11/5/2023 0 Comments Graffiti tagus’ thing.” But Lont doesn’t think Harrell succeeded in avoiding that opposition. Seattle muralist Crick Lont, the creator and “ curator” of the pop-up graffiti art space Dozer’s Warehouse, said he urged the Mayor’s office in a call the night before the press conference, “Don’t make it a ‘you vs. The mural was later covered in graffiti tags, but the neighborhood has plans to restore it. ![]() London-based artist D*face created “Careless Whisper,” a Roy Lichtenstein-style mural, in Belltown in 2018. Worse, they believe Harrell’s October press conference pitted the public against them. Many remain wary and feel left out of Harrell’s plan. While some in the graffiti community can get on board with Harrell’s goal to work with artists to create more street art, they say chasing after graffiti is a red herring distracting from the real issues of Seattle’s housing crisis and wealth inequality. Graffiti removal - also known as abatement or buffing - isn’t the answer, they say, and neither is more vigorous prosecution. In several interviews, graffiti writers (as the people who create graffiti call themselves) challenged the effectiveness of Harrell’s proposed solutions. The question is whether he can straddle this apparent contradiction. (Graffiti-style artwork made with permission is usually called “graffiti art” or “graffiti-style art.”) Harrell’s approach treats graffiti as a crime while also trying to enlist graffiti art into the mainstream. In its essence, graffiti is an act of spontaneous expression and transgression - meaning that graffiti is technically not graffiti when it’s allowed or invited. “For me, it is not healthy for any human being to deface someone else’s property.” “At the end of the day, I want a city, a Seattle we’ve mastered the art of expressing kindness toward one another,” Harrell said in an interview with Crosscut last month. Reports of graffiti, submitted by the public, have grown by more than 50% from 2019 to 2021, according to city data. Graffiti, Harrell said, detracts “from our city’s vibrancy,” costs small business owners and residents money to remove, and obscures street signage. The plan - which will include increased graffiti removal and prosecution - is already in motion, and will be rolled out fully this year. ![]() Harrell announced his “One Seattle Graffiti Plan” in late October, part of his larger goal to “ clean up” and “beautify” the city. The arrest grabbed headlines and the attention of the graffiti community, who saw it as a harbinger of Mayor Bruce Harrell’s new plan to battle graffiti. Just last month, the Seattle Police Department arrested a man alleged to be EAGER and charged him with a felony for painting on a privately owned Capitol Hill building without permission. Ferderer isn’t the only person battling EAGER, whose spray-painted name is visible all over the city.
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