I am an extremely opinionated person but there are some areas where I just cannot make up my mind. The Hip-Hop Hopscotch Festival in Halifax, Nova Scotia has raised the ire of one city councilperson because they want to include a graffiti exhibition, and she doesn’t particularly care
I'll take Monet
for graffiti.
On the one hand, what better place for it. On the other hand, I’m surprised that Halifax, Nova Scotia has “festival of urban arts,” as they are calling it, at all. If I were to visit Halifax, Nova Scotia, I would expect to see old geezers in sailor hats and rubber trousers, and eat some delicious seafood.
On the one hand, I really hate graffiti and consider it vandalism. Anybody who would spraypaint their gang nickname on the side of your building would probably be pretty happy to throw a brick through your window if you caught them at it. On the other hand, I have seen some that qualifies as art.
On the one hand, I think it diminishes the character of the beautiful city in which I live (Prague – it’s not as bad as New York, but there’s definitely a graffiti problem). On the other hand, I was riding on the bus one day when I looked out the window and saw, written on a concrete barrier “We don’t want clean city.” I remember a conversation I had with another local, quite a while back, who said the free speech issue far outweighs the aesthetic issue, since they didn’t have it for so long.
On the one hand, most graffiti is dead worthless. On the other hand, most of the stuff you see in galleries is dead worthless.
On the one hand, it doesn’t really have anything to say, as a general rule, other than “look at me.” On the other hand, the stuff you see written on walls of bathrooms can occasionally give you a laugh, and a good laugh while you’re taking a dump is a fine thing, a net improvement in the quality of life.
Anyway, at an arts festival, sure, why the hell not. But then it’s not really graffiti, is it?
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