Introduction

“The vanguard of Australian street creativity can be traced to a small number of artists experimenting during the late 1970’s. It was not until the mid 1990’s, however, that there was a voracious surge in the act of producing works of art on the street, which could be identified as the beginning of the contemporary Australian street art scene. It should also be acknowledged that the roots of Australian street art lie in the Australian graffiti subculture. Since graffiti’s appearance in the early 1980’s, this subculture has undergone significant aesthetic transformation. In the last three decades, Australian graffiti, as we traditionally understand it, has grown from the internally coded expressions of notorious hardcore writers into a multifaceted scene that comprises a conglomeration of artists using text, symbols and signs.”

Everywhere you look in Melbourne, the walls are covered in expressive graffiti and tags, and upon researching the topic further, I realised that there is a difference between the two. Tagging is basically a way of signing your name anonymously; leaving an ‘autograph’, while the broader term graffiti can range from vandalism, personal markings to massive works of art.

“Street art has been polished over time. Simple tags and graffiti have imposed themselves with the use and the juxtaposition of various techniques and are more committed than ever.

Creativity expresses itself in a more obvious way through graffiti, largely exceeding tags in terms of the required and necessary competences and artistic qualities. However, let’s keep in mind that tags are hardly dissociated from Graffiti and Street Art. That creativity part of the movement expresses itself through the perfect complexity and curves of the signature.”

What I found interesting about all types of these hand-made marks was the interaction between the medium used and the surface it was applied to. I found that with different surfaces, came different aestethics, and I began to wonder how these type specimens would look without the often rough surfaces behind them. In the specimen on the right, the top area shows a typical tag, while the bottom half automatically reveals a more creative, thought out space. The artist used a stencil to create intricately patterned letterforms which are actually quite beautiful.

I continued to research this idea, concentrating on surfaces, textures and the hand generated marks. I realised that often graffiti artists, and even those who simply mark their names in the street don’t consider the background colours and textures, and therefore the outcome is almost experimental. If you look at these letterforms as artworks, including the mistakes, the drips and the cracked forms, it picks up a new personality, and

Space Invaders, Jaklyn Babington, NGV Australia, 2011From Style Writing to Art, Magda Danysz, Drago, Italy

the background texture adds almost another dimension.

“In the beginning, there were tags. Soon enough, some taggers started putting some style into their letters, and among those some showed an undeniable, yet often unconscious, artistic talent. Those putting this type of effort in their lettering became known as style writers.

As legendary PHASE 2 states himself: “These are the facts...First of all it’s not even called graffiti, it’s writ-ing. Graffiti is some social term that was developed (for the culture) somewhere in the 70s. (...) Undoubt-edly, from the very beginning and quite officially, writers referred to themselves as “writers” and what they did as “writing”, for the simple fact that this is what they did. In their own unique way, they continu-ally reinterpreted the English language to their liking as they saw fit. (...) It was afterwards that newspaper articles surfaced referring to their writing as “graffiti,” that the terminology latched itself onto the culture as the appropriation for it, as well as stigmatizing it into an abominable controversy.

This has always been a case of the powers that be, more concerned with denouncing and attempting to obliterate something before they even attempt to understand or relate to it in any way shape or form. Their initial recourse was to take a negative approach towards it (...) and refuse to recognise the magnitude of what’s taken place and what has been created by the existence of writing and this subculture.

Writers agree without a doubt, that there is an attitude and commitment within the soul that ac-companies being a true writer (as well as being true to culture), that one’s volume of work, brandishing a can of paint, or going through the motions, can in no way replace.

At the beginning of the movement in the 60’s and 70’s most writers came straight out of the ghetto, and dragged the image of unschooled, unruly young-sters, with too much, no training, no talent and not

much future. It’s an interesting cliché. Studying the Hip Hop movement a little more closely than a few prejudiced sociologists did then, you can’t help but to acknowledge the huge amount of work that graffiti, dance, music or painting, all part of Hip Hop culture, required. And still do. All those disciplines demand improved technical abilities, constant training, an alert mind, and creative imagination.

Writers and Graffiti artists make their own (yes, disputable by some) contribution to the city they are a part of. Self-affirmation, in a society that tends to erase individuality, shows a strong sense of preserva-tion. It’s a peaceful uprising against authority figures that would rather keep everyone anonymous and under control, despite difficult social contexts and basic rights.”

Contrast between tagging and considered stencilled text. I feel that the tagging specimen is purely personal, while the bottom text, belonging to a nightclub, is quite unique and well considered. Even though it is a logo, the surface which they have sprayed the letterforms on has changed the texture, context and look completely. It has become a piece of street art as well as advertising.

Another example of tagging, but emphasising texture. The form of the surface contributes to the eventual form of the letters, making them more abstract and broken than they were probably intended to be.

Another example of texture and a result which would not be planned or predicted. The drips add an effect which can’t be computer generated and give the tag a strong, personal aesthetic.

I found that marks left on glass were especially unique. I loved the way the light hit these scratches, and gave these tags new depth, while nature, street life and architecture make up the background for these marks.

While looking around I came across this. It was graffiti marked onto a white board, and then printed material was laid over the top of it by an advertising company. I found the contrast between the two quite beautiful, the colours and texture of the cloth creating an overlay for the tag.

This piece of graffiti really stood out for me - the drips and brush strokes gave it a great texture, and the silver paint complimented it perfectly.