Street Art – Graffiti is not new.  Talking about it is not new.  It is even a form of expression according to Wikipedia, that has existed since ancient times, with clear examples dating back to ancient Greece and the Roman Empire.  And of course, it is considered a crime when it defaces public spaces without the permission of the owners of those spaces.  Although former Cat Woman, Julie Newmar, of the older TV series of Batman & Robin didn’t mind at all when her entire property at the corner of Rosewood and Fairfax (now enclosed in a cement fence for perhaps pre-construction) became completely etched in spray paint.  In fact, it delighted her so much – to the chagrin of her conservative neighbors – that she left it there as a display of wonderful spontaneous street art.

But what still amazes me is the dynamic of an empty space being almost instantaneously filled by a random artist with the kind of graphic design skill, sans the technical help of Adobe, Kodak, Wacom or Sony, that most traditional artists might otherwise find challenging to accomplish.  And it is bold.  I mean, maybe it’s just me, but waking up to my local Melrose Avenue boarded up retail location getting a brilliant makeover from an ugly, uninviting, barrier with a sales sign on it, one day before, is kind of mind-blowing to me.

I admit, I only half understand it.  But I am becoming more and more infatuated with discovering more about this particularly special urban craft.

What does this all really mean to the artist anyway?  Could someone anonymously write in and explain?

Photo Credit: Tracey Paleo