Dynamic Street Art

by G.H.

One day I was driving down Shelton McMurphey Blvd. when suddenly my attention was directed to the side of the road. I pulled over and saw a series of plywood boards, clearly positioned together as a group, filled with graffiti. I was amazed by what I saw. The boards, aligned as billboards along the side of a highway, were popping with color and depth. As I got out of my car to take a closer look, I began to see the multiple layers of spray paint covering the wood surface. After a moment, I started to realize that this area was designed by the city of Eugene as a safe place for street art to be done. This is what makes this place special and worthy of documentation.

The first thought that came to mind as I stood there observing everything around me was the intended audience. Its placement, between downtown and Skinner’s Butte, is directed toward local residents and drive-by tourists. Its proximity to other scenic sites in the city brings up the concept of automigration. Even though the work is not moving itself, its placement along the side of a road, where vehicles are constantly going back and forth, makes the pieces visible to a larger audience. Another factor is the road, which acts a liminal space between Skinner’s Butte and downtown. As I wandered around observing different works of street art one in particular grabbed my attention. The piece that I’m referring to is captured above. What appealed to me was its classic “Wild Style” look. This was the only piece that had the traditionally hard to read letters and bright neon colors associated with early graffiti, seen on New York City commuter trains. In my opinion this piece was the hardest and most time consuming of all the works found in this sanctioned graffiti zone.

The reason I choose this spot, and decided to document it through pictures, was its relation with the city. Unlike most of the street art that people see around Eugene, this is legal. This spot was designated by the city to be used as a canvas for the street artists. This begs the question: does this spot represent the city’s embrace of the street arts or, is it a means of reducing the amount of unsanctioned graffiti seen around the city? Is the city actual taking interest in the street arts, or are they attempting to protect the private property of residents and business owners from vandalism? Whatever the city’s intent was, it is, nevertheless, a refreshing and legal display of graffiti. Now the street art community of Eugene has a safe environment to display their work. This is particularly helpful to the younger artists, who no longer have to “hide in the light,” while expressing themselves through graffiti.