Graffiti as Community Art
Artist Bukue One led the first Artists for Positive Social Change workshop to showcase the positive impact graffiti can have—and the conversations it can start—on campus.
10.06.2011
Seven-foot-high gold-and-green graffiti letters practically shout “SFUAD” on an adobe wall near the Santa Fe University of Art and Design campus exit. Prominent red shading makes the letters pop and white highlights impart a sense of shine. Was it a random act by a lone vandal at 4 a.m.? Actually, quite the opposite: The project was the first workshop for the inaugural yearlong series Artists for Positive Social Change.
In September, Tion Torrence, a.k.a. Bukue One, taught students how to create a “burner,” a large section of graffiti that is so eye-catching, it practically “burns” off the wall. A leader in the world of hip-hop music and graffiti, Bukue One led students in a hands-on conversation about art. He urged them to “focus on the letters—your foundation as a graffiti artist,” as well as the colors and composition.
He worked spontaneously, mapping out each letter as he composed the design. Jared Schmock, a senior in studio art with a background in stencil graffiti, served as Bukue One’s assistant during the workshop. “I learned a lot, especially about how forgiving spray paint is,” Schmock says. “Now I’m even more focused on bringing some of the styles from street art into my oils.”
Exploring the Visual Culture of Hip-Hop
“When hip-hop emerged 40 years ago in the South Bronx, graffiti became a way to say, ‘I was here. Pay attention. I’m a person,’” explains David Scheinbaum, the force behind the series and the chair of the Photography Department. “Graffiti gives voice to youth culture.”
The workshop embodied the principles of Artists for Positive Social Change, a cross-departmental initiative focused on artists whose work imparts messages of social responsibility. Although Scheinbaum acknowledges that hip-hop may invite controversy, “as educators, it’s our responsibility to help students navigate these issues, to bring real life into the curriculum,” he says. “Seeking permission for the wall helped to set an example of social responsibility for our students.”
Art Department Chair Linda Swanson was excited that the workshop gave students the opportunity to work on a large-scale, collaborative project with a public interface—opportunities that aren’t normally available in the studio, she says.
“Graffiti is a visual language, like any medium—except that the venue is different,” Swanson says. “It’s a classical form with repeated elements and a dynamic sense of color and movement.” She notes that graffiti is not always created spontaneously; many projects are very complex and planned with great care.
Engaging the Community
Selecting the adobe canvas for this project—and obtaining permission to use it—became a community effort. Swanson started by asking the university’s facilities director, Peter Romero, if he knew of a wall the Art Department could transform. Romero’s facilities crew had removed trash and dead vegetation from an arroyo (a dry gulch) near the campus exit, and he’d noticed the wall that faces it—the back wall of Thomas Properties, a commercial real estate business owned by Forrest Thomas.
Thomas was so pleased that the arroyo was clean that he was open to the project. “Forrest wanted to give students a highly visible place to express the identity of the school,” Swanson says. Ultimately, the project positively affected both parts of the Santa Fe community. “They did a fantastic job,” Thomas says. “I’m very happy to have been involved and to see such a great outcome.”
Starting the Conversation on Campus
Graffiti also invites overall community engagement. “Our students are looking for ways to make art vital in communities,” Swanson says. “Graffiti can be a vibrant part of a neighborhood.” Will the presence of this graffiti invite tagging on other campus walls? She doesn’t think so. “If you make it clear that a work is intentional, it’s not an invitation to random tagging.”
But questions like these are exactly the kind Scheinbaum wants to hear. “Where does vandalism end and expression begin? Is it graffiti or public art?” he asks. “This is just one example of an artist who is pushing the boundaries, sticking to his ethics, and producing work of quality and relevance. I look forward to continuing the conversation.”
View a gallery of Bukue One's visit.
