Civil Sphere Binaries in Street Art

Alina Secrest

This photo depicts graffiti art being displayed inside a formal art gallery, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. This imagery contradicts the typical connotations of graffiti art and its's stark contrast to art institutions as places that hold fine art. This specific exhibit was a display of New Orleans graffiti from the Tob Mob group in an attempt to give one of the oldest art forms respect. By placing so-called vandalism in a fine art space, it forces viewers to rethink the complexity of street art by analyzing it through a fine art lens. The dismissal of graffiti art as fine art is a representation of Alexander's civil sphere. A key aspect of the idea of the civil sphere is its binary of those who deserve to be a part of society, and those who do not - the good vs bad, or sacred vs profane. In the art world, graffiti artists are not only excluded from formal art institutions, but societally frowned upon, with nationwide efforts to "clean up" graffiti and stop desecrating civilized areas. Because these artists are "uncivilized", many believe graffiti art is not real art. When this line is drawn between these different types of artists, negative codes are attributed to graffiti artists across all three levels described in the civil sphere. Their motives are seen as irrational and wild as opposed to fine artists' reasonable and self-controlled motives. On a relational level they can be construed as conspiratorial, calculating, and secretive because of the illegal nature of graffiti, while fine artists who work within societal boundaries are honorable and deliberative. Finally, institutionally, graffiti artists are seen as self-serving, and loyal to each other, as opposed to the rule-regulated professional artists. Overall, graffiti is not seen as real art, and artists are associated with the outskirts of society, with the only "real" artists existing within lasting institutions like art academies and museums. 

    However, this binary is reflective of much more than simply art styles - the people who partake in these different art forms are divided along the same lines by class. Those who can become elite fine artists must have the economical background to have spare time to practice, attend art school, visit museums, and pay museums to host their works. On the other hand, graffiti artists typically come from a lower socioeconomic status because they don't have those resources or opportunities. The kinds of neighborhoods that have abundant graffiti are also usually poorer areas. This split leaves these negative coded descriptors to be associated not just with graffiti artists, but with poor people in general, making the in-group of the civil sphere defined by wealthy people, and excluding poor people because of these negative traits they supposedly have.

Works Cited

Alexander - The Civil Sphere (chapter 4)

Pelican Bomb. “Everything Dies: Graffiti from the Street to the Gallery.” Pelican Bomb, 22 June 2016, http://pelicanbomb.com/art-review/2016/everything-dies-graffiti-moves-from-the-street-to-the-gallery.