Graffiti Unit Lesson one · up a tag quickly. Graffiti writers used to use the “Hi, My Name Is” name tag stickers, but these days it’s also common to see them on the free address

Graffiti UnitLesson one

This unit can be completed over 5-6 sessions: 1. Research history of graffiti. 2. Research and Identify types of graffiti. 3. Create own graffiti 4. Research Banksy and identify Banksy. 5 Create your own Banksy art (better to have ICT access).

Quick vote on who thinks graffiti is an art or vandalism?

Has anyone see graffiti before? Where?

Does it depend where the graffiti is? Or how good the artist is? Or who is viewing it?

Now lets read up on the History of Graffiti

What is graffiti? Is it art or is it vandalism?

History of Graffiti The word "graffiti" derives from the Greek word graphein meaning: to write. This evolved into the Latin word graffito. Graffiti is the plural form of

graffito.Simply put, graffiti is a drawing, scribbling or

writing on a flat surface. Today, we link graffiti with the "New York" or "Hip Hop" style which emerged from New York City in the 1970's.

The Emergence of Hip HopHip Hop started in the inner city. It evolved from the rap

music made in Brooklyn and Harlem in the late 1960's and

early 1970's. Rap music was a reaction to the disco music of

the period. Disco was centered in the rich clubs of Manhattan

and rap emerged on street corners as an alternative. Using

lyrical rhythms and 'beat boxing' the music was a way to

express feelings about inner-city life. Hip hop emerged as

turn tables began to be used to form part of the rhythm by

`scratching' (the sound created by running the stylus

over the grooves of an LP).

As Hip Hop music emerged so did a new outlet for artistic

visibility. Keith Haring began using posters to place his

uniquely drawn figures and characters in public places. Soon

he began to draw directly on subway walls and transit

posters. The uniqueness of his drawings eventually led to

their being shown in galleries and published in books and his

art became "legitimate".

Taki 183: Initiator of TaggingAt about the same time as Keith Haring, a delivery messenger

began writing "Taki 183" whenever he delivered documents.

Soon his name was all over the city. Newspapers and

magazines wrote articles about him and Keith Haring. Both

became celebrities. This claim to fame attracted many young

people, especially those involved with rapping.

They began to imitate "Taki 183".

Graffiti was part of the Hip Hop culture which also saw the

start of rapping and break dancing . Breakdancing has since

lost much of its initial popularity, while rapping has emerged

as a major style in American music. New York City was

inundated with graffiti during the late seventies and early

eighties. But as media coverage faded so do did the graffiti.

Then in the mid-eighties a national TV program did a graffiti

story and set off a graffiti wildfire which really has become

world-wide.. That’s the story of today’s graffiti….

Graffiti CultureGraffiti quickly became a social scene. Friends often form

crews of vandals. One early crew wrote TAG as their crew

name, an acronym for Tuff Artists Group. Tag has since come

to mean both graffiti writing, 'tagging' and graffiti, a 'tag'.

Crews often tag together, writing both the crew tag and their

own personal tags. Graffiti has its own language with terms

such as: piece, toy, wild-style, and racking.

Graffiti ToolsAt first pens and markers were used, but these were limited

as to what types of surfaces they worked on so very quickly

everyone was using spray paint. Spray paint could mark all

types of surfaces and was quick and easy to use. The spray

nozzles on the spray cans didn’t work so well to create the

more colourful pieces. Caps from deodorant, insecticide, WD-

40 and other aerosol cans were used instead to allow for a

finer or thicker stream of paint. As councils began passing

graffiti laws outlawing graffiti “ tools “ , clever ways of

disguising paint implements were devised. Shoe polish,

deodorant roll-ons and other seemingly innocent containers

are emptied and filled with paint. Markers, art pens and

grease pens obtained from art supply stores are also used. In

fact nearly any object which can leave a mark on most

surfaces are used by taggers, though the spray can is the

medium of choice for most taggers.

In Britain we have a very active graffiti world and one of the most famous artists is Banksy, an urban terrorist who

creates funny, thought provoking graffiti and imagesin very unusual places as well as on walls

Banksy is never seen ,unless in disguise, and does not give interviews at all

August 2009:More than 300,000 people havevisited the Banksy exhibition inBristol, it was revealed on the finalday of the 12-week art show.The Banksy Vs Bristol Museum exhibitionsaw people queuing for up to six hours togain admission.Visitors to the free show have donatedmore than £45,000 towards museum funds- roughly the amount usually collectedacross an entire year.On its last day people were queuing beforedawn to see the exhibition.Banksy charged Bristol City Council £1 tostage the exhibition in his home town oncondition all CCTV footage of him

preparing the show was destroyed.

Of course, graffiti isn’t new, it has been found in Greek and

Roman towns from 2,000 years ago, the people who lived in

caves drew on their walls before language existed….

Again! Quick vote on who thinks graffiti is an art or vandalism?

Has anyone changed their mind after exploring images today?


Lets now watch a quick video to see if you change you mind

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2Eu2na_diY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2Eu2na_diY

For the last time! Quick vote on who thinks graffiti is an art or vandalism?

Has anyone changed their mind after exploring images today?


Graffiti Unit-Lesson Two


LQ: Can I identify different types of graffiti?

Tag

Tagging is the simplest type of graffiti consisting of the writer’s street name in one color. Tags are basically the graffiti writer’s signature; if they’re associated with a crew, they might also contain the crew’s name or initials. Tags can be seen everywhere and are done in spray paint, markers or pens. If a tag is put up over another writer’s tag or piece, it’s extremely disrespectful.

Throw-ups

A throw-up is a little more complicated than a tag, usually having two or three colours, but not nearly as elaborate as a piece. A throw-up is something that can be done quickly and repeatedly, while still identifying the writer. They’re usually done in bubble letters, often in one colour with a differently-coloured outline. When a graffiti writer goes out bombing, they’re usually either putting up tags or throw-ups all over their area.

Stencils

Using stencils is a quick and effective way to put up somewhat-complicated pieces very quickly. By holding the stencil against the wall and spraying, you can get a much more detailed picture than you would be able to with just a spray can. Even if you use two or three layers to make a more colourful and intricate picture, stencil graffiti can be thrown up in a matter of minutes. This is the type of graffiti that was made popular by the likes of Blek le Rat and Banksy and has now taken hold with graffiti writers everywhere.

Stickers (slaps)

Stickers are a quick and easy (some say lazy) way to throw up a tag quickly. Graffiti writers used to use the “Hi, My Name Is” name tag stickers, but these days it’s also common to see them on the free address labels you can get from the Post Office. It’s just as likely to see elaborate, professional-looking printed stickers with a message or image plastered all over. Graffiti artists like stickers because they can take their time on the art in private, then quickly slap them up wherever.

Wildstyle

Wildstyle is a particular style of writing that was developed and popularized by graffiti artists like Tracy 168, Stay High 149 and

Zephyr in New York City. It’s a complicated and extremely stylized form of writing that, to the untrained eye, is not easy to read.

Wildstyle writing features arrows, spikes, curves and other elements that non-graffiti artists may have a hard time

understanding. Wildstyle pieces are often 3D and considered to be one of the most complicated forms of graffiti.

Piece

A piece (short for masterpiece) is a graffiti painting, much more complex than a tag and having at least three colours. Pieces are hard to do illegally because of the time and effort involved, so a good piece will gain a lot of respect for that particular graffiti artist. As graffiti has got more respect as a legitimate art form, a lot of pieces have been commissioned – or at least the artists given permission to put them up.

Blockbusters

A blockbuster is used to cover maximum area in a minimal amount of time. Often consisting of large block letters, the

blockbuster can be accomplished with paint rollers and two or three colours of paint. Usually a blockbuster is put up to cover up other work or block other writers from putting

anything up on the same area.

Heaven

A heaven is a piece that’s put up in a very hard-to-reach location, often near or on the tops of tall buildings or on freeway signs. Due to being so dangerous and difficult to reach, graffiti artists who manage to get a piece up in such a spot will usually gain some added respect from their peers.

LQ: Can I identify different types of graffiti?

Using the resource sheet, can you identify the different types of graffiti in the pictures? Can you explain why (verbally or written) how you know which one is which. What are the features of each one? E.G. Capital letters, positioning, shapes, amount of colours used etc. Use the information on this ppt to help you.

Graffiti Unit-Lesson three


LQ: Can I draw my own graffiti style?

Choose between Throw up, Blockbuster and Wildstylestyle. We don’t expect you to be able to do Wildstyle but apply some of the techniques to a throw up. Pointy ends and arrows etc.

Throw-ups

A throw-up is a little more complicated than a tag, usually having two or three colours, but not nearly as elaborate as a piece. A throw-up is something that can be done quickly and repeatedly, while still identifying the writer. They’re usually done in bubble letters, often in one colour with a differently-coloured outline. When a graffiti writer goes out bombing, they’re usually either putting up tags or throw-ups all over their area.

Wildstyle

Wildstyle is a particular style of writing that was developed and popularized by graffiti artists like Tracy 168, Stay High 149 and

Zephyr in New York City. It’s a complicated and extremely stylized form of writing that, to the untrained eye, is not easy to read.

Wildstyle writing features arrows, spikes, curves and other elements that non-graffiti artists may have a hard time

understanding. Wildstyle pieces are often 3D and considered to be one of the most complicated forms of graffiti.

Blockbusters

A blockbuster is used to cover maximum area in a minimal amount of time. Often consisting of large block letters, the

blockbuster can be accomplished with paint rollers and two or three colours of paint. Usually a blockbuster is put up to cover up other work or block other writers from putting

anything up on the same area.

Graffiti Unit-Lesson four


*Be able to identify a Banksy.

*Be able to comment on the message the art is

communicating.

*Give comment on why the message is relevant.

*Comment on how I think the art was created.

LQ: Can I identify Banksy art and themessage behind the art?

Starter: look at the lesson 2 document ‘is it a Banksy?’ Identify which art is a Banksy. How do you know? Once

you have done this, gone onto the next slide.

What is Banksytrying to get across to you with his usage of symbolism in this image?

*Often a stencil

*Use of animals (rats

and monkeys) in pictures

a lot.

* Use of children in

pictures a lot.

*Likes to comment on

authority.

*Has a message to tell.

* Humorous and political.

What features of Banksy have we notice?

What is the message behind the picture?

What was Banksy trying to tell the viewer?

Is there more than one message?

In your books, cut out the pics (lesson 2 Banksy pics) and explain what message is being communicated through each image. Or how Banksy is trying to be humorous. If you can’t print just do the writing bit in your books about each picture

So how do you think Banksy does

his art?

What materials would he use?

How long would it take him?

Why?

*Be able to identify a Banksy.

*Be able to comment on the message the art is

communicating.

*Give comment on why the message is relevant.

*Comment on how I think the art was created.

LQ: Can I identify Banksy art and themessage behind the art?

Graffiti Unit-Lesson Five


*Often a stencil

*Use of animals (rats

and monkeys) in pictures

a lot.

* Use of children in

pictures a lot.

*Likes to comment on

authority.

*Has a message to tell.

• Humorous and

political.

• Like to use the

environment/

surroundings

What features of Banksy have we notice?

* Come up with ideas for a Banksy style piece of art.

*Use a wide range of photo editing techniques to create

Banksy Art.

*Be able to explain how these photo editing techniques

are important for this type of art.

*Explore a range editing techniques to improve my image.

LQ: Can I create a Banksy Style stencil using ICT?

So Banksy makes poignant political

messages. Often timely. Often he likes

to shock. They can be sarcastic.

He will use a juxtaposition of images

(changing revolvers for bananas). The

images are often humorous.

They have a distinctive style, black and

white with maybe one accent colour.

If you could create your own image, what

would you do it on? In your art books,

you need to think of 3 ideas for your

image- sketch or explain in a sentence.

Once you have your idea, now create our own stencil style Banksy image using Microsoft word.

• Step 1: find your primary images & save into your area (images in your picture)

• Choose a photo that is of a full item (e.g a full length person or a whole item). Ideally the photo will be on a contrasting background, though not essential. Cartoons and graphics can be used but for this tutorial it is best to use a photo.

• Step 2: copy the image into word if not done already.

• Step 3: Alter the contrast and sharpen.

• The image should be altered to being quite bright and contrasts.

• Step 4: Make Black and White

• Convert the image to Black and white, you can do this via the ‘black and white’ adjustment function or by removing saturation from the image.

• Step 5: Bring image to the front.

• Step 6: Magic Wand away the white to make the background transparent- click remove background.

• Step 7: Add a new layer of a grungy wall background underneath the image, copy and paste in- click send to the back on right button menu.

• Step 8: inset no lined text box with message to go with the image.

There are examples and practice documents on the website: Lesson 5 documents

Documents

Graffiti Unit Lesson one · up a tag quickly. Graffiti writers used to use the “Hi, My Name Is” name tag stickers, but these days it’s also common to see them on the free address