Is Graffiti Illegal Art?

If graffiti can be considered vandalism, I believe it falls under the category of art since it is like a style of its own, and each graffiti art has a statement to make. Despite graffiti mostly being performed without permission, it is still art because of the many different forms of graffiti. If graffiti art wasn’t primarily done illegally maybe it would be more recognized as an authentic form of art. “If it wasn’t for the fact that most graffiti is placed on private property without the owner’s permission, then it might be more recognized as a legitimate form of art” (Dolan 1). Since there are so many different types of graffiti, it can be hard for people to tell what graffiti should be considered art or vandalism. “Some graffiti is simply a monochrome collection of letters, also known as a tag, with little artistic qualities compared to more accomplished and bigger graffiti art pieces that are multicolored and complex in design. That goes to show that there are many different varieties of art styles to graffiti.” (Dolan).

Although graffiti is art, it shouldn’t be put on owner’s private buildings without their permission. There are other ways to show art rather than defacing public property. “It may in fact be art but they shouldn’t be putting it out on other people’s buildings; Museum of Contemporary Art in Downtown LA traces the history of graffiti over the past four decades, it features works by 50 of the most influential street artists” (Graffiti as Art 3). Graffiti should be used more economically like graffiti artists being paid to create sanctioned murals for private property owners. I believe graffiti could be created for good things like murals and it is not just plain damage to property.

Even though simply tagging your name in graffiti is the most common type of graffiti, there are more accomplished and bigger graffiti art out there that appear on larger spaces such as walls. These big graffiti arts are often multicolored and complex in design, they may even start to push the boundary on whether they should be defined as graffiti art or not. “Like all other artistic forms, graffiti has experienced movements or changes in style. From the first tag scribbled on a subway train to the large, complex mural on a billboard, the movement has experienced change. The messages have also evolved. Graffiti has always been somewhat political, but it has come a long way from simply tagging one’s name to parodying world leaders to make a statement” (Graffiti as Art 3). Whether people like it or not, graffiti has many different styles making it a type of art.

Since graffiti is considered art, should all graffiti be considered art? Graffiti with no design to it just a simple tag of letters with no effort should not be considered art but just vandalism. “George C. Stowers wrote that based on aesthetic criteria, graffiti has to be considered an art form. He makes a distinction between simple tags and more complicated pieces, stating that tags have little aesthetic appeal and probably should not be considered art” (“Graffiti as Art” 3). Although graffiti is vandalism, it is most definitely an art form even if it is against the law or not.

“graffiti la rochelle le gabut” by thierry llansades is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.