Graffiti NY Art Guide 2000
By Matthew Friday
What is crime and what is not?
What is justice? I think I forgot?
Ice-T, "Squeeze the Trigger" 1987
During the month of July, artist Oliver Fox was repeatedly accosted by police
officers employed by the city of Syracuse. Fox was in the process of completing
a large mural commissioned by a local store manager. Fox's crime: The alleged
use of a gang-related tag. Though Fox was never officially arrested he still
suffered punishment at the hands of the Syracuse City Hall. Besides being ordered
to destroy the offending symbol, Fox lost his contract with Coca-Cola's national
"Art in Harmony" program. Shortly after his harassment at the hands
of the Syracuse Police Department, an unnamed caller identifying himself as
being from City Hall complained to Lynn Brockman, the coordinator of Coca-Cola's
"Art in Harmony" program. Fox's contracts with Coca-Cola were immediately
dropped. Though this issue has received front-page coverage in the Syracuse
Post-Standard, this situation has not been resolved.(1) Its resolution should
be of utmost concern for the art community of Syracuse New York.
Since the 1980's the political climate that contextualizes the reception of
art has become increasingly conservative. We have seen the continued attacks
upon contemporary art by insipid self-righteous politicians who claim to represent
the moral majority. Beginning with Jesse Helm's attack on Robert Mapplethorpe
and Andre Serrano in 1989, these rabid attempts at censorship have reached a
fever pitch with the recent example of Rudolph Giuliani's attempts to shut down
the Brooklyn Museum of Art's "Sensation" show. Why is it that the
public must continually bear witness to these carefully orchestrated acts of
attempted control? These attacks are easy to misconstrue as simply an act of
censorship. The mistake is in thinking that in fact these are simply attempts
of omission.
A continued leitmotif of postmodern society is the increasing plurality of experience.
As the narratives of national, ethnic and gender identity begins to wear thin;
we are faced with the possibility that our social categories and roles are far
from stable. Art is perhaps one of the most potent signifiers of this change.
The constantly shifting topography of the contemporary world has left many viewers
with a sense of nostalgia, anxiety and resentment. When a society is faced with
the possibility that the very tenants of its identity are constructed on unstable
ground it begins to search for diversion. The "other" must be controlled
or cast out through ritualized acts of oppression. These acts commonly take
the form of attempts to control the production of symbolic expression by marginalized
groups. When the Syracuse Police ordered Oliver Fox to destroy his signature
they were not simply attempting to silence him; rather they were inscribing
the limits of acceptable language upon a community. This act was a message;
the message is "We will not allow you to speak. We will control what is
considered acceptable."
Artist Oliver Fox is not being allowed to speak because his work was seen as
manifesting symbols that are used by a subculture that challenges the dominant
culture. One has only to read the responses to these accusations to realize
that in fact Fox is not affiliated with any gang.(2) The police misidentified
the hip-hop vernacular of Fox's work with that of gang tags. On one level this
displays the ignorance of the Syracuse police office, but on another level it
demonstrates something even more frightening. The system of authority that law
enforcement represents has attempted to control the production of visual culture.
They have systematically identified what they consider symbolically expressive
of dissenting opinions and targeted these works for destruction. Instead of
working to alleviate the gross economic disparity or lack of opportunities that
exists in the urban environment, City Hall has illegally used the police to
divert peoples attention from the issues which truly affect their lives.
Having worked with graffiti artist in New York City and New Mexico, I can tell
you that this is a recurring problem. There exists a common misperception that
if any artwork utilizes the wildstyle line-work of hip-hop culture it must therefore
be gang related. This is completely wrong. According to the Newcomer case study
of 1989 only 15% of all graffiti is gang related.(3) In addition to these statistics
is the simple fact that for many young people from urban environments private
commissions and local wall murals are often one of the strongest paths towards
art school and gallery representation. In this day where we face continual cuts
to art programs and extra-curricular activities there often exists little opportunity
for students to engage in acts of artistic creation. In his article, "Graffiti
as Career and Ideology", Richard Lachmann quotes a high school guidance
counselor who says that students who have studied graffiti art on their own
are more likely to return to school and be promoted to the next grade.(4) Should
we allow our government to continue these attacks upon both our youth and the
arts community?
I attempted to contact the Syracuse Police department over a week long period.
They did not bother to return one of my many calls. Sgt. David Pauldine is the
director of the Syracuse Graffiti Busters Unit, the organization responsible
for the damage done to Oliver Fox's reputation and career. The members of the
Syracuse art community must understand that this is an attack against them,
and if it goes unanswered the possibility for more situations like this one
is encouraged. You can contact the Syracuse Police department and let them know
of your feelings on this matter by calling 315-442-5111 (main number) or by
leaving a message at 315-442-5300 (media unit).
One of the greatest strengths of art is to make the familiar new and beautiful.
Theodor Adorno once said that it is part of our ethical responsibility not to
feel at home in one's home; we have a moral obligation to de-familiarize the
everyday and thus fight the forces of oppression and control.(5) Public murals,
such as the one created by Oliver Fox, serve to render the world new and thus
force us to re-evaluate our relationship to it.
Endnotes:
I would like to thank Luis Perez, staff writer for the Post-Standard for his
assistance and advice.
1. Perez, Luis. "Police Force Graffiti Artist to Paint Over His Signature
in Mural." Post-Standard 22 July 2000: A1
2. "Let Oliver Fox Paint." Post-Standard 28 July 2000: A11
3. Newcomer, Kris. "Graffiti artists get chance to do their thing."
Rocky Mountain News. July 17 1988 : 8
4. Lachmann, Richard. "Graffiti as Career and Ideology." American
Journal of Sociology . September 1994: 229-50
5. Adorno, Theodor. Minima Moralia: Reflections from Damaged Life. London: Verso.
1974
