Tagging

Most of our city's landscapes are ugly and boring (if not dirty as well). It takes urban artists to see the true potential in our concrete, brick, and steel centers of commerce. Skateboarders (artists not athletes in my opinion) see endless possibilities in every nook, gap, and rail. Hours of fun can be had on curbs and stair sets that other drones mindlessly walk over in uncomfortable shoes and even more uncomfortable suits (ties are another rant all together) as they wait for Thursday paychecks.

Grafitti can have a beautifying effect as well on the boring grays of our concrete jungles. While stuck at railroad crossings i find some relief from my frustration watching the various murals painted on the boxcars passing by. Run down, decrepit, and abandoned mills and factories have been dressed up on more than one occasion by local artists with nothing more than cans of spray paint. Water towers and oil storage tanks are just begging for something.

One of my favorite artists was from Massachusetts in the mid 90's. His tag was "Ewok". Not only did i enjoy the Star Wars reference but his/her murals and, better yet, his/her placement was tasteful. Great art in well selected locations and limited in number. "Ewok" was not sprayed all over the place. "Did you see Ewok's mural by the train station?" was the kind of thing you heard. Part of the mystique was where the tags were. There was a bit of a rites of passage or an 'in the know' with knowing the location and having seen some of the best murals around.

Tagging, like all things, can be bastardized as well. The worst case of this seems to be in Portland, Me by the tag "Oniks". Whether a reference to the dark stone worn in the pinky rings of cheesey old men everywhere or the equally bad rap group of the early 90's, this 'tagger' (and i use the term loosely here) is making an embarrassment of himself and the helpless surfaces he is defacing.

First off his arsenal seems to consist of a case of white spray paint. Impressive selection. Now i know that white is the combination of all colors but unless he starts handing out prisms we're just going to see monochromatic shitty tags.

Second, lack of style. There isn't even enough style here for me to rip apart.

Third, he seems to be going with a quantity vs quality approach tagging everything possible. Stupid little spots, uneven brick surfaces, the tops of signs. i guess you can put your tag everywhere when it takes all of about 3 seconds to scribble it down (half as long as it probably took to design it and twice as long as he probably lasts in bed). He has even tagged the most idiotic place i have ever seen tagged: on tar roof shingles. Looks wicked sweet there buddy!

Sure it has passed my mind that this could be a local gang or group of crystal meth dealers marking their territory but seeing how the previously mentioned usually can't read or work a computer i'll stand by my comments. They'd throw shoes over powerlines if they had any style anyway.