Alberta Art Works -Concordia Newspaper article

You walk by it a thousand times a day. It is a part of our landscape. Regardless of how you feel about it, graffiti is a part of our everyday visual experience. Graffiti is currently the largest worldwide art movement.  

The word was originally given to the writings scrawled on the walls of ancient buildings in Rome and Pompei. The quips found, rival current bathroom writings telling of sexual encounters, poking fun and tattling on friends. As early American settlers headed west they carved their names into Signature Rock on the Oregon Trail, now a national landmark. It wasn’t until the late 1960’s that graffiti emerged into the form we know now and much of that rise is contributed to the invention of paint in a spray can. 

New York City was the midwife of modern graffiti birthing artist like Cornbread and TAKI183. The 80’s saw some of the first graffiti artists to cross over into galleries giving the public access to artists such as Keith Harring and Basquiat. The movement gained some legitimacy in the 90’s and brought the world works from Shepard Fairey and Banksy. 

You can find works from Shepard Fairey on Alberta Street peering out from the windows of the Community Cycling building. Most known for Hope, his portrait of Barack Obama Fairey released We the People series in a protest of Trump. The series features portraits of Native Americans, African Americans, Muslims, and Latinas paired with slogans such as “Women are Perfect” and “Defend Dignity.”  Fairey made the images free to the public via his website. 

Like it or not, graffiti is art. It doesn’t happen in a gallery or a museum but instead it erupts in the gaps. 

Maquette, MA in Art Education, Director of Alberta Art Works (.org), Board Member at Alberta Street Gallery and practicing artist.  

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