This week we explored the idea of graffiti art. Today we see masterpieces being created in alleyways with little attention. Culture has even shifted to try to find and praise these areas. A once rebellious way to express art is coming to light and people like Banksy are using it to say “fuck you” to the institution, like the one that tried to sell his artwork which began shredding itself at the auction. Graffiti has so many connotations, good and bad. Whether you think its art or a bad face to a neighborhood, there is no doubt that some of the works created go above and beyond expectations of what art is.
I took a small step into graffiti by creating my name in bubble letters. In this experience I took a long paper and tried the style for myself. I followed a tutorial since I have little to no experience with anything related to street art. Starting out I was worried with how it would turn out, but as I got into it I focused more on making a fun piece of art. I admit, I did have a bit of a perfectionist attitude, erasing even the beginning lines of just writing my name out. That soon faded once I started using a sharpie to trace out the bubbles. I was nervous to even make such a permanent black mark. I have no clue how street artists make such amazing works with an even more difficult media, like spray paint that wants to drip in long vertical lines on the wall.
For my piece, I decided to have a little fun after the successful tracing of my name and attempt something new. I once saw a tutorial on Tik Tok, a video sharing app that taught users how to do a “glitching” effect. I had saved the video because I loved the way the effect turned out even though I almost never sketch or create art on my own. Who knows what I saved the video for, but I’m glad I did because I actually got to use it! Giving this project an extra fun spin for myself really boosted my investment into the art. I understand now why people do such large murals on walls. The end product can blow even your own mind.
In the end, my art may have been somewhat underwhelming to others. Granted, this was just my name in bubble letters, which has little significance to others. However, for myself, this piece was s lot of fun! And sometimes, that’s all art is. Sometimes art is just a great way to de-stress, and that’s exactly what I needed, especially so close to the end of the semester. I would definitely try this again, or even try new techniques I never intended to try. This project brought to light what I may be missing by not having the confidence to push myself to try something new. Now, I’m going to take that chance.
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