Message on the wall

Message on the wall So.. what do you know about graffiti? Is it just scribbling on walls with paints drawing swirls and butterfly and faces or do you feel it has any meaning? Graffiti was painted on rocks with soil during the ancient era to pass on short messages... this style of art has always been around. Since the 1970s there were street gangs who used to write their names or symbols on a building or a particular wall to ‘tag’ their territory. These ‘taggers’ became really popular and had ‘crews’ who worked together to make beautiful art of trains, walls, buildings or even skateboard parks. This had become a mini cult of its own. In America and Germany, the entire cities were beautified with these markings. The debate of whether graffiti is art or vandalism is still going on. Some people might like the rebellious nature of spraying on public property while others might find it intrusive or trashy. Jean-Michel Basquiat began spraying on the street in the 1970s before becoming a respected artist in the ’80s. The Frenchman Blek le Rat and the British artist Banksy have achieved international fame by producing complex works with stencils, often making political or humorous points. No one has ever seen Banksy. He goes to an area and identifies a wall, later within a few days he disguises himself, covers himself up and uses stencils to spray paint political or humorous messages on the wall or subway underground tunnels and the next day it becomes big news. Police have been trying hard to find and catch Banksy but nobody seems to have succeeded. His graffiti has become so popular that he has a museum of his art work in Amsterdam. But what do you think… Would you like to find Banksy or let him be an unknown face? Graffiti on Berlin Wall Banky Museum in Amsterdam