Articles Resilience and adaptability through institutionalization in grafti art: A formal aesthetic shift Tania Di Brita, Independent Researcher, Zurich - Switzerland [email protected] Abstract The subject of this paper is the institutionalization of grafti art. It examines the contextual and formal aesthetic shifts of grafti within the urban space to grafti art exhibited in art institutions. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate the adaptability and resilience of grafti art within an institutional framework conducted by formal aesthetic shifts within the art works. Grafti is always in the verge of the institution and seems challenging to integrate into the institutionalized framework. The signifcance and contextual change entering the white cube causes several efects such as neutralization, aestheticization and censorship. A formal aesthetic shift based within the art works will be demonstrated by fve detailed analyses. Finally, further efects such as reduction and abstraction processes as well as aestheticization and autonomy of the art works will be observed. Keywords: institutionalization, aestheticization, grafti, grafti art, white cube, institutions, neutralization, censorship, formal aesthetic shift, resilience, adaptability, urban references, tag, style writing, grafti code, abstraction 1. Introduction and main objectives between ‘street’ as the organic context of grafti and ‘insti- tution’ as its artifcial context illustrates the art historical inte- The fascination for grafti can be observed worldwide since rest in the research subject. The tension between the ‘outsi- its beginning. In the 1980s there were attempts to institu- de’ and ‘inside’ is intensifed by its site specifcity. Therefore, tionalize the urban phenomenon. At the same time, institu- the following core thesis regarding the formal aesthetic shift tions always had an ambivalent attitude towards the cryptic, arises: Through institutionalization and commercialization of rebellious and peculiar form of art from the very beginning. grafti art, a formal aesthetic change takes place. Thus a Nowadays this ambivalence is changing into a trend. Since formal aesthetic shift in studio based and institutional works 20061, institutions have been able to deal with grafti, street are obvious. Therefore, it should be asked how the aesthetic and urban art more intensively and with greater expertise, foundations of grafti in their traditional environment of ur- thus fnding their way into museums. The transformation of ban space difer and manifest in studio-based works created this unique art form from the urban to the institutional space for institutional space? Are there tendencies on a formal aes- creates an interesting tension that has aroused a personal thetic level that show the shift from the urban to the institu- and academic interest. tional context? The subject of this paper is the resilience and adaptability The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the adaptability through institutionalization of grafti art. It examines the con- and resilience of grafti art within an institutional framework textual and formal aesthetic shifts of grafti within the urban conducted by formal aesthetic shifts within the art works. By space to grafti art exhibited in art institutions. Urban space pointing out similarities between grafti art and recognized is the natural habitat for traditional grafti, whereas the ster- art historical genres, this thesis of adaptability and resilience ile and institutional framework or white cube ofers a place in and around institutional frameworks should be supported for contemplation of art and commercial sale. The distinction and fnally contribute to the academic legitimacy of this art 6 SAUC - Journal V4 - N2 Changing times: Resilience genre. Since the change of grafti from urban to institutio- cases their interaction as exemplifed in fgure 1. The main nal space is at the centre of the attention, the term ‘graf- diferences between grafti and street art lie in their form, ti’ is to be used exclusively for lettering sprayed freehand function and intention (Lewisohn, 2008: 18-23). On a formal with spray cans (mostly illegally) in the streets and in urban level, grafti means freehand lettering sprayed with spray space. For forms of grafti after entering art institutions and cans or markers in the streets, subways and in the wider exhibition spaces, will be called ‘grafti art’ according to urban space. Grafti is therefore based on words, letters, the explanations of Joe Austin and Heike Derwanz (Austin, writing as well as its stylisation and typography. In other 2001: 193-195; Derwanz, 2013: 199-203). Regarding the use words, pieces in the feld of grafti are basically bound to of the terms ‘institutionalization’ and ‘white cube’, it should fonts (Lewisohn, 2008: 18-23). Street art, on the other hand, be clarifed that the terms are used in general to refer to the serves a much freer and broader description, as Gabbert institutional framework.2 puts it, street art relies on characters, signs and symbols, whose visual language and imagery is illustrative, fexible, accessible and recognisable (Gabbert, 2007: 16). As a result, 1.1 - Grafti code: semiotics, rules and hierarchies all those interventions in urban space that are bound to fgure The boundaries between street art, grafti and grafti art are belong to street art. On a material level, the diferences are not clearly defned. Because this paper analyses only grafti just as clear. As the piece in fgure 1 shows, grafti writers based art works, a short and preliminary distinction between only use spray cans or markers. Street artists use a much grafti and street art regarding the main concerns of this wider range of materials and techniques, such as, spray paper should be made. First of all, important contributions paint, stencils, posters, installations and many more.3 Their that have been devoted in particular to this border area formal distinction therefore leads to its diferent functions should be pointed out, such as Gabbert, 2007: 15-17; and intentions. While in grafti the codes are difcult to Lewisohn, 2008: 15-23; Reinecke, 2007, 13-17; Waclawek, decipher, they usually address a few insiders of the local 2012: 112- 155. Furthermore, a difculty in the distinction grafti scene or specifc crews. Street Art, on the other hand, of grafti and street art, is their coexistence and in some is very accessible and aims to connect with a large audience. Fig. 1: D*Face, Dog Tag, 2010, stencil and tags on wall, Ecuador. 7 SAUC - Journal V4 - N2 Changing times: Resilience Artist Faile explains this diference: two or more crews (Zolle, 2009: 78-79; Macdonald, 2001: 204-215). Aesthetically and hierarchically speaking grafti cannot be summed up in a couple of sentences. A profound “Street art is more about interacting with the au- research on the aesthetics, hierarchies and rules of grafti dience on the street and the people, the masses. can be found in Nancy Macdonald (2001) as well as Craig Grafti isn’t so much about connecting with the Castleman (1986).5 masses: It’s about connecting with diferent crews, Grafti codes are difcult to decode, which is why they usu- it’s an internal language, it’s a secret language. Most ally only address a few insiders of the local grafti scene grafti you can’t even read, so it’s really contained or specifc crews. “Grafti doesn’t have any message for within the culture that understands it and does it. the general public. It’s for an elite group of people. If peo- Street Art is much more open it’s an open society.” ple want to understand it, they have to work hard to enter (Lewisohn, 2008: 15). the language of grafti. Public art is the opposite.” (Crew Against People, in: Lewisohn, 2011: 160). This short quote Nevertheless, grafti and street art have some common as- from the Prague artist collective Crew Against People (CAP) pects, such as illegality, gaining fame, broad dissemination states an important issue in the nature of grafti. Due to the of their pieces or tags and thus their aim for recognition. inaccessibility of symbols and coded language, grafti has Both art forms are integrated into their local context and no intention of reaching a large mass, which distinguishes it space. Grafti and street art pieces are often autonomously also from street and public art (Lewisohn, 2008: 15). Some produced and fnanced, do not have a commercial aim and of the main elements of grafti include illegality, opposition are freely accessible (Lewisohn, 2008: 15; Jaccard, 2012: 29 to the system, inherent aesthetics as in style writing as well and Gabbert, 2007: 16). as context and site specifcity (Stahl, 2002: 107-108). Based on these fundamental principles of grafti, it seems almost “Grafti writing is an activity completely reliant on the tag. impossible to think about the exhibition of grafti art in art Love it or loathe it, we have to accept that the tag is the institutions. core of grafti, and a grafti writer without a tag wouldn’t be a grafti writer.” (Lewisohn, 2008: 21) The semiotics, rules In brief, traditional grafti has developed its own terminolo- and hierarchies of traditional grafti as well as the fundamen- gy, which does not originate from “traditional” fne arts. The tal aesthetic “codes” play an important role when analyzing unique system of signs and symbols, regulations and hierar- studio based grafti art works in the institutional space. The chies that grafti developed, could mostly and only be deco- decoding of contemporary grafti art is thus based on the ded by insiders of grafti culture. The peculiarity of its semio- verbal, visual and aesthetic principles and traditions that tics, regulations, hierarchies and goals makes accessibility, emerged in the streets of New York in the 1970s and 1980s. understanding, decoding and acceptance for outsiders very As the quotation above says, in the beginning was the tag. difcult. As demonstrated in this short section dedicated to The tag is s cryptic, calligraphic and monochrome lettering grafti in the streets, it becomes clear, that there are challen- that is considered the elementary form of all grafti (Jaccard, ging and heavy connotations accompanying it.