Gang tags Graffiti and Art
Gang tags Graffiti, and Art may make some wince or gasp depending on which end they're at. For city dwellers, shop owners and councils, tags and graffiti are more like a plague than art. Certainly as fast as they are removed another rash appears, driving the people involved in the cleaning of them to distraction, and angering the people whose property it is. However I believe that there is room for good graffiti and that councils should make more space for budding kid artists and the pro' graffiti artists. The Gang tags Graffiti, on this page are from Bristol in the UK, some are definitely art and some are well, rubbish!. My mission for this Gang tags Graffiti page is to encourage young artists and their moms and dads to support them in their art endeavours in whatever form it takes them. Art connects us in ways that culture, politicians, religion and government policies cannot. Graffiti has a knack of addressing every aspect of life, love and politics and putting it out there for the whole world to see and not just those who get to go to gallerys. I Will keep adding information and art to this page and the other gallery pages as often as I can. Keep a eye on the Gang Gallery which has more art on display and the Twit Tweet Gallery which offers some of this unique and fleeting art on T Shirts. If you or one of yours is wanting more information on how to create graffiti art from stencils I have added a link to a great site that takes all newbies step by step through the process of creating great stencil art and how to get your art in and be gone again without being noticed! (practice on legal spaces first though) Stencil Graffiti Tutorial Onelegout
Gang tags Graffiti Meanings: Tags vary in meaning and intent. Some tags are just kids who are legends in their own minds practicing how to do their names with style and some essence of cool. These Tags and Gang Tags are the eyesore on walls picked at random for space (nothing quite like a freshly painted wall)or for messaging. Unfortunately it is this random tagging that most people refer to as Graffiti and give all Graffiti artists a bad name. It is a real sign of disrespect for anyone to tag over anothers art. Gang Banga tags usually depict an area in which they operate and are often found on any wall, street signs or shop shutters. of course any little beggar, that is a legend in his/her own mind as mentioned above. The graphic above illustrates a tag that has other tags sprayed over the top of the original. Fortunatley the dappled light shining through the leaves softens it a touch.
The above example of Gang tags Graffiti, is pure vandalism of property and a waste of tax payers money as well as expensive for the owners to remove. We have to ask ourselves where these children get the money from, Mom and Dad?, Stealing, shop lifting? Or do mom and dad just hand out money willy nilly? To these parents I would like to say, take an interest in your children and help them find less destructive ways of expressing themselves and more interesting, energy busting hobbies.
Having said this I do still believe that some of these kids who enjoy the experimentation aspect of spray painting on walls may well have a little artist inside, and these children should be encouraged with alternative canvasses and paint spraying appliances. There is absolutely no harm in encouraging real graffiti art as long as it begins at home, in designated areas or in art classes. Gang tags Graffiti Mediums: These days there are many mediums available for graffiti artists and they range from stickers coloured in with various types of markers. These range from dobber markers with round sponge ends that hold a lot of ink or paint for drippy type styles. Wideline Montana markers, small rollers Xtra wide. Spray cans can be adapted by caps for fine lines, Fat caps that have larger holes for airbrush effect and for using on stencils.
The above graphic demonstrates not only agility but a great sense of humour, of course it is Banksy. Still, how on earth did he get the tide to obey and the waves to stop a rockin'?? Beginners may find that appliances can be quite expensive which means stickers and markers are probably the way to go until they get the perfect style they want. Another great way to practice style and perfecting it, is the use of canvasses, or their own parents walls for those who believe that other peoples walls are fair game! A lot of grafitti artists use stencils and spray paints, check out the link at the top of the page for an easy tutorial on creating stencils. (makes for a quick art attack and get away) and others even use paints in pots and conventional wall brushes. Canvasses are not all that expensive and they can be used as a blank wall for experimentation with spray paint cans, as well as conventional airbrush tools. It is also very easy to make
ones own canvasses and the advantage here is that they can be made to any size desired. This will allow for lots of Gang tags, and graffiti expression. I have specified two books on this page to get kids started and inspire them. The two books that I have chosen are for beginners and intermediates. But please note there are a lot of books and web sites on graffiti and airbrush. For books take a look on Amazon for, Banksy Wall and Piece In order to make canvasses, all that is needed is multi purpose glue, hardboard, [cut to specified dimensions], calico material cut to required dimensions [an inch or so bigger that the hardboard] and some white undercoat paint, plus two medium sized paint brushes. Cut the hardboard to specification and the calico. Cover the smooth surface of the board with the multi-purpose glue and the back edge all round. Lay the calico on top of the smooth surface and fold the edges around the back. Paint the glue on top of the calico as well. Allow to dry. When dry paint the surface with a normal white undercoat paint, allow to dry and paint again. Allow to dry and voila you have a canvass made to order. this is good for oils and spray paint. Note that if using spray paint, a mask is advisable and goggles.
Roof tops are not exempt from Gang tags Grafitti, and not even the bin escapes being blasted with paint, Bedminsters Technicolour Dream Bin?? The Gang tags Graffiti, displayed on this page comes from various Bristol artists and from the many kids with spray cans and too much time on their hands. 
Go To South-Africa Gangs & Graffiti
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This book would assuredly inspire any wannabe graffiti artist and perhaps inspire bored kids who leave their tags like a trail of bread crumbs as per Hansel and Gretel.
