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Despite graffiti’s artistic nature and the powerful message artists are often trying to convey – be it in relation to social change, protest or expressions of community desire – the view that it is a ‘problem’ and not something to be celebrated persists.
In many countries, graffiti is considered a crime. In British law, it is deemed to be an act of vandalism and, according to the Criminal Damage Act of 1971, anyone caught in the act of ‘destroying or damaging property without permission’ will be arrested, charged and could face a fine or imprisonment. However, with individuals like Banksy now achieving international fame, his work fetching vast sums at auction, is it time that graffiti is recognised as a legitimate and protectable form of art, and could we see laws change? The discrepancy between graffiti as both vandalism and art reached a pinnacle in 2010, when David Cameron presented Barack Obama with a canvas by Ben Eine, propelling a largely unknown graffiti artist into the limelight. One of the most successful street artists in the world, Eine is regarded
as a pioneer in the exploration of graffiti letterforms. He started his career over 25 years ago with the aim of pointing out that street art is distinct from graffiti. He believed “ street artists want to add something to the environment. They consider the audience, whereas graffiti writers don’t care about anyone except themselves, they do it purely for the kick ”. clamped down on, with claims that it spends £300million every year to clean graffiti off public buildings a clear indication that officials aren’t going to change their stance any time soon. But as governments focus their efforts on ‘cleaning up’, are they ignoring the fact that graffiti’s role within the urban environment could actually be good for cities? Graffiti’s impact on the environment is something the Government has actively
80 FINE ART COLLECTOR SPRING 2019
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