Graffiti is Poetry and Science

Buford Youthward

It is poetic in that words connoted, denoted and outright symbolized take on and exhibit meanings intended and non-intended by the author.

Text becomes texture and vice versa. The act itself is loaded with poetic significance. What begins as merely a name being manipulated through letters and flung against a surface becomes perceived as a scream. An action, a license to seize. What begins as prank ends as poetry.

It is a science in that the action/signal is both calculated and methodical. In many ways the tradition is formulaic but like all traditions, data passed down is expanded or reduced thus (d)evolving the form. The effort requires both improvisation and precision. Like a musical instrument, anyone can pick at a piano or guitar and make musical sounds, but few can claim that they are masters of any musical instrument; anyone can pick up a can of paint and write on a wall, but not many can say they are masters of the sciences required to produce graffiti. Time and exercise create proficiency.

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