ZORA Redux

One of the more common Tags along Robie Street and around Central Halifax is ZORA. As I reviewed some of the pieces that I had gone up to New Glasgow to see, I noticed the Tag ZORA there. Sure enough, even the Tags matched. Is Zora a student who came from the Antigonish area, and now goes to school here? One of the pieces there, done by PAX says "I write...for my Cru - ZORA, PUZO, PEZ, WELLU - PAX of AOD" (Army of Darkness). Sure enough - the ZORA Tag in Halifax also has the Crew Tag AOD with it on occasion - one and the same ZORA? - I think so.

Under The Bridge - Northwest Arm Drive

A quiet spot with concrete walls makes a great place to both make find good graffiti. Underneath the bridge on Northwest Arm Drive in Halifax is such a place, and the graffiti is great - as is the setting on Long Lake. Some of the usual Halifax Crew(s) are here - ADICT, FYPT, HEU5, ENDER and SLUGS, as well as many tags that are likely more local. To judge by the number of paint cans and rollers around, the site is dynamic, and wil be interesting to watch in warmer weather as the year passes by.

Wax On, Wax Off

Just like Mr Miyagi's instructions to his pupil in the Karate Kid, the lessons in fighting graffiti can seem pointless, repetitive, and not particularly rewarding on an individual level. It is suggested that graffiti should be removed or covered up as fast as possible to discourage the Tagger from continuing to vandalise. Of course to some Taggers, this likely represents a challenge - one person's obscured graffiti, may well be another's blank slate.

Help Me Thursday #4

Last week helpful comments decoded "SIAMER" from unrecognizable squiggles into a discrete and legible tag. This week I need help with one of the most common, and first tags I came across. It's the very loopy Tag I refer to as YOOPZ. I just can't shake the feeling that I'm misreading this one in a big way - What are your thoughts on what it actually says - let me know by leaving a comment.



And for those of you who breathlessly wait for new posts to appear (LOL) - check back Saturday - I'll have a spectacular new site for you.

Maynard and Gottigen Street Walk

Previously, I had reposted a letter from The Coast - bemoaning the vandalising of a neighborhood by the Tagger SAME. At the time I wondered where the author lived, as I had not noticed SAME vandalising personal private property too much. However, after a walk through the neighborhood around Creighton, Maynard, Cunard and Gottigen Streets, tucked in beside Citadel Hill, I think I know where the author of "More of the SAME" lives.

Although there is alot of very good graffiti - nice Pieces, witty Stencilling, and boldly coloured Outline Tags; BUT there is an amazing amount of tagging on houses, which is just plain old vandalism. This would be unfortunate anywhere, but is all the more so in this beautiful neighborhood, with its lovely, unique, coloured houses. The main offenders are the VA Crew (SAME, HEUS et al), ENDER, BOS, and the artless JEM (who is a pure vandal in the true sense of the word, without any apparent redeeming qualities in his/her graffiti).

Graffiti can brighten up dreary post-industrial landscapes, but defacing homes? - I have to agree with the Coast letter-writer - "Don't paint my neighbors' homes, fucking green bins, local businesses, sidewalks...any of it. Just don't. We are a COMMUNITY and one that is sick and tired of your shit" (Actually I thought the sidewalk pieces I saw were lovely...)

March Break Madness

Obviously I've been spending too much time with graffiti. This past week was March break in Nova Scotia, and after my wife and I had abandoned the kids while we worked all week, we had the opportunity to take them to
Clay Café to glaze some pottery. What did I make? A platter. The theme of the paint job? You guessed it - graffiti. A GRAFFITI PLATTER!

Mind you, I am pretty happy with how it turned out. A fun time was had by all.