What Is Graffiti Art Vandalism

"Graffiti-Art Exhibit Is Artless to Police Commissioner Bratton" by Pia Catton covers the opinion of a police commissioner about graffiti art being portrayed as vandalism. Police commissioner Bratton views graffiti as a destructive force that has defaced the streets and subway cars of many neighborhoods and considered to be vandalism. Needless to say that Bratton doesn't even think that it's appropriate for kids to see, because according to him it's an atrocious depiction of what art is supposed to be. On the other hand for graffiti, Susan Henshaw Jones only intended for graffiti to be looked as a form of art "not to glorify vandalism". From the different standpoints of the article, graffiti can be a beautiful piece of artwork or inappropriate vandalism. The form that graffiti takes when on the streets doesn’t make it art because it was placed without permission.

Graffiti is a form of art, but can have its downside when portrayed in a wrong fashion.

Even though graffiti, in general, has had a rough past, it has started a movement where it's a form of expression through the artist. Graffiti can be a wonderful work of art when it has a space where it doesn't disturb public or private property. The artist creating graffiti often wants to send a message. In many cases, the street art made on public property is to invoke a reaction or conversation to intrigue the viewer. A key element in graffiti and street art is to create a space where the artist can do his/her work and even receive compensation from art

venues.
However, graffiti as a form of street art can also be viewed as a form of vandalism(no matter how good the piece). With commissioner Bratton and Susan jones on two opposing sides of graffiti, Bratton brings a good point on how "celebrating graffiti and what a great impact it has had on the city". On the other hand, Susan Jones's intention was "to show how graffiti became an art form". Furthermore, if graffiti becomes a controlled form of art, then there shouldn't be a reason to call it vandalism. The article states, "there is a wonderful graffiti when there is a designated space". In other words, graffiti is a form of art just as long it doesn't involve destroying other people's property. The only time graffiti can be called vandalism is when it destroys or defaces another person's property without permission. According to "Legal Venues Celebrate Graffiti as an Art Form." by Eric Felisbret “If you don’t have permission to write or paint, it is a crime.” A street artist can't just come up to someone's property and deface it; that's wrong and the person deserves to be prosecuted for it. But the streets aren't the places to create street art, there are now legal venues that can be made available to the artist that want to promote their pieces without participating in vandalism. Felisbret also states, “Legal venues for the art form are great – they allow artists to perfect their works and, perhaps get paid for them.” The legal venues give the artist to promote and sell their art and perhaps become more popular within the community.
Graffiti is a form of art because it has revolutionized what we call art in museums and exhibits. Even though Bratton views graffiti as a form of vandalism, others such as Jeffrey Deitch view it as part of history. Deitch states, "but graffiti deserves to be considered as art because it emerged as a visual language of a particular time of New York's history". As part of New York history, it should be commemorated because of its profound effect on people living in that period. Just by a simple reaction it makes you feel in different ways. Just as like artists like Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol revolutionized the meaning of art, so are an artist like "Banksy" and "King Robbo" in the modern era trying to show their form of street art. Most of the time it will clash to the norms people have put over the definition of art. The comparison with the artist and the street artist both have made an impact (if some ways) the art community. "Not All Graffiti Is Vandalism – Let's Rethink the Public Space Debate." by Liam Miller “Genuine street art does not aim at ownership, but at capturing and sharing a concept. Street art adds to public discourse by putting something out into the world; it is the start of a conversation.” Many may disagree with graffiti, but it has its place in history that changed what we call art.
Graffiti is a form of art just as long as it doesn't involve destroying other people's property. Studying how graffiti is made reveals that it is unmistakably an art form. At a glance, it might be treated as graffiti but there is artistic value in the work the artist put into the design. Through the years, graffiti has revolutionized how art is portrayed with respect and expression that comes from the artist. The street art or graffiti we see on a daily basis tries to grab our attention to provoking us in a positive or negative way.