Case Study - Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project

This case study examines how a public art project’s collaborative and joint authorship dynamics support young artists in building artistic agency and status. It specifically references the 2017 iteration of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project.

The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project is a collaborative public art project based in Belgrave, an outer eastern suburb of Melbourne. This case study begins by historically contextualising the practice of graffiti and street art, followed by a brief account of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project’s foundation story. A discussion around the collaborative and joint authorship dynamics that are mainly responsible for the building of artistic agency and status, in this case, completes the study.

Graffiti practices date back to antiquity with inscriptions found on the walls of houses and temples, in streets and marketplaces, in amphitheatres and on objects in ancient sites of Rome, the Egyptian desert and the Syrian Euphrates.[1] The discovery of these ancient renderings reveal much about the life and times of early civilisations and are regarded as important historical artefacts. Historian Peter Keegan refers to these ancient renderings as informal or non-official texts communicating the thoughts and feelings of the people of these distant places and times.[2] For historians like Keegan, these informal or non-official texts present social, cultural and artistic perspectives that are often outside the traditional worldview of literary, documentary and material sources.[3] Like ancient forms of graffiti, modern-day graffiti (and its even more recent creative counterpart, street art) can be viewed as informal texts and renderings, producing important artefacts that expand our contemporary worldview. Again, these texts and renderings represent societal perspectives that are often outside the purview of traditional, contemporary discourse.

Modern-day graffiti emerged as a distinct creative genre in the mid-twentieth century. From the late 1960s, street writing became popular amongst inner-city youth in Philadelphia and New York. The first modern graffiti writer is widely considered to be Cornbread, a high school student from Philadelphia who in 1967 started tagging city walls to get the attention of a girl.[4] Roger Gastman and Caleb Neelon, co-authors of The History of American Graffiti, argue that young people were (and still are) key players in shaping the contemporary graffiti movement.[5] Since the 1960s, graffiti and street art practices have developed as oppositional subcultures in urban centres worldwide, expanding into the mainstream through commissioned murals and widespread promotion.[6] The inclusion of graffiti in music video clips and books in the early 1980s and its relationship with the broader cultural and artistic movement of Hip Hop encouraged the practice around the globe, amplifying its agency and status as a form of cultural and creative expression. Around the same time, galleries began to showcase graffiti as artwork. Today collectors pay large sums of money for graffiti-style artworks. A well-known documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop, based around infamous British graffiti artist Banksy, was nominated for an Oscar in 2011, attesting to the growing aesthetic interest in graffiti practices. Its contemporary practice and popularity have been significantly shaped by the advent of mobile digital technologies and social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Graffiti writers and street artists have enthusiastically taken to social media, using it as a means of documenting, sharing, and distributing images of their work.[7]

Contemporary understandings of graffiti describe mark-making in public spaces, including simple tags to intricate, large-scale letter-based murals. The activity engages a range of media, practitioners, styles, settings and intentions. Graffiti is often conflated with street art, an extended practice taking hold in the 1990s. However, despite often being used interchangeably, the two terms and practices have distinctly different histories and characteristics. For instance, graffiti is regarded as a more rebellious illegal practice, often associated with vandalism, while street art is often legally sanctioned and makes what academic Lachlan MacDowall refers to as “a clearer claim to aesthetic value”[8] due to its more recognisable pictorial rendering. Street art has also become an umbrella term for a broader range of creative and cultural practices in urban spaces across the globe. For example, guerilla sculpture, a practice developed in England in the late twentieth century, involving placing sculptures in street settings without official approval.[9] Another example is yarn bombing, a street art practice that installs crocheted and knitted works within community settings, again without official permission. Yarn bombing arguably originated in the United States in 2005 when Texan shop owner, Magda Sayeg, placed a knitted doorknob cosy on her shop door.[10] Since then, graffiti knitting and crocheting has become an artistic and activist practice within communities worldwide. These installations are often driven by feminist actions aimed at subverting ideas of the feminine and women as homemakers.[11]

In Australia, the graffiti movement began flourishing around the mid-1980s. The practice found a willing audience in teenagers, and by the late-1980s, graffiti had established its presence within all major Australian cities.[12] Despite widespread initial condemnation as vandalism and early resistance, graffiti and its more widely accepted spinoff street art have attracted significant appreciation and participation. Today, Australian cities and towns, primarily Melbourne and regional Victoria, view street art (and to some extent graffiti) as an influential community practice and a valuable cultural asset. tbC’s Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project is an example of this community practice, and like its counterparts, has become a significant community and cultural asset.

Blacksmiths Way is a laneway running for about half a kilometre behind tbC’s former Belgrave studio. The Belgrave township includes the usual collection of shops, cafes and an end-of-the-line train station. This train line connects eastern suburbs to and from Melbourne and has a long history of graffiti along its path. Graffiti and street art sites are carefully chosen for their visibility. Even though Blacksmiths Way is not a main thoroughfare, it is visible from the trains arriving and departing Belgrave. This visibility is an enviable sub-cultural benefit of the site as graffiti and street artists hold much stock in the train ride perspective of their work. The site is also visible from hillside vantage points leading into Belgrave from the south. Despite this intermittent visibility, the site is still an outlying zone. Graffiti and street artists operate within this space with relative impunity. Local government, small businesses and building owners always have (whether they like it or not) shared this laneway with graffiti and street artists. All stake a claim on the site – the council via its community governance powers, building owners by acquisition, retailers by owner-occupier or tenancy agreements and the graffiti/street artists by cultural appropriation.

Residents and visitors often use Blacksmiths Way as a shortcut to the local train station and other parts of the township. Recreational and dog walkers and cyclists also regularly pass through the space. In the years before tbC activated the site, Blacksmiths Way had languished, becoming a dumping ground for rubbish, a hotspot for drug dealing and a refuge for homeless community members. The rear walls of the shops backing onto the laneway were also overgrown with ivy, making them less attractive and accessible to taggers or painters. When tbC realised the potential the laneway held, the group began tidying it up. Dumped rubbish was removed, overgrown ivy obscuring suitable wall surfaces was cut back and funding for paint was sourced. As tbC started to paint the walls along Blacksmiths Way, community members began using it in greater numbers. This increased use was partly because tbC’s activation of the laneway had made the site feel safer and more welcoming and partly because locals wanted to view the artworks created. This more frequent use further reduced the anti-social behaviour going on at the site. The drug dealing abated, fewer homeless people were sleeping rough in the space, and the rubbish dumping almost stopped completely. This interest in the site resulted in a growing arts audience, bringing a newfound artistic agency and status to the painters making works in the space. tbC has met many of the users of the laneway while painting in Blacksmiths Way. All have been positive about the artistic activation of the site. Even though many of the works are unreadable ‘pieces’,[13] the community is impressed with the creativity demonstrated and enjoy the colourful and graphic enhancement of the walls. They understand the site is a back lane (not the front face of the township) and appreciate the effort taken to enhance it visually. This anecdotal evidence is gleaned during the making of the works along Blacksmiths Way. While not solicited, this in-practice knowledge constitutes valuable informal data, supporting this study's observational arguments. As the project is a durational one, this data is recurring and evaluative. Academic Barbara Bolt argues that this kind of data supports the explication of tacit knowledge. As tacit knowledge is harder to make manifest from a distance, this embedded and experiential perspective adds a unique perspective to the study of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project.[14]

As the painting of Blacksmiths Way gained momentum, other graffiti and street artists swung past to ‘remind’ tbC that the space was already claimed. There is a profoundly territorial culture within the graffiti and street art world. Although tbC had reinvigorated the space and had enough young artists to paint all the walls, the group understood that they needed to connect and coordinate with the original painters of the site to ensure the project wasn’t disrupted. Artists were also genuinely excited about working with these original crews and sharing the space with them. Over the next couple of years, tbC artists met three generations of graffiti and street artists who have painted in the laneway, many of whom now join in regularly refreshing the site. These artists and crews include Upwey’s SDM (Sleep Deprived Maniacs/Shutting Down Melbourne/Size Does Matter/So Damn Mad), Belgrave’s PBP (Puffing Billy Posse) and DVATE, another SDM painter. Other graffiti artists like OG23, Steve Cross, Mikey xxi and Dukey Grimo also paint the laneway. A senior member of SDM invited DABSMYLA along one day. DABS and MYLA are also original members of SDM but currently live and work in Los Angeles. They have since developed an international street art career and reputation. The way DABSMYLA talk about how their shared design language dictates their process and subject matter[15] very much characterises the way tbC engages in creatively developing Blacksmiths Way. Discovering DABSMYLA’S collective working process has supported the articulation of tbC’s shared artistic practices.

Works along Blacksmiths Way are left undamaged for extended periods, sometimes up to a year. When tags start to appear on works, the site is refreshed. tbC often locates a tagger and invites them to join the project more officially. This connection has resulted in several young men and women avoiding criminal charges as they are productively engaged in a semi-sanctioned[16] practice. Experience has revealed that wider respect for the site ensues if The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project includes graffiti and street artists from neighbouring suburbs. Taggers generally don’t tag the works they are involved in making or affiliated with. Again, this anecdotal evidence is gleaned during the making of artworks and through the community and artistic relationships the project builds over time. To reiterate, while not solicited, this in-practice knowledge constitutes valuable informal data, which supports these observational arguments.

Since 2013, tbC has guided the site’s relational and cultural aspects, resulting in a project that includes a cross-generational collection of painters producing a substantial body of work together. This positive and productive relationship has been influenced by tbC’s egalitarian culture of governance and the freedom the group allows for the project to morph and mould in natural and unstructured ways. The collective spirit that defines The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project is as significant an achievement as the body of work itself – both of which tbC artists are very proud of. This collective spirit also significantly underpins the building of artistic agency and status for tbC’s young artists. While The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project accommodates solo and group authorship, overall, the activation of the site reflects a communal effort. The general public doesn’t know who painted what, and works often flow into each other, sometimes without a discernible start and finish. Many spaces are painted by several artists together and, because of the limited space, many artworks overlap each other. This joint effort, and the alter-ego mode of expression intrinsic to graffiti and street art practices, supports a community of artists who find agency and status in a shared space.

Graffiti and street art practices are generally anonymous (or at least semi-anonymous), mainly due to the often unauthorised nature of the act. Aestheticised lettering operates as a pseudonym for graffiti writers who want to display their persona across public spaces while maintaining certain anonymity so as not to get caught by police. The illegibility of this lettering is part of this contrived anonymity. Those close to the writer usually know their identity. However, the graffiti artists’ overarching goal is to create an alter ego or secret identity that supports ongoing illicit practice. The display of this identity is quite performative in both its radical intention and covert execution. This alter-ego is not unlike the performative example of a stage name or a radio personality’s DJ handle. One could also argue that the graffiti writer experiences a similar buzz on presenting their tag or work to the public to the buzz experienced by a stage or media performer. While the audience is not often present during the writing or painting of graffiti or street artwork, the works have ongoing visibility and community reception.

Despite graffiti often being seen as a significant social problem requiring substantial public resources in policing, cleaning and diversionary programs, many cities worldwide, including Melbourne, ascribe positive value to graffiti practices – and to an even greater degree, street art practices. Many consider street art (and even graffiti) as a contemporary art form, even an art movement. As MacDowall argues, graffiti and street art practices demonstrate the skills of artists and the importance of cultural vitality.[17] The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project has made a significant cultural impact on the township of Belgrave and surrounding communities, as the images and videos included throughout this website attest. One of the best ways to characterise the success of this project and the artistic agency and status it delivers is to repeat a passing comment made by a leading Melbourne graffiti and street artist. While painting in Blacksmiths Way, the street artist said that the project was reminiscent of the early days of Melbourne’s now-famous Hosier Lane and could end up as an outer suburban equivalent. This association was a huge compliment and a timely endorsement of the artistic agency and status the project was building. This comment is not an isolated one. Many locals also point out that there are increasing numbers of tourists visiting Belgrave to experience the site. This growing profile has been incredibly inspiring and validating for young tbC artists.

The notoriety of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project has also resulted in several exciting art commissions, two of which came from Melbourne Water and Victoria’s Department of Environment and Primary Industries. Both agencies wanted to creatively raise awareness about the fact that the drain systems around Belgrave and Melbourne allow significant amounts of rubbish to flow unfiltered into local river systems, negatively affecting habitat and water quality. tbC artists were engaged to produce two public street art projects that involved painting 10 and 25 drain lids with artworks that reminded the general public of this environmental concern. Both projects were high profile and well publicised, extending tbC artists significant artistic attention. Young tbC artists found the projects challenging but exciting, and many reflect on them as life-changing experiences. Watch the documentary videos tbC produced during these projects to see how high profile and empowering they were.

While The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project works within an aesthetic paradigm, as opposed to a youth development one, the naturally occurring social and welfare benefits are significant. An excellent example of this can be found in young Rohan’s experience of the project. A few years ago, Rohan found himself on the path towards a criminal record for graffiti offences. One day while painting, Rohan commented that he credits his experience of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project, along with his experience of the tbC studio and the opportunity to work collaboratively with other young artists in general, as saving him from a criminal record. However, Rohan emphasises that the project’s artistic focus inspires him the most and that positive social and outreach benefits naturally flow from his artistic focus and don’t need overemphasising. Today, Rohan is one of the Project’s key artist-mentors. Other young artists take on leadership roles from time to time, which everyone makes room for. Positive mentoring flourishes within The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project. Older artists guide younger artists by sharing their graffiti and street art experiences and demonstrating techniques as they paint together. This in-practice learning significantly boosts the young artist’s confidence, supporting their ongoing creative expression and development of artistic agency and status. Significant peer mentoring also goes on during the painting of Blacksmiths Way, which is evidenced in the extensive documentary film and photography housed throughout this website.

As the scale and visibility of The Blacksmiths Way Graffiti and Street Art Project have developed, so has the level of community support it receives. This support, coupled with the participation of high-profile collaborating artists, has leveraged the project significant attention and praise. Today, the project’s reputation extends well beyond its community site of Belgrave, delivering the young artists involved considerable artistic agency and status. At the time of writing this case study, tbC was in discussion with the Yarra Ranges Council and community and trader stakeholders in Belgrave to refresh the Blacksmiths Way site. tbC artists are very excited about this next evolution of the project and the opportunity to build even more artistic agency and status.

Read the Art of Conversation (Digital) case study
Read the Art of Conversation (Gallery) case study
Read the Hoodie Mag case study

[1] J A Baird and Claire Taylor, Ancient Graffiti in Context, (London: Routledge, 2001), 1.
[2] Peter Keegan, Graffiti in Antiquity, (London: Routledge, 2014), preface.
[3] Jennifer Baird and Claire Taylor, Ancient Graffiti in Context, (London: Routledge, 2001), 1.
[4] Tagging is a nickname for an identifying mark or signature of a graffiti artist, executed with markers. See “10 Graffiti Terms and their Meaning,” Widewalls, accessed June 26, 2021, https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/10-graffiti-terms/piece.
[5] As noted in “The History of American Graffiti: From Subway Car to Gallery,” PBS News Hour: Canvas Arts, March 31, 2011, 3:25 pm, EDT https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/the-history-of-american-graffiti-from-subway-car-to-gallery; Roger Gastman and Caleb Neelon. The History of American Graffiti. New York: Harper Design, 2011.
[6] Jeffrey Deitch, Roger Gastman and Aaron Rose, Art In The Streets (New York: Skira Rizzoli, 2011).
[7] Christopher Honig and Lachlan MacDowall, “Audience Constructed Genre with Instagram: Street Art and Graffiti,” First Monday, 21, no. 8 (2016), https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v21i8.6810; MacDowall and Poppy de Souza. “‘I’d Double Tap That!!’: Street Art, Graffiti, and Instagram Research.” Media, Culture & Society 40, no. 1 (January 2018): 3–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443717703793.
[8] Lachlan MacDowall, Significant Street Art Project: Research Paper for the Arts and Culture Division of City of Melbourne in Partnership with Heritage Victoria (Melbourne: City of Melbourne, October 2011), 6.
[9] Sisko, “Guerilla Sculpture: Free Speech and Dissent,” Sculpture Review, 2015, 64 (2): 26–35, https://journals.sagepub.com/action/showCoverGallery?journalCode=srx.
[10] Alyce McGovern, “Knit One, Purl one: The Mysteries of Yarn Bombing Unravelled,” The Conversation, March 6 2014, https://theconversation.com/knit-one-purl-one-the-mysteries-of-yarn-bombing-unravelled-23461.
[11] Ibid.
[12] MacDowall, “Graffiti Down Under,” Artlink 34, No. 1, (March 2014), https://www.artlink.com.au/articles/4103/graffitidownunderground/.
[13] The graffiti term ‘piece,’ short of masterpiece, is used to describe a large, complex, time-consuming and labour-intensive graffiti painting, usually painted by skilled and experienced writers. It is generally agreed that a painting must have at least three colours to be considered a graffiti piece, but pieces often incorporate colour transitions, shadows and three-dimensional effects. See, “10 Graffiti Terms and Their Meaning,”; Gregory J. Snyder, Graffiti Lives: Beyond the Tag in New York’s Urban Underground, (New York: New York University Press, 2009), 24.
[14] Barbara Bolt, “A Performative Paradigm for the Creative Arts?” Working Papers in Art and Design 5, School of Culture and Communication - Research Publications (2008), http://hdl.handle.net/11343/29737; Bolt, “A Non-Standard Deviation: Handlability, Praxical Knowledge and Practice Led Research,” Speculation and Innovation: Applying Practice-Led Research in the Creative Industries, (2006): 12. https://www.academia.edu/939331/A_Non_Standard_Deviation_handlability_praxical_knowledge_and_practice_led_research. A comment inspired by these sources.
[15] Dabs and Myla, “About Page,” accessed June 22, 2019, https://dabsmyla.com/about.
[16] tbC has not been given formal permission to paint Blacksmiths Way. However, tbC has the verbal approval and support of the local traders and owners of the painted rear shop walls. Once the project established itself, tbC received wider in-principle support and few impediments to continuing the project. At the time of this PhD submission, the Yarra Ranges Council and the Belgrave Traders Association were engaging tbC in discussions around more formal and funded support for the ongoing painting of Blacksmiths Way.
[17] MacDowall, Significant Street Art Project, 7.