Guys, we need to talk about something serious. Look at this.
If you're not appalled, you may be part of the problem.
This 1976 video: "Graffiti: Fun or Dumb?" addresses graffiti and the possible reasons why hooligans insist on engaging in it. Possible reasons discussed include anger, maladjustment, the desire to be unique, and the usual suspect... peer pressure. As the film so perfectly puts it: "It was something one did to rebel against authority, like funky old clothes, long hair and hip talk."
Don't get us wrong, we love a good chuckle at a retro video's expense as much as the next arts team... except, as ridiculous as this video comes off, we are still dealing with its question today.
Just yesterday, Aaron Nathaniel Huerta, a California "serial graffiti artist", was sentenced to nine months in jail for his street art... sorry, felony vandalism. Twenty year old Huerta was in the process of applying for art school until his prolific tagging has altered his course. The case judge commented: "Mr. Huerta needs to understand the impact on ordinary citizens and the way they feel about their community." But maybe first we question why graffiti would have a negative affect on a community.
Graffiti has associations with rebellion, anger and violence, but is negativity necessarily at the heart of graffiti? Is graffiti vandalism or can it be positive self expression? Is it just a bunch of rebels goofing off or is it a respectable mode of art? Seriously though, is graffiti fun or dumb?
Watch the video and let us know what you think. At the very least we promise you'll get a kick out of it.
via Laughing Squid