Paint

Writing on public walls is a great way to open an otherwise closed system of public manipulation to citizen access. In Banksy’s “Banging Your Head Against A Brick Wall” pamphlet, the public’s yearning for self-expression is demonstrated clearly. After stenciling an official-looking “This Wall Is A Designated Graffiti Area” seal on public walls, the walls become fully painted murals in a matter of days, reflecting talented citizens’ work. Unfortunately these circumstances are an anomaly. Because of the harsh penalties for painting public walls, the public’s visual environment is still dominated by those who can afford the right to advertise. Even though this privilege is only granted to those at the top of the corporate ladder, any ladder will get you onto a billboard with a backpack full of spraypaint.
Nobody will ever agree on what we would all like to look at when we walk down the sidewalk. Lots of people find this illegal art to be unattractive. Personal aesthetics hold no rational weight against graffiti, however. Do we have a choice to look at the ugly corporate advertisements? We will never reach a consensual status whereby all public visual displays are validated by each and every person, so let’s not pretend that advertising firms have greater aesthetic merit than Seattle’s graffiti writers! Instead we must each be empowered to proactively create the community we visualize around us, rather than spending our time stopping others from doing so. Many graffiti murals celebrate life, loss of loved ones, and community struggles, while many billboards promote purchasing SUV’s, incurring life-long credit debt, abusing alcohol, gambling, and sexist stereotypes.