Graffiti: The origin and evolution of this art form
If you are a budding artist, then you do not need to be introduced to graffiti. They are not only engaging, but also evoke a free spirit. However, the best part about it is that, you don’t have to go look for it online or in art galleries and museums. All you have to do is step outside in the real world. They are spread across public spaces, be it walls or building exteriors, trains or even tunnels.
Although a respected art form, graffiti is often looked down upon as it used to be done without authorisation, that too during the odd hours of the night on random surfaces. In fact, over the course of history, it has also been associated with vandalism. But that’s no more the case now. Today’s graffiti artists are very much legit and practise this art form for passion and recognition.
But how did graffiti emerge? Let’s take a look at the origin and evolution of this extremely cerebral art form.
Graffiti originated in ancient Europe
Graffiti are abstract drawings that represent the voice of public. They can be as simple as a written expression such as, ‘Everyone has the right to education’ to complex and intricate images that can mean multiple things at once. Graffiti is derived from an Italian word graffiato, meaning ‘scratched’.
The earliest records of graffiti can be found in sepulchres and ruins of Pompeii (a vast archaeological site in southern Italy’s Campania region), catacombs of Rome (underground galleries used as cemeteries) and cave walls, way back in ancient Greece and Rome. This art form was used to convey love notes, political slogans, protest poems, names of the beloved deceased and other trending quotes. It was a chosen medium to pass on the message to all and sundry, that too in public, without the fear of being judged.
Graffiti in medieval times
While ancient Europeans used graffiti to convey messages publicly, people in medieval Africa and Asia used the medium for inscribing languages. For instance, the only remaining source of Safaitic language, a precursor to modern-day Arabic, is in the form of graffiti. They are mainly traced on surfaces of rocks and boulders spread across basalt desert regions such as north-western Egypt, southern Syria, eastern Jordan and norther Saudi Arabia. Interestingly, records of Safaitic show that the language existed for centuries, from the first century BC to fourteenth century AD. Moreover, several of Arabic political satirist poems were meant to look like graffiti on walls and later circulated by commoners.
Apart from poetry, proses, commentaries, advertisements and philosophical quotes were also carved on mosaic surfaces, throughout the medieval age. Records suggest that the Vikings, and the Mayans were also among the tribes that engaged in serious graffiti making.
Tacheron: Graffiti during Renaissance
Over the course of history, graffiti continued to grow in popularity until it became quite a rage during the Renaissance. This is when a particular kind of graffiti called ‘Tacheron’ emerged. It referred to religious, literary and artistic scribbling on Romanesque and Scandinavian church walls. In fact, famous Renaissance painters such as Michelangelo, Raphael, and Filippino Lippi even made graffiti, especially in the ruin site of the ancient Roman empire Domus Aurea, where they signed their names underneath. Art historians believe that it was through graffiti that the grotesque style of art evolved. Later on, throughout the 18th century, even French soldiers carved graffiti on monuments during Napoleonic campaigns.
Modern-day graffiti
Graffiti in the present times is no longer done discreetly, but with the consent of governments and owners of private properties. Spray paints and markers are used for all the above socio-political purposes. In addition, it is also used in reference to hip hop and pop culture. Guess how this transition happened! Well, artists were influenced greatly by art under bridges, railyards and subways, spread across Philadelphia and New York. It even branched out into other forms of art, including poster art, stencil art and most importantly, street art. In fact, gangs across America use graffiti to mark their territories and avoid wars.
One of the notable graffiti artists who put graffiti on the mainstream map was Keith Haring from America who, in the 1980s, opened a store called Pop Shop. There, he sold all kinds of pop culture merchandise alongside displaying his own graffiti. Other known graffiti artists are Frenchmen Jean Michel Basquiat and Blek le Rat, and Englishman Banksy among others.