Graffiti (Scranton, York, Dunmore: house, neighborhoods, school)

[poconosmama]

I was crossing over 81 on Drinker Street into Dunmore today and noticed a ton of brightly colored fresh graffiti down on the wall near 81. I see alot more in the recent months in areas I thought we wouldnt see it. Yuck.

[TheEmissary]

Originally Posted by poconosmama

I was crossing over 81 on Drinker Street into Dunmore today and noticed a ton of brightly colored fresh graffiti down on the wall near 81. I see alot more in the recent months in areas I thought we wouldnt see it. Yuck.

No matter where you live, nothing says "Welcome to A Depressed Area" more than seeing graffiti on the highway overpasses!

[blip]

Graffiti is both, art and crime.

[AmeriKenArtist]

I watched a documentary showing kids in the middle of the night in the Brooklyn yards, creating holiday murals on subway cars, destined to arrive in Manhattan to begin the morning rush hour. As I recall, the kids finished their work, narrowly escaping the MTA police. In the morning, they were at the first stop in Manhattan to watch this "Holiday Train" arrive and greet all the unsuspecting commuters. People were smiling as they entered the train! The train was taken out of service immediately and taken back to Brooklyn for an acid bath. I'll try and find the actual train online. It was very beautiful. The kids were exceptionally talented. BUT- it is vandalism. It is not their property. On the postitive side, I think this action did propel some of the vandals to temporary stardom of some kind. There have been graffiti shows in some museums and galleries. I am an artist and have a very open-minded view of what is art. From my experiences it is unfortunate but true- graffiti does symbolize negative feelings about the area vandalized.

Now comes the argument, artist to artist. The quality and subject matter is of utmost importance in regard to how graffiti is accepted. If the artists are talented and adept in creating a sophisticated scene, it can be attractive and help the passerby appreciate the talent. If it is simply a tag with the typical exaggerated wrriting style, then it shows possession of territory and is profoundly negative. etc. etc......

[AmeriKenArtist]

.... love the humor! Thanks for sharing!

[Jungle George]

Originally Posted by EnyaGirl

Um, I highly doubt we have the next Michaelangelo on our hands here. I mean, it's not like Bansky is out here in the Poconos doing his latest works. (For those of you who have never heard of him, see some of his work here: Banksy - Outdoors)

That is great Enya!! THANK YOU!!

Growing up in Manhattan, we used to love the graffiti!! Waiting for the subway to pull in to get to school, or walking around decrepit neighborhoods, it used to "brighten up" an otherwise mundane scape!!

[johnqpublic]

kind of off topic, but if anyone has seen the mural on the Elm St. viaduct in Scranton, It was painted by a friend of mine, she is very talented and does artwork by request.
A shameless plug, for a unique Christmas present , look her up.. hyzenthay.deviantart.com

[johnqpublic]

ps. the "stairway to heaven "pic on the site was commissioned by me for my daughters birthday, it is beautiful, the pic doesnt do it justice

[AmeriKenArtist]

Where in Manhattan did you grow up? I was just "touring" LES, HK and parts of Brooklyn last night!

[Jungle George]

Originally Posted by AmeriKenArtist

Where in Manhattan did you grow up? I was just "touring" LES, HK and parts of Brooklyn last night!

83rd & 2nd Ave...Upper East Side. I think it's still called "Yorkville".

When folks hear I grew up on the UES, they say "OOOOOO!!!! what a affluent neighborhood!!"

I always laugh, 'cause I grew up in a 4-room "falling apart" tenement with sagging floors, cracked walls & ceilings, lead paint peeling off everywhere, rats the size of cats, roaches, a bathtub in the kitchen, etc...

I look at my house now & wanna burst into that song from "The Jeffersons"....

"well we're movin' on up......."