The Art of Graffiti as Inner-City Communication and as a means of Public Literacy

A city such as Los Angeles, as a material site and a representationalconstruction, has undergone a continuous cycle of expansion, demolition, and re-development. Cities are both a literal and a figurative formation, representing a geographic, social and economic collective. Often economic and political groups with vested interests in maintaining the status quo decide to promote their vision of the city. In her essay, "Who Has the Street-smarts? The Role of Emotion in Co-Creating the City," Janet McGaw states that the city "plays a role in the development of people's social identity and body image through the different representations of the body withinthe city: and the city's form and structure encourage social conformity and can similarly create social marginalization" (67). The rise of graffiti art in the 1970s challenges this status quo. Although this graffiti art has often been associated with vandalism and gangactivity, artists, community activists and scholars have come to recognize the artistic contribution of this street art, as well as its importance as a means of expression for members of Los Angeles's subculture. This "wall talk" has become a means ofestablishing a communicative art that has become fundamental to the identity of Los Angeles.