Urban Art

The term urban art refers to a wide variety of art forms that are grouped together because they are created in city areas, depict city life, or make a statement about urban issues.

Urban art began as graffiti, which was the spray-painting of the sides of buildings, bridges, and other structures and was considered by many to be vandalism .

From its humble, controversial, and often illegal beginnings, urban art has grown into an art form that uses a wide variety of media and ranges from simple graffiti to publicly commissioned large-scale murals and sculptures.

Urban artists began by spray-painting words, symbols, and images to make public statements, artistic expressions, or, in the case of gangs, claim territory.

Many well-known urban artists have branched into more legitimate artistic endeavors to cash in on their success, like creating paintings on more traditional canvas media or creating sculptures that can be sold.

Many street artists have responded to the negative reputation of urban art as vandalism by using less permanent or temporary materials to create urban art.

Some cities are commissioning urban artists to create large-scale community murals on the blank sides of buildings or sculptural installations for use as a focal point and to celebrate city history and heritage.