Artists Unknown
Word of the Day: Vandalism
Is it Art?
A question sometimes said and heard in museums, galleries, movie theaters, concert arenas, any place of creation. One such place is also the street, where the spectators often seem to wonder: “Is graffiti art or vandalism ?”
As a response to modernism and social segregation, graffiti became the means of communication and identity for young people in New York City in the 1970s.Street art is visual art created in public locations, usually unsanctioned artwork executed outside of the context of traditional art venues.
Some of the earliest expressions of street art were certainly the graffiti which started showing up on the sides of train cars and walls. This was the work of gangs in the 1920s and 1930s New York.The impact of this subversive culture was extraordinarily felt in the 1970s and 1980s.These decades were a significant turning point in the history of street art – it was a time when young people, by responding to their socio-political environment, started creating a movement, taking the ‘battle for meaning’ into their own hands.
Soon, this subcultural phenomenon gained the attention and respect in the ‘grown-up’ world. It had taken a form of true artistic expression. Although still subversive, and in its large part an illegal movement, through art enthusiasts and professionals, street art earned its place in the contemporary art world.
It is a marvelous art form in its own right and it is amazing to follow the evolution and diversity of street art in the 21st century. Street art gave birth to artists who create breathtaking murals, and those who have incorporated video art and other performative aspects to creative work ‘on the streets’. Omnipresent globally, it has evolved into a complex art form encompassing various practices.
The World Atlas of Street Art and Graffiti is a survey of international art scene and brings together the world’s most influential urban artists and their work. Street art is a way to communicate with other people, to share your creativity, your ideas, your thoughts and a way express yourself, how you really are.
DEFINITION
Vandalism is the destruction of someone else's property. Some people think of graffiti as public art, while others dismiss it as nothing but vandalism.
If you damage public or private property on purpose, you've committed the crime of vandalism. The range of vandalism can vary from carving your initials in a desk at school to tearing pages out of a library book to breaking windows of a building.
The word vandal comes from the Vandals, the Germanic tribe that attacked Rome in 455. The tribe's name meant "wanderer," but the word vandal was used in the 1600s to mean "destroyer of what is beautiful."
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