey and Young 2006:278). While “world” in this context can, and does, refer to shared public space, it can also be interpreted as the graffiti writing community. Within that world, the simultaneous existence of notoriety and anonymity contributes significantly to the uniqueness of graffiti art and its systems of recognition, reoccurrence and replication.

By Sj Kerr-Lapsley

Halsey, M and A. Young.
2006   ‘Our desires are ungovernable’: Writing graffiti in urban space. Theoretical     Criminology 10(3):275-306

Unlike the majority of expressive graffiti which is often malicious, hostile and of aggressive opinion, the art work that I came across is a refreshing take on the use of the art form. The graffiti scene is dedicated to a soldier that has passed away, as it surrounds a plaque reading “Rest in Peace Frank N. Brien.” The tone of the dedication is absolutely serene and peaceful, depicted by a calm deer in a semi-lit up forest.

The compassionate use of graffiti for dedication and memoriam is not quite a novel idea, as dedicated, religious graffiti has been used in ancient times, dating back to the 2^nd-3^rd centuries A.D., in the form of prayers (Naveh, 1979, p. 27). Specifically focusing on graffiti use in the Middle East, Naveh finds that the prayers were used to ask for blessings for the inscriber himself/herself, or for a loved one who may have passed. Despite not being a common sight that we see today, this information stresses the fact that graffiti has been a significant way to express remembrance and blessing for centuries long.

The reason behind why we may not see so much dedicated graffiti today may be because it has changed in form and purpose. During the past few decades, when people write names through graffiti, it is usually dedicated to themselves, typically used to eternalize themselves or to commemorate a visit to that specific spot (Naveh, 1979, p. 27). This shows that dedicational graffiti is not only drawn for those who have passed, but transformed to encompass wider uses, including celebrating oneself.

By Emma Wong

Naveh, J. (1979). Graffiti and dedications. The American Schools of Oriental Research, 235, 27-30.

For Discussion: Do you think that it is vain or justified for people to “celebrate/commemorate themselves” through graffiti?

In his study of men’s washrooms, Alan Dundes (1966, p. 94) found that the most common forms of “latrinalia” – or public restroom graffiti – included advertisements or solicitations; requests or commands concerning defecation and urination; commentaries; and personal laments or introspective musings.

This particular inscription was hidden away in a bathroom stall at the very end of a women’s washroom on the top floor of Buchanan D. Dundes does not go in depth about queer expressions of latrinalia, nor does he include in his taxonomy the form of confessional graffiti. Perhaps for good reason – confessional latrinalia, as I discovered, is very rare.

The scarcity of confessional graffiti is curious given the guaranteed anonymity of the inscriber, as well as the opportunity a restroom provides as a space to express opinions, beliefs, and revelations that might be considered taboo in everyday social life. In the case above, what was the psychological exigency that compelled the graffitist? The restroom seemed to be a space where she felt she could, in the comfort of anonymity, reach out to potential others like her, while also open up channels of discussion and, in this case, receive expressions of encouragement, empathy, and communal support. Latrinalia seems to fulfill a need for communication and function as a net for personal recognition and acceptance. Much of the confessional latrinalia I found involved messages of marginalization, anxiety, and social deviance – its significance in the bathroom is thus representative of the literal “waste” of those who are separated from conventional society.

By Alison Mah

Dundes, Alan. (1966). Here I sit – A study of American latrinalia. Kroeber Anthropological Society Papers, 34, 91-105. Retrieved from http://dpg.lib.berkeley.edu/webdb/anthpubs/search?all=&volume=34&journal=5&item=10.

I would suggest that, given a similar confession of homosexuality in a men’s bathroom, the reception would be much different. Do you agree or disagree?

The modern form of political and social graffiti we see today was born out of the hip hop counter culture movement and was, during the 60’s and 70’s, a revolutionary form of public expression. These forms of deviant art, hip hop and graffiti, were a function of society, they fulfilled a desired niche among the youth. Furthermore, since these forms of expression were not a dysfunction to a society (The United States) that upholds the illusion of freedom of speech, it was necessary to incorporate certain acceptable forms of graffiti in order to appear as if it was not the graffiti which was a problem but rather the nature of message.

No-one would deny that hip hop artists, today, no longer represent the counter-culture from which they spawned, this is because this form of representation has been institutionalized.This is not to say that underground political hip-hop does not exist and is not a separate entity from mainstream hip hop, but rather that the institutionalization has become a means of diffusion by the super-structure. Thus once a hip-hop artist gets popular enough they are offered record deals in exchange for a change in content (aka-Selling out). The same has occurred with graffiti, some cities have institutionalized it by creating government subsidized murals, and community paint outs (http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/streets/graffiti/). Robert Merton, student of Talcott Parsons, theorized that forms of deviation create for themselves new social norms within the deviant category (Kingsbury and Scanzoni 1993:198). This is ironic since Rafferty (1991:83) himself notes that, “The work of the street artist has become …an attempt to contest the dominant culture of institutions”. The super-structure essentially harnesses the power of devient movements and reform them to the standards of the culture.

250 words is lame…. FIGHT THE POWER!!!!!! WRITE 251 words!!!!

Kingsbury, Nancy and Scanzoni, John

1993   Chapter 9: Structural-Functionalism. In Sourcebook of Family Theories and Methods: A Contextual Approach. Eds Paulina Boss. Pps195-221. New York: Plenum Press.