Graffiti Poem
He looks up at the wall
Feeling the pressure in his fingertips
Searching in his mind for the image
That will take the words from his lips
He wonders what change he could make
With just a can of paint
He wonders
Who would appreciate a picture so quaint?
He inhales the city air
Stepping back to admire what he’d made to be
He would be happy
If only one person stopped to see
Self Reflection:
I decided to use graffiti and public art as my theme for my City Stories Project. Since we have recently visited a few public art installations and studied the definition of art, I wanted to incorporate graffiti and publicly displayed art into my project. I have always been particularly interested in graffiti, due to its controversy as vandalism. Graffiti is different from any other art form, due to its connection with culture and urban lifestyle. Graffiti artists have created their own canvas on urban, brick walls to express their own words, images, and artwork. The concept of creating art, and abandoning it for the world to see without credit, is so intriguing. One artist in particular that always inspired my interest in graffiti art is Banksy, who is an anonymous graffiti artist and political activist, who never revealed their identity. Graffiti gives the artist an unnamed voice, unlike any other art medium.
I decided to write a poem describing a lone graffiti artist. I wanted to show the artist’s intentions of displaying his art for the world to see. I wanted to use a limited number of words to describe my story along with the painting, because graffiti art uses a limited number of words to portray their idea or meaning. I painted my poem upon a painting of a brick wall, to demonstrate that art can be found anywhere throughout Manhattan. Graffiti art can be found on every inch of concrete in New York City. Being surrounded by it on a daily basis makes me wonder what each person’s intentions were, and what, if anything, they were trying to tell the rest of the world.
