Why Graffiti still consider illegal ?

[Elano]

L.A. wants to whitewash graffiti mural

LOS ANGELES - It was a graffiti artist's dream come true: 10,000 square feet of concrete and a permit to paint. Families brought their kids to watch as hundreds of muralists, using their own materials and working for free, sprayed technicolor shades on the steep banks of an ugly, manmade riverbed.

Not everyone was pleased, however, with the results of the civic-minded effort, which had the city's blessing but has rekindled debates over whether Los Angeles County should condone a practice it pays millions to combat.

Some politicians protested that parts of the mural are obscene and have attracted gang-related tags in a city where graffiti already mars homes, sidewalks and buildings. The county has given organizers until Wednesday to whitewash the mural, and neither side is backing down.

"It would be beautiful if the river went back to its natural state and was actually a river and a park," said Alex Poli, a graffiti artist and gallery owner known as "Man One." "But right now we have concrete walls, so the next best thing is to beautify it with art."

The site in question, a concrete canyon where a tributary, Arroyo Seco, meets the Los Angeles River, is surrounded by an industrial neighborhood on the edge of downtown and, like most of the river's 51 miles, is hemmed in by artificial banks to control floods.

To obtain the permit from a maze of local governments and regulatory agencies, Poli enlisted the Friends of the Los Angeles River, an environmental organization that works with the multiple agencies that control the river.

Poli organized the public art project on a sunny weekend in September, and the artists created a canvas full of bold, abstract graffiti script and some edgy imagery: a sorcerer in a hoodie sweatshirt conjuring a spray can, an angel cradling a man, a pig in a suit smoking marijuana, the Hollywood sign in flames and scantily clad women.

County Supervisor Gloria Molina promptly demanded the mural's removal, complaining that some of the images were inappropriate for a public art display near where city planners want to build bike paths. The environmental group's mission is to protect the river, and "this seemed like an odd way to do it," said Roxane Marquez, a Molina spokeswoman.

Marquez said Poli hasn't kept his promise to organize a volunteer touchup crew to keep the surrounding concrete pristine and free of gang tags and extra graffiti.

Poli said the politicians don't understand the difference between graffiti and graffiti art, which is exhibited in museums and galleries around the world.

"People still have trouble considering it art because we use a spray can," he said.

In mid-October, some of the murals were whitewashed without warning. Molina and the Department of Public Works denied involvement, but in December, Molina got the county Board of Supervisors to pass an emergency motion giving the Friends of the Los Angeles River 90 days to paint over the murals or pay up to $70,000 for their removal.

County crews removed about 60 million square feet of graffiti in 2006 at a cost of about $32 million, county officials have said.

The Friends group stands by the idea of having art by the river, spokeswoman Shelly Backlar said. But the organization, which is scrambling to rebuild its stock with the county and the agencies that supervise the river, concedes some of what the artist put into the mural might not belong there.

"It's their permit and their event, and we've been pulled in because of the work that we do," Backlar said. "It's not what we thought it would be."

City Councilman Ed Reyes, who originally supported Poli's project and authorized the permit, said he regrets that decision because he believes the art has attracted gang members, who have added their tags to the riverbed walls.

The graffiti "spilled out of the river channel, into the sidewalks, onto the handrails, into buildings," Reyes said. "Before it was a neutral place, but now we have clear indicators that rival gangs and taggers are showing up there."

More tagging has steadily accumulated at the Arroyo Seco site since last fall. Other artists have primed their own pieces of concrete and added to the project, extending the murals a few dozen yards.

Poli condemns taggers but sees the more ambitious work as copycats — students learning from the masters. Tagging increased after parts of the mural were whitewashed, including offensive images directed at Molina and county officials.

"The county needs to wake up," said Kalen Ockerman, who paints under the name "Mear One." "The rest of the world is busy paying kids to do this stuff," on album covers and billboards.

Poli considered painting over the murals, "because of all the grief." He's also talking to lawyers, hoping that a strongly worded letter will stop the county from billing the environmental group or his gallery.

"We did nothing illegal and we had permits," he said. "We're in the business of creating art, not destroying it."

[D-Stress]

because theyre dumb fucks.
graffiti is an art..street art.love that shit  but real pieces, not just tags.

[Turf Hitta]

First I gotta say that I respect and enjoy the artform. It is illegal if its done on someone else's property, but the illegality of the nature of it itself is part of the artform. There is a certain element of danger involved in it in the sense that there is a chance you could go to jail/be fined for it. There is not that same risk associated with it in places where it is "allowed" and to me that devalues it a little. my point is that a) it SHOULD be illegal to paint all over somebody else's property and 2) if it is legalized, that takes a certain element away from it. KEEP GRAF ART ILLEGAL!

[J Bananas]

Why is it illegal?

90% of graffiti is bullshit sloppy names. That's a lot of ugly shit.

[Chief]

^yep

[LooN3y]

cuz them taggers still get bangd on n get shot at by gangs, no point of being a tagger or a tag banger, might as well be a gangbanger unless ur really talented. its illegal cuz mutha fucaks still get shot over that shit.
 
lot of taggers these days r straight sqaures -.-, lupe or kanye lookin mutha fuckas


also bcuz tagging came from gangbangin

[Teddy Roosevelt]

Simply put, you are not allowed to change public or private property that doesn't belong to you without permission. It doesn't matter whether if it's art work, gang signs, or even painting over graffiti. If it doesn't belong to you, you shouldn't change it.

[Sikotic™]

Go to San Fernando and I'll show you why that shit is illegal. Shit is just plain ugly and leads to unnecessary violence when a store owner, who pays taxes and rent to operate his business, gets murdered for painting over the ugly shit that is scaring away his customers. Fuck that shit.

[when it rains it pours]

Go to San Fernando and I'll show you why that shit is illegal. Shit is just plain ugly and leads to unnecessary violence when a store owner, who pays taxes and rent to operate his business, gets murdered for painting over the ugly shit that is scaring away his customers. Fuck that shit.

word.



it is a art, but paint on your own damn property, do that shit on your garage, on your house side, go buy a fucking paint book.

[Turf Hitta]

Go to San Fernando and I'll show you why that shit is illegal. Shit is just plain ugly and leads to unnecessary violence when a store owner, who pays taxes and rent to operate his business, gets murdered for painting over the ugly shit that is scaring away his customers. Fuck that shit.

I thought this thread was about graf art not tagging. tagging is bullshit.

[Nat Turner-reincarnated]

eye like seeing that shit but eye can see where niggas that own stores coming from......

[LooN3y]

Go to San Fernando and I'll show you why that shit is illegal. Shit is just plain ugly and leads to unnecessary violence when a store owner, who pays taxes and rent to operate his business, gets murdered for painting over the ugly shit that is scaring away his customers. Fuck that shit.

I thought this thread was about graf art not tagging. tagging is bullshit.

same thing homies... taggin is the generalize version of graf art, murals, whatever, u write in the wrong hood thats the last thing u gonna do.

[TraceOneInfinite Flat Earther 96']

eye like seeing that shit but eye can see where niggas that own stores coming from......

Word... and hiphoppers got to respect graffiti because its one of the four elements of hiphop.

[LooN3y]

eye like seeing that shit but eye can see where niggas that own stores coming from......

Word... and hiphoppers got to respect graffiti because its one of the four elements of hiphop.

 than gangbanging must be too, if not than it cant be. to me its totally a gang thing,

[Chad Vader]

eye like seeing that shit but eye can see where niggas that own stores coming from......

Word... and hiphoppers
got to respect graffiti because its one of the four elements of hiphop.

Last week there was a thread about this element;
West Coast Pop Lockers ? (LMFAO!!!)
http://www.dubcnn.com/connect/index.php?topic=173876.0

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/b5aYMY6-lII" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/b5aYMY6-lII</a>
I don't care if they are down with suga free, these guys are a joke 
And even if this dance is one of the original elements of West Coast hiphop,these pop lockers looks like idiots to me.




and now you can tell me how HARD are these guys 'cause they're bloods,i still don't give a fuck.

So now I´m a idiot and a vandal 
What the hell?