Save the Graffiti Walls
By Stash
Maleski
The Venice Graffiti Walls
represent the ideal of free expression in its most pure form. Since early in
2000 when the current walls officially became walls for free art whether it be
with brush or spraycan, these were the only city sanctioned legal graffiti art
walls in the United States.
In 1999, when the City of L.A. was planning
the renovation of the Ocean Front Walk, I helped lead the effort to preserve a
portion of these walls as tribute to the high quality graffiti art that had been
occurring at this site since the late 70s. Back then the area was part of the
Venice Pavilion and was informally called the Graffiti Pit.
As a Venice resident and business
owner who employs graffiti artists to paint commercial murals, scenic design and
fine art canvases, it made sense for me to be an advocate for the preservation
of these walls. The Venice community, world renowned for tolerance, creativity
and innovation, whole-heartedly supported the preservation of these walls.
The California Coastal Commission
insisted that if the Pavilion was to be removed, a portion of the walls must be
preserved as a memorial to the graffiti that had been practiced at the site, and
as a way to preserve an artistic resource for economically diverse populations
of youth in the area. The Commission went one step further than preservation and
insisted that a program be installed to manage the site. The Department of
Recreation and Parks asked me to do this job, and I have been doing it free of
charge since the year 2000.
The Walls
have become a symbol of the creativity and street culture that Venice and all of
Los Angeles is known for. The area is a cultural tourist attraction bringing
artists and graffiti aficionados from all around the world to view the work.
Skateboarding, public art, tattoos and free expression are just a few of the
things people come to Venice to experience.
The walls have been featured in
numerous television commercials, films and music videos bringing fame and income
to the Venice community. The walls are in fact that only place in the entire
City of Los Angles were it is legal to practice improvisational public art
without a permit.
Initially the walls
helped to bring an overall reduction in illegal vandalism to the Venice area and
helped reduce the amount of illegal vandalism throughout the City of Los
Angeles. Artists sought fame and recognition at these walls rather than on
illegal walls throughout the city.
Like the other attractions of Venice,
the area serves the greater Los Angeles community and the tourist community as
much as it serves the local
population.
Normally the success of a
community asset is measured in terms of usage. With this in mind the walls are a
huge success. More and more artists come to paint the walls all the time with
the art on the large walls changing usually up to eight times over the course of
a weekend. Kids paint a mural, get a picture, and then the next crew comes in
ands starts painting. The kids share photos and post them up on the internet or
send them to magazines for publication. Like any resource that is heavily used,
it requires maintenance and supervision.
The walls have now reached a point of
critical mass such that it is time to reevaluate the management of the walls and
the impact on the community. There needs to be outreach to the young people that
come to use the walls to teach them edicate and respect for the local community.
Venice has had graffiti long before
the walls, but it is true that there has been some increase in the amount of
illegal graffiti in the area in the past couple of years. This is not strictly
due to the presence of the walls but is due to a lack of a comprehensive
vandalism management for the entire boardwalk area.
It seems as if the area businesses,
homeowners and even police have given up in their efforts to reduce and remove
illegal vandalism. Businesses expect the city to remove vandalism from their
property not realizing that it is the responsibility of the tenants and building
owners to remove marks from their own property. Like a rebellious child,
graffiti artists will push the limits until some one pushes back. If vandalism
is tolerated than it sends the message that it is worth the effort and paint to
put up another tag or mark. Yet if the mark is immediately removed than the
message is clear that no new marks will be tolerated and the vandals will not
bother.
Additional steps must be taken
to combat the increase in vandalism that has occurred in the area. There needs
to be supervision of the Graffiti Walls area on a more regular basis.
Secondly special mailbox-like
containers need to be placed in the area so that the nearly empty spraycan can
be deposited and not removed. As it is now, kids come to the area, see all the
incredible art and want to participate, but may not have brought paint. They dig
through the trash making a mess and find the scrap cans. Then they tag on the
beautiful pieces and tag in the area. By securing the used cans we will raise
the quality of the art on the walls and reduce the errant tags in the
area.
Council District 11 should get
financial support from other council district for providing a resource that is
utilized by young artists from all over the City of LA. Every time a kid paints
on these walls, a wall somewhere else in the city is saved from destruction. The
artists are searching for fame and recognition from their peers, and the walls
provide an opportunity for this illusive commodity to be manifested.
Signage explaining the rules of the
walls needs to be installed in the area. The signage needs to be manufactured in
such a way that it cannot be written on or destroyed.
Murals in the area need to be included
in a comprensive maintenance program so that they do not become magnets for
tags. The vandals know that their tags will run longer on these murals since
under the current system they are difficult and costly to fix. The murals can be
coated with anti-graffiti clear coats that make it much easier and cost
effective to remove tags.
There should
be a zero-tolerance policy towards illegal vandalism in Venice. Working with the
Department of Neighborhood Beautification, the area needs to be swept daily so
that no tags are allowed to run in the area.
Area businesses need to get on board
with the program and have a bucket of paint on hand to paint out an tags within
24 hours of their occurrence. The LAPD should be citing any and all instances of
vandalism anywhere east of the bike path. The LAPD should be citing people
within the graffiti walls area for open-container and littering.
With these and other more involved
long-term solutions we can together preserve a valuable cultural landmark and
creative tradition that is so important to the Venice community. In short the
solution is mitigation and community involvement not removal of the walls
themselves.
Stash Maleski is the
Curator/Manager of the Venice Graffiti Walls and have been serving in this
volunteer postion since 2000 when the California Coastal Commisiion and the
Department of Recreation and Parks asked him to do it. He also runs his own
Venice-based company called ICU Art / In Creative Unity, which employs graffiti
artists to paint scenic designs for films and television, community murals, art
exhibitions and illustrations. No funds are received from the City of L.A. for
upkeep of the walls.
Posted: Tue - August 1, 2006 at 06:50 PM