Sunday, October 2, 2016
Graffiti
In our society, there is a constant debate over whether graffiti is art or vandalism, but I believe it is arguably both in a good way. Art can also be vandalism, and, in fact, it probably ought to be if it too is acknowledged as art at all. To me, art shouldn’t just refer to one’s creative talent for rendering something visually stimulating but it should also provoke its admirers and make them question things that they otherwise wouldn’t have questioned. Similar to the idea of the first essay of the semester, I personally believe that art should show more than what is on the surface and reveal far more than what is easily observable to the common person. That being said, there is a fine line between vandalizing just to vandalize and vandalizing to make an artistic statement. I’m excited to see what kinds of graffiti we see in Detroit on the field trip this upcoming week.
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I really agree with this post in the sense that the purpose of graffiti is often to make the reader question their surroundings and in many cases make people uncomfortable. However, while I do agree that there are legitimate and bad forms of vandalism, such as on people's homes and businesses, and I wonder if the line between vandalism to make a statement and vandalism otherwise is really that fine.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Bella in the sense that graffiti can both be art and vandalism, depending on whether it appears more as a mural or more as gang tagging. Therefore, there is definitely a fine line between vandalism and art, and the line is often very subjective. There is, in fact, no clear distinction and no clear formula. It is up to one's own interpretation. As a result, this topic of graffiti stirs a lot of debate. In addition, I also believe that art should not just come off as visually pleasing, but that it should also express a voice, an opinion, a message. Art should contain some sort of mystery, maybe a hidden theme or idea. One should not be able to assume everything from just the exterior. One should have to delve deeper into the interior, into the strokes, the colors, the text, the layering, and the emotion. Art should evoke emotion and should allow the artist's voice to shine through.
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