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Graffiti art – the genre that touches and upsets

Graffiti. A word that for decades has triggered both emotional storms and strong opinions. Where some see decorative masterpieces, others see vandalism on walls, facades and trains, and perhaps that is precisely the allure of graffiti. Think what you want, but it evokes emotions. Somewhere in the meeting between challenging boundaries and taking risks, between intense colors, strong messages and raw emotions, the graffiti artist creates a very special magic.

 

The term graffiti, which actually means "carvings" in Italian, has its roots in the subculture and spray art developed by young people in the United States in the 70s. And probably the term is quite apt, if you think of graffiti art as the modern equivalent of calligraphy, where the art and the message are closely linked

 

Modern graffiti art can be divided into the formats of Tags, Throw-ups och Pieces. Tags are small, single-color signatures of reminiscent of calligraphy in design. A Throw-up is created in no more than two colors and is a larger spray signature, consisting of outer contour lines. Pieces, on the other hand, is an abbreviation of the word "masterpiece" and is an elaborate graffiti painting. Often they come in large formats, with an image of letters, portraits, figures, and signatures in several different layers.