“Deanna Hall, freshman political science major, said that she enjoys public art if it is not on private property.”
The colorful slashes and curves of paint that come together to form graffiti tiptoe the line of being considered either art or
vandalism.
Monica Preciado, freshman psychology major, said she believes graffiti could be both art and vandalism depending on the kind of art.
“It all depends on where it’s at,” Preciado said. “If it’s on your own personal stuff its art because it’s a talent. Not everyone can draw or be able to create something so different. I would consider graffiti vandalism only if the graffiti is on a public or private property that is not your own.”
According to Riverside’s Art and Innovation website, the city spends more than $1.3 million dollars each year for graffiti abatement and removal in Riverside.
According to the information on the Riverside website, the graffiti is costly and destructive, and lowers property values. It sends a message that the community is not concerned about the appearance of the neighborhood.
Art has been created in different forms and platforms, and has become widely acceptable and appreciated in today’s society.
Graffiti styles range from simple written words to intricate wall paintings, seen all throughout Riverside.
What one person sees as trash and neglect, another sees as something creative.
“Graffiti is a type of art,” said Karina Ruelas, sophomore sociology major. “It is a way that people express their inner thoughts and feelings. However, it also depends on what the graffiti is of and where it is at.”
“Step Up Revolution,” the fourth installment of the “Step Up” series, features an opening scene of dancers in Miami, Fla.
Throughout that scene, an artist is shown drawing graffiti on his own glass canvas, portraying it as his own form of art.
“The fact that the artist in the movie is using his own property and expressing his own drawings makes it public art and not vandalism,” said DeAnna Hall, freshman political science major.
Thirty years ago, graffiti may have been considered a definite act of vandalism and far from art.
Nonetheless, depending on its location, graffiti has become a more accepted form of art by the new generation of young adults and students.
