A Fresh Perspective

What is art? A question you wouldn’t expect councillors, organised neighbours and enforcement officers to be asking themselves, but a question they nonetheless do, frequently hashing it out while prioritising graffiti clean-ups, approving public murals or rubber-stamping planning applications. A surprise ideological clash with the often astounding-to-observe elite art world, where vast sums are spent on bits of wall illegally spray-painted with liquidBanksy, or on thousand-pound private commissions paid to the same people tagging the underpass near their house now and then. Some readers might be surprised to know that not all of the street art you’ve seen around Canterbury was done by people seeking trouble, high on drugs, asking ‘What is art, man?’

The conclusion to the question? Sorry, inevitable answer. It’s down to personal taste and, in the case of street art, ultimately the personal tastes of those with the loudest voices are those that matter. Those who vote, those who are councillors, those who are part of the process. And right now, sadly, that voice isn’t representative of the whole community’s views.

Whilst many people are quick to dismiss the language of colourful words painted on walls or statements on humanity stencilled onto bus shelters, I believe that each artwork should be judged on its own merit and context. There are many books written on topics I have no interest in, but that doesn’t mean reading isn’t for me. I simply won’t read that book, but I will accept that it exists for the pleasure of other people - because not everything is for me.

No one can force someone to read a book they don’t want to read but public artwork which is forced on those that see it as they go about their business. But that’s part of the beauty of it - it forces us to accept that not everything is to our individual taste; some things are for other people, and it’s good to see and respect what makes others happy. Some like colour, some like even brighter colour. The intention is to make others happy, not to make you unhappy, and that’s OK.

It’s never acceptable for the intention behind street art to be a negative one. If it’s clear that an individual artwork is detrimental to the environment, then it should be rejected by the community. There is never an argument for offensive and hateful messages or crudely written tags and markings that attempt to claim ownership of the space rather than attempting to give something to the space.

Often the discussion around graffiti comes down to legal and ownership issues, and there is obviously good reason we have laws that protect our property from other people’s behaviour. For one thing, if it’s your wall, you should be able to decide what’s painted on it, right? Except, that’s not the case. If you ever apply for planning permission, the same councillors mentioned above will grant or deny permission for a mural that you, as the owner, wish to paint on your wall. They judge the artistic merit of the work, and either allow or disallow you from painting it. Private property has a public side; often it’s large and grey, perhaps brick or concrete, and almost always constructed with consideration to the inside over that of the outside.

The way the environment looks and feels says a lot about a community.

Our natural outdoor environment, both urban and rural, can make us happier or sadder - so for the sake of everyone’s happiness, let’s open up the conversation beyond the witch-hunt on graffiti, and engage with talent when it’s the solution to satisfying everyone’s wishes.