Graffiti art is an art form.

The reasons, including aesthetic criteria, as to why it is an art form far outweigh the
criticism of illegality, incoherence, and nonstandard presentation. The objective of this paper is to explain how
graffiti art overcomes these concerns and thereby can be considered as an art form.
Suppose that Leonardo, Monet, Picasso, or any of the recognized artisans of Western European culture were alive
in the present day. Then, suppose that one of these famous artists decided to paint a masterpiece on the side of
your house or on your front door or on a wall in your neighborhood. Would Picasso or Monet's markings be graffiti
or art or vandalism or graffiti art? The answer may vary across people, but I would claim that those markings are
art in the form of graffiti. Their markings would qualify as vandalism only if they appeared on private or public
property without permission. The same answer holds for the present day, genre of graffiti known as graffiti art.
Graffiti art originated in the late 1960's, and it has been developing ever since. However, it is not readily accepted
as being art like those works that are found in a gallery or a museum. It is not strictly denied the status of genuine
art because of a lack of form or other base aesthetic elements. Most of the opposition to graffiti art is due to its
location and bold, unexpected, and unconventional presentation, but its presentation and often illegal location
does not necessarily disqualify it as art. In this paper, I elucidate how some forms of graffiti can be accepted as art.
This type of graffiti is known as graffiti art, subway art, or spraycan art. The arguments of vandalism and
unconventional presentation as negating the ability of some graffiti to be art is usurped by an explanation of those
properties apparent in some forms of graffiti that do qualify it, aesthetically, as art. To show this, I provide a
historical context of graffiti, and then I provide persuasive evidence that graffiti art is art.
The origins of graffiti go back to the beginnings of human, societal living. Graffiti has been found on uncovered,
ancient, Egyptian monuments, and graffiti even was preserved on walls in Pompeii. Graffiti is the plural form of the
Italian word grafficar. In plural, grafficar signifies drawings, markings, patterns, scribbles, or messages that are
painted, written, or carved on a wall or surface. Grafficar also signifies "to scratch" in reference to different wall
writings ranging from "cave paintings", bathroom scribbles, or any message that is scratched on walls. In
reference to present day graffiti, the definition is qualified by adding that graffiti is also any unsolicited marking on
a private or public property that is usually considered to be vandalism.
There are various forms of graffiti. One of the simplest forms is that of individual markings such as slogans, slurs,
or political statements. Examples of this type of graffiti commonly are found in bathrooms or on exterior surfaces,
and this graffiti is usually handwritten. Another simple form is that of the tag which is a fancy, scribble-like writing of
one's name or nick-name. That is, tag signifies one's name or nick-name.
Both the tag or individual mark have little or no aesthetic appeal. While they might suggest a flair or style of
writing, these forms fail to qualify as example of superb graffiti art because of a lack of aesthetic qualities and
inability to produce a maximal aesthetic feeling in the viewer. In fact, the tag or individual mark is not produced for
artistic purposes. It is basically a means to indicate the writer's presence, i.e., the age old statement of "I was
here." Gang markings of territory also fit the definition of graffiti, and they mainly consists of tags and messages
that provide "news" of happenings in the neighborhood. Murals for community enhancement and beautification are
also a form of graffiti even though they are not usually thought of this way because most murals are
commissioned. These are more colorful and complex. They take considerable amount of skill to complete, and
murals can be done in a graffiti art style or a traditional pictorial scene. The last form of graffiti is graffiti art which is
the creative use of spraypaint to produce an artwork that is graffiti or done in a graffiti-like style, and this the is the
concern of this discussion.
Modern graffiti art originated in New York City, and it was known first as "New York Style" graffiti. This art form
began in the late 1960's when teens used permanent markers to tag or write their names, followed by the number
of the street on which they lived, in subway cars. This trend originated with the appearance of "Taki 183" which
was the tag of a Greek American boy named Demitrius. Tagging soon became a way to get one's name known
throughout the city. However, it should be noted that tagging appeared in Philadelphia before New York. The
monikers, "Cornbread" and "Top Cat" were well known in Philadelphia, and when Top Cat's style appeared in New
York, it was dubbed as "Broadway Style" for its long skinny lettering.
The advent of the spraypaint allowed for the tag to develop in size and color. For it was not enough just to have
one's name scrawled over any available and visible surface because everyone was doing this. The spraycan
separated the taggers from the artists in that color, form, and style could be emphasized creatively with this new
tool to produce s tag as a part of an overall artistic production. The tag which is monochromatic and a writing style
that just about anyone can do, gave way to the throw-up, which is a two color tag usually in outline or bubble-like

lettering. Again this style is not too difficult, but soon more complicated styles evolved. The stamp is a little harder
and involves the use straight letters to produce a 3-D effect. The piece, which is short for masterpiece, appeared
next, and it is a large multicolor work. A production is a piece that is usually on the scale of a mural, and it involves
original or familiar cartoon characters in addition to the writer or graffiti artist's name. It should be noted that every
graffiti form listed involves the artist's name, whether as the central feature or as an ornament within the piece
because writers want to be known. Hence, finding new and creative ways to display one's tag in a highly visible
place, as opposed to just scribbling it everywhere, was the fundamental force spurring the development of modern
graffiti art.

In summary, some forms of graffiti become art according to four criteria. First, graffiti art is separated from
everyday graffiti markings by the artist's intention to produce a work of art. Second, graffiti art has an established
history of development in style and technique. Third, graffiti art even has been recognized by the art world. A fourth
criterion is that the public response to graffiti art indicates that it is art. Whether or not all of the public agrees that
graffiti art is good, bad, or extremely valuable is a different discussion about evaluation and not whether or not
graffiti art is art. The evaluative concerns actually play more into where, when, and how graffiti art should be
displayed.
The above criteria are defensible in so much as they have been used to legitimize other artistic forms. However,
what appears to be the most significant answer to describing how and why graffiti art is art is the notion of
understanding where the artist and the audience synchronize in agreement about a particular work being an
example of art. It is a matter of comprehending what makes a creation art for the artist and what makes this same
creation art for the audience. When and according to what criteria that these two viewpoints coincide is what
thoroughly determines graffiti art as art. And like other art forms, graffiti art is definitively art when both the artist
and the audience agree on the works ability to provide maximal aesthetic satisfaction. While it is almost impossible
to formulate a theory of necessary conditions or rules specifying when graffiti art is art, I think it is sufficient to draw
on already established aesthetic theories and criteria to point out that some forms of graffiti do qualify as art.
Therefore, graffiti in the form of spraycan art is art. It has form, color, and other base properties as well as an
arrangement of these elements into structures that qualify it aesthetically as being art. Just doing something with
spraypaint might make it graffiti, but it does not necessarily qualify it as art or graffiti art. In addition, when the
spraycan art is analyzed according to the artist's intention and value to audience, there is even more evidence to
suggest that it is genuine art. The only obstacle that has hindered the general acceptance of graffiti art is its
location and presentation. However, the instances of acceptance of graffiti art by the art world shows that
conventional methods of presentation are not all that matters in determining if something is art. And graffiti art is
not to be disqualified as art simply because it might appear unsolicited. In short, graffiti in the form of spray can art
is art like any other work that might be found in a gallery or a museum.