What Is Graffiti Art?

What Is Graffiti Art?

Imagine walking down a familiar street and seeing an unfamiliar painting on a random wall. For those who are yet to be acquainted with the world of street art, this may look like vandalism, but this is a work of art to others who are.

Art comes in different forms, and graffiti’s colorful history shows just how diverse the meaning of art is. Get to know what exactly this urban art form is, how it got started, and what to do to get this kind of art into your home.

What Does Graffiti Mean?

Graffiti is defined as a form of urban street art, with a specific feature: it is seen as the ultimate democratization of art. This means that graffiti has made art accessible to anyone, with minimal associations of ownership.

Publicly drawn markings such as writings, drawings, sprayed paintings, and any other type of visual communication constitute graffiti. They are often characterized by bright colors with a strong political or social message. Of course, others may use black and white, or toned-down colors, and might not have such messaging.

For the longest time, the art world is seen as inaccessible to many because of the extreme price tags attached to artworks, with only a privileged few having the ability to find and purchase art, as well as participate in the art world.

Of course, high art is not the only form of art, and some artists are yet to be introduced to the scene as prominent figures.

What sets graffiti apart is that it has created a much more accessible platform that not only  makes art available to all but also subverts the system. Artists in this style also aim to oppose various power systems, especially those concerning property, ownership, and laws.

Today, this street art style has reached high art level, with Banksy and Jean-Michel Basquiat being recognized graffiti artists.

Is Graffiti, Art?

Given the definition above, it is easy to say that graffiti is an art form. But can you really consider graffiti art? To answer this, it is important to give clear parameters as to what art is.

While you will find that there are various definitions of art, most people agree with the most basic definition that it is the application of creativity, imagination, and skills that manifests through visual outputs such as drawings, paintings, sculpture, and other similar media. Graffiti definitely falls under this definition.

However, if we are to dig deeper, art is a creative work that seeks to fulfill an aesthetic purpose or a communicative purpose on some level. Again, graffiti fits the bill especially as it is a form of protest, a counter-culture, and opposition to established systems.

How Graffiti Started

In light of the definition of graffiti art and the reasoning behind it being considered an art form, you might be wondering how it started. The most important thing to know is that it emerged in American cities during the 1960s at a time when people are taking to the streets to protest.

Remember, this is the height of the civil rights movement in the United States, when people of color, women, the LGBTQIA+, and other minority groups are fighting for equal rights.

Graffiti came hand-in-hand with such protests, especially as artists started expressing their messages through painting in public spaces.

What you need to understand is that while 1960s New York, Los Angeles, and other cities in the U.S. made it into a street art style, graffiti has been around for centuries. In fact, many of what we recognize as ancient wall paintings on public structures can be considered graffiti.

Some examples of this are those that can be found in the Lupanar building in Pompeii and the animal drawings at the Great Enclosure of Musawwarat es-Sufra in Jordan.

Ideas for Bringing Graffiti Wall Art Into Your Home

Now that you know the significance of graffiti as an art style, you might be interested in introducing it into your home. The first thing you need to do is decide where you want to put it. Do you want it in your bedroom? How about your living area? Perhaps you want it as an accent wall in your recreational space.

After deciding the location of your street art piece, you need to think about how you want to actually bring it into your home. Do you want it directly painted on your walls? This is the most authentic choice, but you might need to hire an artist to get this done. Or, you can do it yourself!

You can also go a more aesthetic but complicated road by looking for graffiti-ridden buildings that are about to be destroyed and negotiate to buy that part of the wall. Keep in mind that this can take some time, but you still get the real thing.

Now, it is understandable that the first two options are not the easiest, so you might be looking for a more convenient, yet aesthetically pleasing choice. You will be glad to know that you can purchase graffiti wall art prints.

These are paintings that are captured digitally, then printed on high-quality material and colors, to encapsulate how the real thing looks. You can have it mounted on a canvas just like any other painting or artwork. Then, you can hang them anywhere you want.

You want to make sure that you pick the right place for your graffiti. The good thing is that art prints can be easily relocated, so you do not have to worry about getting your art anywhere in your home.

Conclusion

Graffiti is one of the most iconic street art styles out there, originating thousands of years ago. If you want a piece of this art form in your home, you can choose to have it painted, mounted, or framed, then place it in the best location within your home. This way, you can appreciate this street art form better and have a unique piece to decorate your place.

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