Bongani Majola
The word “battle” features prominently when South African graffiti artists talk about their work. This was evident at a recent graffiti competition in Johannesburg.
The winning work, which took a R500 prize, was of a man menacingly clutching a little teddy bear in his hand. This is, according to Wealz, the sole judge of the contest, an open “declaration of war”.
The painting, by Pak, was titled POV (point of view) and had the words “toys beware” inscribed
on it. In graffiti lingo “toys” refers to inexperienced artists and Pak’s intention was to warn them that they were not yet up to standard.
The artists and their art are surreptitious and edgy. Most of them do their paintings at night. They won’t give their real names but have “tags” like Rusty, Void, Pak, Judge, Drane and Wise.
They have their own language using terms like “bombing walls” (painting private and public property illegally), “panelling” (train painting) and “piecing” (full colour pieces).
Wealz says he was looking for use of space, neatness, the use of concepts and characters and evidence of originality in judging the art.
Liam Lynch, who has been taking photographs of graffiti for about two years, says the art is about the battle to “reclaim public space”.
“Who decides that public spaces of expression, like highways and strategically poised walls, should be littered with Calvin Klein adverts? It’s the mainstream culture,” he says.
“Painting graffiti makes a political statement against that commercial culture.”
Wealz thinks it’s about “writing your name”. Every piece of graffiti has what he calls “personal imprints”, because it is not just “art” but a lifestyle.
Emile, the lead performer with the Cape Town-based hip-hop group Black Noise, echoes similar sentiments. He reckons that graffiti is an integral part of hip-hop culture along with “MCing [dropping lyrics],
DJing and breakdancing”.
Emile says the culture has its origins on the streets of the South Bronx, New York, in the United States and caught on fast with South African youth.
“Expression” and “provacation” are other key words for graffiti artists. As Wealz puts it in Da Juice, South Africa’s first hip-hop magazine: “You can paint whatever you want, wherever, whenever.”
He says the competition is not graffiti in the strict sense of the word, as the artists are confined to a full colour piece and are “doing it for the prize money”.
In their normal course of artistry, “these guys are angry, they destroy public walls”.
An essential feature of graffiti is its spontaneity. Though the entrants were given a maximum of two hours to paint their walls, Pak finished 30 minutes into the competition. Others made maximum use of the time. They had to think and paint on their feet.
Some graffiti artists are enhancing ugly urban landscapes, albeit illegally. And all are self-taught. Considering the time frames they usually work within and the darkness they lurk in, they are much more talented than they get credit for.
The competition took place as part of the second anniversary of Reality nightclub in Johannesburg the only venue in the city that supports hip-hop culture in its entirety.
For the graffiti artists the battle lines are neatly drawn. August 31
will see them slugging it out for the coveted graffiti artist of the month title at Reality.