Graffiti
Graffiti is writing or drawing made on walls and other surfaces, usually in public view and often without permission - one of humanity's oldest art behaviors. The word comes from the Italian graffito, 'a scratch': Roman Pompeii preserves political slogans, boasts and carved jokes, medieval churches carry scratched crosses and masons' marks, and every city since has accumulated names and images on its walls. The modern form begins around 1970, when teenagers in Philadelphia - Cornbread among them - and New York, led to fame by TAKI 183, began writing their monikers across the streets and subway cars, igniting a youth culture with its own styles and codes. Since then graffiti has spread worldwide, feeding street art and gallery art alike while remaining contested: vandalism to its enemies, voice and visibility to its writers.
Defining characteristics
- The author's moniker - the tag - as the core motif, repeated for fame
- Scratched, incised or painted marks on walls, shutters, trains and monuments
- Speed and repetition: throw-ups and quick lettering over slow finished pieces
- Unauthorized placement on the most visible public surfaces
- A dense culture of styles, crews and one-upmanship around the letterform
- Ancient roots: graffiti as everyday voice - slogans, insults, memorials, jokes
Key figures
- Cornbread (fl. late 1960s-present) — Philadelphia writer widely considered the first modern graffiti artist
- TAKI 183 (fl. late 1960s-early 1970s) — Greek-American New York tagger whose fame helped ignite the citywide writing movement
Sources
- Graffiti - Wikipedia encyclopedia