Mar 16, 2010 Artifacts
Now, this is something that has always confused me about graffiti tags, is context. Typically, you tag to gain respect and visibility, especially if getting the tag up was a challenge. Hitting a spot like this must have been difficult and arduous. This isn’t exactly aerosol spraying an old subway car. He must have had to lug buckets of paint up to the rooftop and get to it as quick as he could.
So this was obviously more than a simple hit, this was intended as an urban art piece, as something typical of Banksy.
But it seems now “Pegleg’s” tag has been up here for quite a few years. What do people really think now when they see it? What makes that “brand” any different than any logo we see on billboards all over the city?
That’s where it really gets interesting. What happens to old artifacts like these when the people who made them get older, or become irrelevant? Do people still wonder who pegleg is? The whole communications goal with tagging is to gain visibility within taggers and artists in general. Solely self promotion in the purest way. So, once again; What do people gain when the “you” in the tag is forgotten?
I think about that every time I see graffiti.
Confession: As much as I don’t really like graffiti or “urban art” in general, the “e” mixed with the cent mark is a pretty clever character.