Slashdot Mirror
Reverse Graffiti
glawrie writes "UK Graffiti artist 'Moose' thought he had come up with a perfect socially friendly approach to his art - to trade paints for cleaning fluid. An article in the UK's Independent Newspaper describes how he has created graffiti by taking '... any dirty inner-city wall or pavement, place a template over it, and scrub the concrete clean, revealing an image as sharp as any spray paint which fades with time.' Moose was commissioned by a subsidiary of drinks manufacturer Diageo to create some 'clean' graffiti in Leeds to promote their vodka brand Smirnoff to local students. However, this work was subsequently condemned by Gerry Harper, a Leeds councillor, as 'sheer vandalism'. With wonderful irony, the council demanded that the artist 'clean-up' the graffiti that appeared in one of the city's gloomiest underpasses. Maybe all those senseless vandals out there will now think twice in future before scrawling 'Clean Me' on the back of vehicles overdue for a wash... But perhaps the state is now going too far - surely it is only a matter of time before rainfall is similarly targetted by the good guys."
Brings new meaning to "Clean up your act!"
His parents must be regretting that wording now.
Disconnect and self-destruct, one bullet at a time.
Did he have a mobile phone in his back pocket when he did this? Am I missing the part that relates to nerds?
People really shouldn't be doing that anyway because it's very possible to scratch the finish on the car and do actual damage. Sure, it's not as bad as keying it, but it's still uncalled for.
Running your finger along a dirty window is going to scratch the finish? A little skin oil perhaps, but scratches? On what finish? The Mr. Clean Window Wax?
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
What do they mean by clean up?
And "Smirnoff has removed the offending work - not because of the legality of the threat but by "its own volition" it said." but how did he remove it?
Go dump more dirt on the place, or clean the rest up?
it's Feng Shui graffiti
"When life gives you lemons, don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back!" -- Cave Johnson
Maybe all those senseless vandals out there will now think twice in future before scrawling 'Clean Me' on the back of vehicles overdue for a wash...
I did that to the hood of my dad's old '63 Pontiac, which hadn't been washed in ages. Being a clever grrl, I used a rag dipped in Turtle Wax, so as not to be destructive.
Unfortunately, I didn't realize that the Turtle Wax would actually remove the dull surface of the paint, leaving the car forevermore to bear a (slightly bright) sign, quite legible from above, that read, "Wash me!"
My dad didn't kill me, obviously, nor did he take the hint. I guess I knew it was a forlorn hope, when he epoxied a chunk of plywood to replace the rusted-out floor in the front passenger seat.
He sure got his money's worth out of that car, though.
Lemon curry?
Why not provide a productive outlet for prospective artists?
Because that would be overly reasonable in a world dominated by unreason.
KFG
I'm sorry, we would show pictures but Microsoft already owns patents:
0 35,043,171
1,035,043,035
1,035,043,063
1,035,043,126
1,
for the art concerned.
And after you've got the car clean, you're not going to drive it ... that would subject the car to abuse. Better not photograph it either, the flash from the the camera could fade the paint. Better to just let someone paint a picture of your car, but dress them up in a bunny suit and have them breathe through a scuba regulater so your car is not subjected to breathed out contaminants.
People really shouldn't be doing that anyway because it's very possible to scratch the finish on the car and do actual damage. Sure, it's not as bad as keying it, but it's still uncalled for.
I figured out the soultion to this a long time ago. Just don't wash your car. Ever. Not only can you not see the scratches or small dents, but after awhile it is much too dirty for anyone to want to touch it. Kind of like the soot on the back of a bus. You don't see anwone writing in that do you?
I wonder if Smirnoff is an effective cleaner...
Dunno, send me a couple of assorted bottles of the red, blue and black and I'll road-test them for you and have a comparative review up by, oh, how's next friday sound?
Screw you all! I'm off to the pub
But which is preferable: having them shove their art in your face, or easily and cheaply providing a venue (well, just a big wall really)?
:-)
It's gotta be more effective than cleaning it up, sending the cops out after them, locking them up...
And who knows, a grafitti artist may even become a productive and creative member of society, instead of a drone who got busted for tagging once too often.
Everyone's happy
When they came for the communists, I said "He's next door. Take him away. Goddam commies."
If it was horribly dirty enough to write a message in once, it will be horribly dirty again. Then you won't be able to read any 'micro scratch' message.
On that subject, we just had a clear shower screen installed. When it fogs up, two letters (6a) can clearly be seen in it. NOTHING will remove it. Soap, alcohol, turps. Nothing.
When they came for the communists, I said "He's next door. Take him away. Goddam commies."
LEELA: Didn't you have ads in the twentieth century?
FRY: Well, sure, but not in our dreams. Only on TV and radio... and in magazines... and movies, and at ballgames, and on buses, and milk cartons, and T-shirts, and bananas, and written in the sky. But not in dreams, no sirree.
It's all a matter of perspective. You see, if IBM does it with chalk to promote Linux, it's good. But when Diageo does it with soap to promote Smirnoff, it's bad.
Gotta love the Slashdot ethos...
Don't blame me, I didn't vote for either of them!
Yeah, it's the official replacement for "could this be the year of the linux desktop?" which will not be back until next december. Didn't you get the memo?
Which is worse: ignorance or apathy? Who knows? Who cares?
I think Giuliani skit on SNL was the best solution. It was a Public Service Announcement claiming that rather than painting over graffiti tags, they would simply stencil "sucks" after the taggers name. For repeat offenders, they would use a professional artist and match the style.
-- Don't Tase me, bro!
Satan must be out shopping for ski pants.
My days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle...
Perhaps you should ask for more interesting places "designated" for art?
CAn'T CompreHend SARcaSm?
One can only wonder how many graffiti artists were lined up for the opening of the bridge to spraypaint "FP, bitches!!!111"
It would be cool if it didn't suck.
Taggers, on the other hand, just like to put their name on shit for whatever reason - territory marking or some sort of rush that comes from vandalizing things.
The description you're looking for is "pissing on fireplugs." That's all it is. Taggers are bladder-challenged dogs with spray cans.
Perhaps you should ask for more interesting places "designated" for art?
Wouldn't that be like asking all the flashers to do their thing down at a nude beach? Kinda defeats the purpose, doesn't it?
Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
I think it is quite clever creating a message by removing rather than adding.
Whether you perceive it as an advertisement or not seems irrelevant to me; it's brilliant to me because it's a message that doesn't actually exist. It's the lack of the existence that makes you perceive it.
So, please
"They said I probly shouldn't fly with just one eye," "I am Bender. Please insert girder."
Perhaps it's just the Brit jargon, but I just barely can understand what they're talking about in the article
What kind of Brit jargon exactly? I didn't read any in the article, unless it's use of "big" words such as indignant, municipality, unfathomable,volition and so on, confused you.
I use Friend/Foe + mod-point modifiers as a karma/reputation system.
I don't want to hear you complain, then, if some owner subjects the unwary "graffer" to the business end of their boot.
Maybe by "Brit jargon" he meant the English langauge...
Pink and green text is an option if you supply the pickled beetroot and asparagus spears.
When I am king, you will be first against the wall.
Here, let me help:
Something similar was done at Georgia Tech to the statue of Heisman.
Some studious student took bronze polish to the old statue, giving the man a nice shiny bikini.
Technically, they didn't damage the stature, just polished it selectively.
Eventually, Tech put some brown stuff over the bikini lines, but you can still see the outline of his previous selection if you look real close.
Oh my god, you artists are all alike... "the sheep" give me a break. Go lace up your Old Skool Adidas, put on your Oakleys, plug in your iPod and head down to Starbucks for a Caramel Macchiato already.
Here's the part you were missing: It's litter if it's on the ground, they can't prosecute someone for littering if they didn't see them do it. If you take that garbage and put it anywhere other than the trash bin, you littered. Cut and dry, doesn't matter if it was already there or not.
Another sadly misguided perception of "fundamentalist christian fanaticism". If you would rely on the source of christian beliefs (the bible - not google) you would see that yes, the Old Testament is a scarry book. It starts at the beginning of time and follows the heritage, lineage, and imperfections of God's chosen people - the Jews.
...you insensitive Clod.
The Old Testament is a historically accurate account of wars, kings, death, and life. It paints a portrait of a people who loved God, but could not adhere to His laws, and in need of a Messiah. Indeed, it would be frightful if anyone actually lived by the Old Testament, today. It calls for the sacrifice of animals as an atonement for sin - and the whole "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth" thing.
Fortunately, we fundamental christian fanatics do not live by the old testament. We live by the new testament. You know, the part where God sends his son to earth to die for the foriveness of sins... At that point in history (yes, Jesus' existance is a historically verified fact) a relationship with God became available to everyone. The laws were reduced from the massive list of micromanaged rules from the Old Testament, to two commands - love the Lord your God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as yourself.
These are the beliefs that are founding fathers based the laws of this country on. They were not based on "any religion that believes in a higher power", they were based on the God of the bible.
Hmmm, for some time I've thought that scrubbing off, sandblasting, or painting over graffiti is the wrong way to go -- it just leaves a tempting blank field for the next vandal. Much better to grab a can of paint and throw random splashes over the mess. I think it makes a powerful statement.
P.S. no vigilantism, please; only spoil stains on walls that you personally own.
When I first looked at the first photo, there's a sign on the left that reads "Report Suspicious Activity".
I thought, "Oh neat, they're parodying the whole paranoia thing. It's neat how they made it look like LED lights, too."
Then I saw the sign you were talking about was on the right.
The "Report Suspicious Activity" sign is real.
Karma: Chevy Kavalierma.
Using a key to gouge expletives on another's vehicle is a sign of trust and friendship.
-Inignot