The Legal Wall

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There are very few or no other articles that link to this one.
Please help introduce links in articles on related topics. After links have been created, remove this message.
This article has been tagged since November 2006.
This article may need to be wikified to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please help improve this article, especially its introduction, section layout, and relevant internal links. (help)

The Legal Wall is a wall in Rochester, New York where graffiti is permitted.

Location The “Legal Wall” is located off of North Goodman Street just north of University Avenue, across the street from the Memorial Art Gallery. Not far behind the Village Gate you can find the Legal Wall. Bordering the parking lot of the Village Gate and directly visible from the wall is the Goodman Street Yard, a railroad switching station. The walls location is relatively safe; however it is not far from some rundown areas.

Purpose Also known to the local graffiti artists as “Shanty Town,” the wall serves as a place where artists can spray paint without any legal repercussions. The property is made up of aging rundown buildings that are currently used as artist studios as well as practice spaces for local bands. The name “Legal Wall,” stems from the agreement between the artists and the landlord of the site. The owner of the property has granted permission to the artists to adorn the walls span with colorful graffiti, just as long as they do not go beyond the limits and “tag” the neighboring business buildings.

Ultimately, instances of stray graffiti in Rochester are not as bad as some other cities that do not have this kind of legal spot in effect. This type of subversive agreement has become a great outlet for artistic expression. The contents of the wall are constantly changing, in which the artists “buff” out one another’s pieces to make room for new work. One week the wall will look completely different from the next, and this is what makes it such a wonderful and dynamic place to visit.

Background The word graffiti is derived from the Greek word γραφειν (graphein), meaning ”to write”. As an art form it allows individuals to express their own social, political, and creative ideas. In most cases, graffiti is the only way for these individuals to deliver their messages. Indulged in by many, this art form continues to flourish across continents and cultures to serve as an outlet for artistic aggression in oppressive societies. The existence of the Legal Wall supplements this artistic technique by creating a place to learn, create, share, and develop new ideas and practices.

Participation In some cases, many people participate and contribute to the vivid graffiti murals. Other times, the lone wolf sprays to its hearts content until the can runs dry. The walls are metaphorically an open forum of discussion, in which any participant can discuss (paint) whatever they feel is relevant to the topics or themes that are presented by other artists. Oftentimes, it can be seen that various “conversations” and messages are being delivered from artist to artist.


This graffiti related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../t/h/e/The_Legal_Wall_8947.html"