Suzanne Albanus
Graffiti has existed since ancient times dating back to Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire in particular but also found in other cultures such as the Zuni of the United States in an area known in Spanish as El Morro National Monument or “A’tis’ina” meaning “ place of writings on the rock” (1) Anglo-Americans called it Inscription Rock. Both names suit the purpose of what the rock was about – travellers left signatures when passing through, along with names, dates and stories of their treks. Many of those “scribbles” can be still seen, some of them dating back to the 17th Century. Some of the petro glyphs and carvings made by the Aasazi people go back centuries before the Europeans made their marks. It would appear to be an intrinsic trait of human nature regardless of ethnicity or era, to want to leave a mark – to state “I was here, this is what I thought, do not forget me” for those who followed to see and perhaps remember.
From the Pen to the Wall.
The only known source of the Safaitic language, a form or proto-Arabic, is from graffiti inscriptions scratched on the surface of rocks and boulders predominantly basalt desert of southern Syria, eastern Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia. Safaitic dates from the 1st Century to the 4th Century BC (2). Ancient graffiti displayed different connotations from today’s contemporary society’s content. Phrases of love, declarations, political rhetoric and simple words of thought compare with today’s words of social and political ideals. Insights into Roman street life emerge through the readings of the graffiti of Pompeii, including Latin curses, brothel addresses, food shops, and a verse to disappointed love which include the lines” If she can break my heart , why can’t I break her head?” –CIL IV.1284. The satirical Alexamenos graffito is believed to contain the earliest known representation of Jesus (3) . Later, French soldiers carved their names on monuments during the Napoleonic campaign of Egypt and Lord Byron’s signature survives on one of the columns of the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion in Attica, Greece.
Graffiti in Beirut
image source: http://alqlm.org/Jahan-e-Qalam/2011/09/17/urban-arabic-graffiti-within-political-arab-crisis/
In the Middle East, graffiti is slowly emerging, with pockets operating in Beirut, Iran, Israel. The Israeli West Bank has become reminiscent of the Berlin Wall with graffiti artists from around the world coming to paint the site. The most common characteristic of graffiti in the Arab world is that of “tagging” and “bombing” the latter also known as a “throw up”. Tagging is the most basic way of writing an artist’s name and is their personalized signature. Tagging is often the example given when opponents of graffiti refer to acts of hand style graffiti and is by far the most common form of graffiti. This aspect of some graffiti is now being seen as having artistic value as a form of public art. That type of public art is in fact, an effective tool of social emancipation or in the achievement of a political goal. In times of conflict, such public art murals have offered a means of communication and self-expression for these socially, ethnically or religiously divided communities. The murals have also been effective tools for establishing dialogue and addressing divisions within. In 2011 graffiti artist Mathangi Arulpragasam a.k.a. M.I.A. has become known for her integration of political violence into her cover art. Stickers of her artwork appeared on lamp posts and walls in Brick Lane, London (Hershkovits.1983).
Graffiti art at its very core is illegal in its nature, and so, is an act of defiance and revolt. Though the messages may not be directed authority figures or political ideals, the fact remains that behind each piece of graffiti lies public space.
Graffiti as a Form of Political and Public Resistance.
A visually salient, although often creative manner of resistance, graffiti irreverently opposes political domination and authoritative control of public space. The seeming blatant disregard for public space is interpreted by the public as a personal attack rather than a more general resistance to a system that leaves the public space in the hands of a minority. It becomes obvious then that graffiti promotes a message of rebellion and resistance, a type of resistance that promotes an anarchistic ideology in many layers. Graffiti is the voice of the common man; we discover evidence of another version of history, characterized by oppression and opposition to the official view. Topics too sensitive, too outrageous for the official version is the natural province (Lughod: 1981).
Discourse of Anti-Structure.
In her writings on Bedouin society, Abu-Loghud describes how the use of ginnahwas (Arabic جنهوزshort love poems) (4) is used to express love and desire. In reference to the Bedouin emphasis placed on autonomy and honour. She defines discourse as a formalized type of communication through which emotional sentiments are conveyed through an expressive medium. Graffiti may be understood as a discourse of anti-structure, a passive resistance to a social complacency and the elitist dictation of public space, graffiti challenges the core ethics of our culture, without actively posing a threat to its dominant ideology. In her work with the Bedouin community and their poetry Lughud (1981) her findings illustrated the link between poetry and its purpose with words far more than actions being the centre of an effort to work out the various possibilities and impossibilities of political relationships. The forms of the voice give meaning and shape to an experience. Relevant to this, in American ( or other Western) cultures) graffiti serves a similar purpose to Bedouin poetry, the writing on the wall is like poetry, sentiments about a cultural system are put forwards in a society, and through their passive nature, question societal norms.
Revolutionary Street Art and Graffiti.
Graffiti in Cairo
image source : http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5291/5488146832_65a4b67c6a.jpg
Young artists have beautified Cairo’s streets with their images and messages, although much of it is being painted over and covered up so now only photos remain. Many of the images are of those who died in the uprisings and are seen as a memorial to them (5) . One in particular commemorates a young blogger who was beaten to death on June 4, 2010. Despite efforts by officialdom to remove graffiti and street art from view/memory. New pieces keep the spirit of the revolution alive. One particular image was done on the road so that people would notice as they walked along. It contained the slogan:
“Beware, the revolution is back, Egypt is above us all” .(6)
لاثصشقثو فاث قثرخمعفهخى هس لاشؤنز ُلغحف هس شلاخرث عس شمم(ل (Arabic)
Graffiti and the Arab Spring.
In Libya the role of graffiti in the uprising against Quaddafi has been well documented by photojournalist, Wally Nell, in his article “One Way Street: graffiti and the Arab Spring” he reports that artists now operate under the name of a local artist, Qais-al-Halali, who was shot presumably by Government forces (7) . There are also reports that graffiti is refueling the rebellion in Syria as well with the uprising in Dara’a being touched off when children were arrested for scrawling anti-regime graffiti on a wall in their town. Graffiti has long been an expression of Arab uprisings and can be dated back to the uprisings of 1936-1939 in Palestine against British rule. Arabic graffiti in Beirut in particular is well documented and the city is perhaps the spiritual home of Arabic graffiti (8). Earlier pieces were done primarily in English but the introduction of Arabic calligraphy giving the pieces an interesting mix of Western shading and loops with Arabic characters (9) . Calligraphy in the Arab world is seen as a spiritual and artistic discipline with a devotional aspect. The use of this letter form does not always sit well with some, but as with the incorporation of use of poetry in Bedouin culture, both artistic tools have formed the roots of a newer strand of secular art proliferating in the Middle East .
Notes
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Morro_National_Monument
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/graffiti
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexamenos_graffito
[4] http://she2i2.blogspot.com/2011/02/photos-more-revolutionary-graffiti
[5] Gulf News.com Monday July 11, 2011. The Region p.11
[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexamenos_graffito
[7]http://www.trust.org/alertnet/multimedia/pictures/detail.dot?mediaInode=2df22af1-3238-44b4-94d6-dbd86cba912a
[8] http://alqlm.org/Jahan-e-Qalam/2011/09/17/urban-arabic-graffiti-within-political-arab-crisis/
[9] http://hanibaael.wordpress.com/2008/09/30/graffiti-in-beirut/2295653895_fbe19c03f1/
[10] http://mideastcollective.blogspot.com/
Bibliography
Hershkovits, D. “London Rocks, Paris Burns and the B-Boys Break A Leg” Sunday News Magazine, April 3, `963.
Lughod, Abu. J. Rabat, Urban Apartheid in Morocco. Princeton Studies on the New East, Princeton University Press. 1998.
Dr Suzanne Albanus is a designer who was formerly a lecturer at James Cook University, QLD, Australia in the Bachelor of Communication design degree. She has been involved in many of the public works at James Cook, notably in the Graffiti murals in the Environmental Sciences Faculty, the Central air-conditioning block and the JCU Student’s Club. She assisted in writing the policy on Street Art for the Townsville City Council. She is currently an Academic Advisor at the American University in Dubai, UAE.
