University of Amsterdam

Behind the tag: A journey with the graffiti writers of European walls

Silvia Pietrosanti
Master Thesis MSc European Communication Studies Graduate School of Communication Supervisor: Linda Duits Amsterdam, 7 t h of June2010

Table of contents
Acknowledgments.. IV Preface. V

1. Introduction 1 1.1 Research Topic... 1 1.2 Problem Formulation..1 1.3 An introduction to the graffiti subculture.. 2 1.4 Societal and academic relevance. 5 1.5 Chapter outline 7

2. Theoretical Framework: Behind subcultures. 8 2.1 Introduction....................................................... 8 2.2 Subcultures..... 8 2.3 Subcultures as a form of protest. 9 2.4 Youth and masculinit y as main actors in subcultures.. 12 2.5 Subcultures as a pursuit of identit y and identification 14 2.5.1 Belonging and performance.17 2.6 Subcultural capital as a means for achieving identit y affirmation 19

3. Methods 22 3.1 Research Design22 3.2 Participant Observation.. 23 3.3 In-depth semi-structured interviews . 24 3.4 The sample .25 3.5 The role of the researcher27 3.6 Ethical considerations..27 3.7. Data anal ysis 28 3.8 Qualit y of this research...28

II

4.Results.31 4.1 Introduction..31 4.2 I tag, therefore I am 32 4.3 Affirming the self37 4.4 Territory... 41 4.4.1 Over the borders... 44 4.5 The crew.. 46 4.5.1Group identit y performance. 47 4.6 Illegalit y.. 51 4.6.1 Dont tell me I can do it!.................................................... 53 4.7 The blank message of graffiti.. 55 4.7.1 Audience 56 4.8 The beginnings 59 4.8.1 Keep it going. 60 4.9 Commitment. 62 4.10 Conclusive thoughts. 65

5. Conclusions................................................................................... 67 5.1 Introduction. 67 5.2 An extensive answer: combining theory and results 68 5.3 Theoretical implications 74 5.4 Methodological reflections 75 5.5 Future research 76

Glossary.78 Bibliography.79 Appendix 1 : Topic list for Semi-structured interviews.84

III

Acknowledgments
This thesis has been a long and sometimes painful project. It was hard to keep the motivation high the all time. Therefore, I would like to thank all the people that contributed to its realization. First of all, thanks to m y supervisor Linda Duits for her directions and encouragement. Special thanks go to Barbara for her countless advises and for cheering me up when things were not working out as I wished. Thanks to Patrik and Alessandra for being always there and providing support and self confidence when I was loosing it. Thanks to m y flatmates Pietro and Vincenzo for waking me up in the morning and tolerating m y stress. M y sincere thanks go to Philippa for being such a good friend and for carefull y correcting my English together with Gail. I could not have written this thesis without m y library buddies Stefan, Sonja, and Francesca. Thanks to Jort for putting me in contact with several writers at the beginning of this research. Thanks to m y parents and m y grandmother for their love and their support without which I could not have been able to finance this master and m y staying in Amsterdam. Thanks to m y sister Giorgia, Thomas and m y friends in Ital y for the numerous msn motivational chats. M y biggest thanks, though, go to all the writers that shared their secret stories and took me in their world. They are: Renok, Hero, Philo, Raw, Edge, Luther, Hirock, Mirics, Mars, Twice, Gear, Some, Revs, Aso.

IV

Preface
Ive been always fascinated b y graffiti on the streets. I come from a town close to Rome, and I have often travelled b y train to follow classes for m y previous studies. The railings were so intense with writings that I could not stop wondering what was behind these written names, what they actuall y meant. Graffiti subculture does not share its stories, but I was sure that what was written on the walls would reveal something about the lives and relationships of those who wrote them; however, for long time I had forgotten about that investigation. The question of graffiti crossed m y mind again last year, during a class named Subcultures and Lifest yles when I had to pick one subculture to discuss in a final paper. I chose the graffiti subculture so that I could finally explore what was going on in the minds of the people standing behind those tags. However, after reading for that paper, m y interest for that subculture grew extensivel y, and I was eager to know more and find out about areas that were left undressed b y previous studies. What I really wanted to do was go into that field and experience these things that were only theoreticall y described and write m y thesis to give a voice to the graffiti writers. Since most of the studies were centred in the United States, I wanted to look at the subculture from a European perspective. Amazed b y the job done b y Nancy Macdonalds in London and New York (2001), I decided to explore the graffiti scenes in Rome and Amsterdam.

1. Introduction 1.1 Research Topic

Hero, Raw, Twice, Renok. These and countless other names are written repeatedl y b y invisible hands on walls, subways, trains, trucks, bike baskets, and roofs all over every cit y. It is almost impossible to catch a graffiti writer painting a piece, however new marks of colour appear each morning in incredibl y visible spots. People may say it is vandalism, art or addiction. Though, do we ever question who these phantoms of the night are and what these writings stand for? This thesis is about the graffiti subculture. Graffiti is almost everywhere in the contemporary urban landscape, but not everybod y notices it. In fact, most people seem to be indifferent to the phenomenon, considering it to be an integral part of the cit y without really questioning it. People that are obsessed with graffiti are the ones who make it or fight it. Graffiti is a background scenery, an urban white noise which is recognized but rarel y registered [] We are unaware that the cit y walls are alive with its social drama. We have no clue that the tangled mass of names crawling across their surfaces speak (Macdonald, 2001: 1-2). Being a form situated between visual and verbal expression, graffiti combines different linguistic and artistic forms to express messages of personal and social communication. Indeed, what is written on the walls often reveals something about the lives, relationships and identities of those who wrote them.

1.2 Problem formulation

This research, based on the assumption that graffiti is essentiall y a communication medium, revolves around the theme of identit y performance. Namel y, it is the identit y performance that takes place on the walls, through the sole use of forms of colours. Consequentl y, marking the territory will be understood as construction and affirmation of the self. As it will be explained below, the phenomenon of graffiti as a subculture developed in the United States

and successfull y sprung up in Europe as a result of the media, especiall y underground magazines and documentaries. Thus, 40 years after its creation, this thesis explores the characteristics of graffiti in Europe as an imported product. The cities of investigation are Rome and Amsterdam as two European cities with a significant graffiti scene. However, what is described on these pages is not a comparative stud y of graffiti in these cities, rather, the attention is on what unites them. Hence, the research question has been identified as follows:

RQ: How do graffiti writers perform their identity in European cities?

The identit y performance is intended as the presentation of both personal and group identit y, and it will be explained in terms of appearance, spaces, time of dedication, reasons, and commitment to the broader subculture. The latter occupies a central role, as ones identity is constantl y related to the communit y one belongs to or feels a sense of belonging. Therefore, investigating the identit y performances of the graffiti writers also means examining how they relate to both the global graffiti subculture and the outside world. Previous studies have proved that members of a subculture tend to alienate from the outside world, manifesting a sort of resistance against the hegemonic culture. Thus this stud y will verify whether this occurs in the graffiti subculture as well and whether this subculture transcends its localit y.

1.3 An introduction to the graffiti subculture

The word graffiti is derived from the Italian word graffito , which means a scribbling or scratching down on buildings or walls. The origins of graffiti can be traced back to the cave drawing of prehistoric man. In fact, they can be found preserved on walls of Pompei and on ancient monuments in Egypt (Othen-Price, 2006). Rediscovering this antique practice, sub-cultural graffiti originall y comes from New York about 40 years ago as a neighbourhood based activit y. According to Powers (1996), an article that appeared in the New York Times on Jul y 21, 1971

made tagging a competitive activit y. This article was about an anon ymous Manhattan teenager nicknamed Taki 183 who was described as the king of a train line. Man y kids understood that graffiti could help them obtain recognition and respect among their peers, and therefore the number of graffiti writers that secretl y enrolled in the king of the street or of a train line contest (invisible to the majorit y of the population) increased enormously. Afterwards, tags became larger and more elaborate, developing into real murals. Some refer to it as street hip hop because it has evolved s ynergisticall y with hip hop dance and music cultures (Macdonald, 2001). Soon graffiti became the element within the New York Cit y hip-hop subculture that attracted the most media attention because of its steady growth in popularit y among youth and the high cost for its removal (Alonso, 1998). This cultural activit y eventuall y spread westward, as Hip Hop was exported from New York Cit y to major cities across the United States and the world during the hip hop popular culture explosion in the earl y 1980s. For instance, in the early eighties, movies such as Beat Street , Flash Dance and Wild Style spread the image of urban hip hop culture both in the US and world wide (Powers, 1996). Soon, in fact, Europeans started to produce graffiti as well. By the mid-1980s, Chalfant and Prigoff (1987) documented sophisticated and elaborate graffiti pieces and graffiti subcultures in various European cities, such as Amsterdam, London, Paris, Copenhagen, and Vienna (Ferrel, 1996). In the contemporary landscape we can see different t yp es of graffiti. Several authors have tried to make a distinction between them in order to be able to stud y the phenomenon from different angles. Following Grant (1996), modern graffiti generall y falls into one of three categories: junk graffiti, gang graffiti, and tagging. He names junk the graffiti messages that are not related to a gang, but the ones that often involve obscene, racist, or threatening themes. In his pessimistic and anti graffiti view, he sees tagging, once a nonviolent alternative to more threatening gang activities, as an entry level offence that can lead to more serious crimes, including burglary and assault. However, in this regard, man y studies, such as the one conducted b y Feiner and Klein (1982, cited in Alonso, 1998), proved that heav y drug use is almost nonexistent among serious

graffiti writers, and activities involved with writing graffiti appear to be their onl y criminal behaviour. One year later, Adams and Winter (1997), in their article Gang graffiti as a discourse genre make a clear distinction between gang graffiti and tagging in Phoenix. They conclude that taggers are a heterogeneous group, coming from all ethnic groups and social classes and are generall y less violent than gang crews. Conversel y, gang members are mostl y found in lower classes and predominantl y belong to the same ethnic group and have a more pronounced neighbourhood orientation. For instance, competitions between tagging crews usuall y revolve around tagging contests, whereas gang rivalries often erupt into fights and shootings. Alonso (1998) adds two new categories to the classification of graffiti: political and existential. Writers of political graffiti use the general public as an audience to communicate ideas against the establishment; this is wh y their writings are generall y placed where an extensive viewing is guaranteed. Political groups use graffiti as a communication tool because it is the safest, most economical as well as a highl y efficient way of reaching a desired audience. Major themes for political graffiti are associated with labour

conditions, freedom, political power, unemployment, religious thought, and civil rights. They are often connected to critical social events and are generall y made where the marginalized have no other ways to let their voices be heard. On the other hand, existential graffiti are the ones that can be consistentl y found in public bathrooms. They express personal comments, and are most commonly racial and sexual ones, but they can also contain messages of love, religion or humour. Alonso (ibid.) describes tagging as a st ylized signature that a writer marks on the urban environment: walls, buses, and trains. The focus of this stud y will be on tagging graffiti. It is the most broadl y spread and often, when people refer to graffiti, they generall y mean tagging graffiti. People that produce it are called graffiti writers, more simpl y writers. Tagging graffiti offers the opportunit y to explore how the concepts of place, culture, hegemon y and identit y are interwoven not through messages or personal comments, which are explicit affirmations of the self, but simpl y through tags or nicknames placed on our environment.

1.4 Societal and Academic Relevance

Graffiti is categorised in police records as an offence under other propert y damage, as it disfigures public and private properties (Bandaranaike, 2001). Some people refer to it as an epidemic or a plague; and, it is often associated with other more serious crimes, such as burglaries, car-jacking, narcotic trafficking, robberies, murders, and assault. Tagging is often seen as dirt y, obscene, and disease like (Grant, 1996). Therefore, the societal relevance of studying graffiti is given b y the constant ongoing debate on what it reall y is: while it is seen b y some as a problem that requires an appropriate response, it is seen b y others as a generous expression of creative energies upon accessible space. Public attitudes towards graffiti tend to vary between indifference and intolerance. There is a growing consensus that the problem of graffiti, if left unaddressed, creates an environment where more serious crimes flourish and can quickl y degrade once low-crime areas (ibid.). Slahor states that the apparentl y minor offence of graffiti can have demoralizing consequences for a communit y (Slahor, 1994). Allowing graffiti in an area encourages other offenders to degrade the communit y with more graffiti or other acts of vandalism. Nevertheless, those who shape public perceptions of urban graffiti, such as the media, anti-graffiti campaigners, or others, intentionall y and unintentionall y confound the boundaries between the different t ypes of graffiti and graffiti writing, confusing one with the other in their condemnation of all graffiti as a crime (Ferrel, 1996). In so doing, they distort public debates about graffiti and obscure the public understanding of the specific social and cultural value of graffiti. As Hager (1984:77) says, graffiti may have been started b y a hodgepodge of impoverished art school dropouts and unschooled graffiti writers, but b y 1982 they had turned it into the hottest art movement in America (cited in Ferrel, 1996). Indeed, graffiti writers do receive a fair amount of media coverage, but much of it seems to be uninformed and distorted (Macdonald, 2001). The artists lack power or voices to challenge these stories even if they wanted to. Therefore, the purpose of this stud y is to understand this subculture b y giving voices to the artists themselves. In addition, graffiti are inscribed b y youth (Macdonald, 2002; Othen-Price, 2006). Therefore,

this stud y will contribute to the understanding of how contemporary youth subcultures establish their cultural autonom y and express their identit y through public space. Stud yi ng youth is significant as youth is a complex, shifting, and contradictory category, which is rarel y narrated in the dominant public sphere through the diverse voices of the young. This is not to suggest that youth do not speak, but that they are simpl y restricted from speaking in those spheres where public conversation shapes social policy (Giroux, 1998). Their voices generall y emerge on the margins of societ y, in underground magazines, alternative music spheres, computer hacker clubs, and other subcultural sites. While lauded as a s ymbol of hope for the future, they are often associated with rebellion and resistance. From a scientific point of view, graffiti as an object of research has been of interest to several disciplines: linguistics, cultural studies, history, ps ychology, art and communication. This approach to graffiti defines for this genre a particular set of social interactional roles (Hanauer, 2008). However, much of the existing literature on the graffiti subculture involves the graffiti scene of the United States, while an overall European account seems to be lacking. Moreover, classic theories on youth subcultures (Hebdige, 1979; Cohen, 1972; Hall, 1976, Brake, 1980) date back to several decades ago, so that it is relevant to verify whether these theories can still be used for the contemporary graffiti scene. However, their limit was often one of interpreting the signs or reading the s ymbols, rather than talking to the people. Consequently, this study will contribute to the existing literature on subcultures and on youth identit y performance, thus offering an empirical approach. This thesis will provide a contemporary account on the graffiti subculture in Europe that is dictated b y the writers themselves.

1.5 Chapter outline

This thesis is divided into 5 chapters. Chapter 2 provides a critical review of the literature on subcultures. I examine the Marxist approach given b y the Centre of Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) and argue that the notion of class is not the onl y factor playing a role in subcultures. Issues of age, gender and quest for identit y must be intertwined into the theoretical picture as well. Chapter 3 explains the methods I used and asserts the qualit y of the stud y. I also reflect on m y role as a young female researcher investigating a male dominated illegal subculture. Chapter 4 focuses on the field. I describe m y journey into the graffiti world using the writers own narrative accounts. Identit y performance is informed b y the three main concepts: personal identit y, group identit y and feelings of belonging to the subculture. I furthermore explain reasons, feelings, spaces, and relations between graffiti and art and between graffiti writers and the outside world. In the conclusive section, chapter 5, I answer the research question on graffiti writers identit y performance combining theory with results. I also find the theoretical implications of this stud y and recommend areas for further research.

2. Theoretical framework: Behind subcultures 2.1 Introduction

This chapter unfolds the theoretical framework of this study, which focuses on the concept of identit y performance within the graffiti subculture. It is therefore necessary to introduce both earlier and more recent studies made on subcultures in order to understand the avenues taken b y previous academic research and to state the choice of direction for this paper. After a short introduction on subcultures, the first section explains the work made b y the Centre of Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) on subcultures. The theorists belonging to this centre are presented as the founding fathers of subcultural studies and whose works form the basis of most of the following theories in this regard. This stud y is certainl y influenced b y their thoughts; however both the merits and the limitations of their approaches will be illustrated in this paper. Therefore, after a short introduction on subcultures, section 2.3 explains subcultures as forms of resistance against a dominant culture. Section 2.4 adds the concepts of yo uth and masculinit y to the one of class. This paragraph introduces the importance of identit y and need of identification for youth to join subcultures. These concepts, that seem to have been omitted by the CCCS, are explained in a more elaborate manner in section 2.5. In this paragraph it is explained how performance is linked to a sense of belonging to a communit y; and in addition it highlights the reasons why identit y and identification cannot be approached separately. The chapter ends, in section 2.6, with an introduction of the work made b y Sarah Thornton and her suggested theory of subcultural capital, drawn on the earlier works of Bourdieu and in contrast to the CCCS ideas.

2.2 Subcultures
Alternative lifest yles and communities have existed for a long time, from the religious and utopian communities of the earlier times, to the Bohemian and

Romantic identities of the nineteenth century. However, it is mostl y in the 1960s that counter-cultures, alternative life-st yl es and new social movements started to develop against the mainstream culture and ideology of that time. They have helped to shape the variet y of identit y and lifest yle examples that still exist today (Hetherington, 1998). Following the definition of Curley (2003), the term subculture can be defined as a cultural subgroup differentiated b y status, ethnic background, residence, religion, or other factors that functionall y unify the group and act collectivel y on each member (cited in Williamson & Roberts, 2004: xi). In a way everybod y can be seen as belonging to one or more subcultures. While some of them remain as subterranean cultural expressions, other subcultures capture the interest of the cultural mainstream and become part of it. The latter consists in assimilating the deviant behaviour into the mainstream and it has been described b y Fiske (1989) as one of the solutions the State can adopt towards counter-cultures, in order to make them friends rather than enemies. Hall (1976), explains this as efforts to contain the subordinate classes in order to make them fit within the definitions of realit y favourable to the dominant class. However, the ideology of the dominant class has labelled this expression of subcultural resistance as deviant and criminal, often linking it to violent crime.

2.3 Subcultures as forms of protest

Studies of popular culture have been dominated b y a tradition associated with the 1970s work of the Centre of Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS), Universit y of Birmingham, England (Thornton, 1995). The CCCS group draws on Marxist understandings of social relations, which sees societ y divided in terms of power and control of forces of production. The working class is seen as a crowd of repressed powerless individuals. Since the relationship between the two social groups is regularl y conflicting at the expense of the subordinate, the CCCS group used working class problems to explain the purpose of subcultural membership and to explain subcultural meanings (Macdonald, 2001). Members of subcultures are seen as working-class rebels that use their subcultural styles as weapons in this struggle (ibid.). The subculture becomes their way of resolving the

contradictions between their group and the dominant one. Every subcultural instance, or occurrence, represents a solution to a specific set of

circumstances in which the subculture finds a reason to exist (Hebdige, 1979). However, these solutions are often hard to understand b y outsiders from that culture, in fact subcultures tend to express forbidden contents (given b y consciousness of class, of difference) in forbidden forms (often involving law breaking). Dick Hebdige is one of the leading scholars of the CCCS and one of the first sociologists to be interested in subcultures. His book Subculture: The Meaning of Style (1979) is certainl y the book to start with when engaging on stud ying subcultures. It seems therefore relevant to introduce his view on subcultures as being engaged in a constant conflict with the dominant class at the level of appearance, what he calls style . Indeed, following Hebdige (ibid.) social relations and conflicts are understood b y individuals onl y through the superficial forms in which they are presented to those individuals. All aspects of culture have a semiotic value and every phenomenon functions with signs. Stuart Hall claims that signs cover the face of social life and render it classifiable, intelligible and meaningful (Hall, 1977). These codes or signs tend to represent the interests of the dominant groups in societ y because they are traced along the lines drawn b y the dominant discourses. Some groups have more power, which means more opportunities to produce and impose their definitions of the world on the world, while others have fewer opportunities to let their voices be heard, to make rules (Hebdige, 1979). He argues that in the post-second world war period, some groups started to emerge and challenge the hegemon y of the powerful through style and through appearances. In fact, the concept of style can be related to everything that is displayed and performed to others, from a particular st yle of clothing to a specific st yle of dancing. In every subculture style is pregnant with significance, nothing is casual. Style is a collection of gestures that constitutes a speech which offends the silent majorit y, which challenges the principle of unit y and cohesion and contradicts the myth of consensus (Hebdige, 1979). These gestures, in a way

10

go against nature, because they interrupt the process of normalization, namel y what is considered standard behaviour b y the dominant class (Hebdige, 1979). When individuals get together to resist the hegemonic power, they form subcultures. These can be used as means of escape and of total detachment from the surrounding terrain. Different members bring different degrees of commitment to a subculture. However, they must share a common language, the same style . In other words style is the means through which identit y markers and indications of belonging are expressed (Hetherington, 1998). Hebdige refers to subcultures as spectacular subcultures, due to the performance aspects involved. The style displays the codes particular to that specific subculture, demonstrating in this way that codes given b y the dominant culture can be used and abused. The kind of methodology that Marxists use is semiotics, which involves examining relations between signs and s ymbols in order to understand the meanings they produce. For Hebdige, the task of the researcher is one of creating maps of meaning out of the hidden messages inscribed in codes on the glossy surface of st yle, and to understand the contradictions they are designed to hide or resolve. In short a researcher has to determine what specificall y a certain subcultural st yle signifies to the members of the subculture themselves (Hebdige, 1979). Hebdige looks at how members steal, appropriate, and redefine s ymbols and objects of the everyday world as a form of resistance. The concept of appropriation of Hebdige is in line with John Fiske (1989), but the latter introduced the pleasure aspect into the idea of resistance, and distances himself from focusing on the class struggle. However, a subculture is always formed in reaction to a dominant one. Escaping social control produces a sense of freedom, often expressed in excessive, irresponsible behaviour (such as shop-lifting), which represents both the vitalit y and the repression of these subcultural forces. Instead of speaking about subcultures, he rather talks about popular culture, which he describes as the art of making do with what the s ystem provides (Fiske, 1989). Individuals make popular culture the interface between the products of the culture industry and their everyday life (Fiske, 1989). Powerful people construct places where they can exercise their power (cities,

11

shopping malls, schools, houses), but the weak occup y them and make those places their own. If the dominant culture aims at efficiency, popular culture is concerned with meanings, pleasures and identit y rather than efficiency (Fiske, 1989: 1). However, these pleasures only exist in its practices, contexts and moments of production (Ibid.: 50). Following later researchers (Macdonald, 2001; Thorton, 1995;

Hetherington, 1998, Muggleton, 2000), Hebdige and the CCCS were much criticised for concentrating too much on the structural factor of subcultures, while other factors can be just as important, such as gender and age.

2.4 Youth and masculinity as main actors in subcultures

It is often the search for meaning in the life of adolescents, who are often apathetic to the future, which allows the creation of youth subcultures (Hebdige, 1979). Adolescents tend to drift to delinquency as they search for a thrill or an adrenaline rush. This rush they seek is the result of the fact that a certain behaviour is not accepted, therefore it is not easil y accomplished through lawabiding means (Matza, 1961). Moreover, illegal behaviours tend to provide higher economical rewards than legal means (ibid.). According to Downes (1966) adolescents illegal behaviour due to a process of dissociation from middle class dominated context of school, work and recreation. This disenchantment provoked an over-emphasis on purel y leisure goals sedulousl y fostered b y commercial teenage cultures rather than on other non-work areas (Downes, 1966:257). David Matza in Subterranean traditions of youth (1961), introduces the notion of bohemianism (in opposition to delinquency) as one of the solutions to the general dissatisfaction experienced by working and middle class adolescents. According to Matza (1961) youth is a time of rebelliousness where adolescents have the tendency to drift to three particular forms of revolt: delinquency, or delinquent youth; radicalism, or political militant youth; and bohemianism, or cultural rebels. Cultural rebels seek expressive goals, concerned with immediate gratification, hedonism, creativit y and spontaneit y. They are mainl y middle class students unsatisfied by the rewards of higher education, since they are less

12

fulfilling than they were led to believe. They become disillusioned and start getting interested in other more satisfying things. They value expressivit y through non violent aesthetic pursuits of hedonism, through a cool mode of enjoyment, rather than a furious pursuit of pleasure (Young, 1971). Brake (1985) stresses the importance of masculinit y in subcultures. Subcultures are seen as forms of exploration of masculinit y, while young girls: escape into romance and marriage, or drift into sexual misbehaviour, such as prostitution. If subcultures are solutions to collectivel y experienced problems, then traditionall y these have been the problems experienced b y young men (Brake,1985:163). However, those are still working class adolescents and the problems they experience arise from contradictions in the social structure. Through subcultures adolescents generate a form of collective identit y from which an individual identit y can be achieved outside that ascribed b y class, education and occupation. James Merrerschmidt, in Masculinities and Crimes (1993), claims that crime works as a resource for making gender, as a strategy for masculinit y. Crime is seen to be a valid and attainable means of accomplishing a masculine identit y. He relates the high percentage of crime committed b y adolescents to their lack of power and access to conventional masculine resources. Crime is the substitute for legal access to gain power. Therefore youth, masculinity and class occup y central roles in both subcultural and criminology studies. Stanley Cohen (1979) has in fact coined the term folk devils to describe delinquent male working class adolescents, as they threaten the social order and create moral panics. However, class resistance can hardl y be the onl y reason for man y adolescents to engage in specific and sometimes dangerous subcultural activities. There must be something more personall y enriching, such as the quest and affirmation of identity (Maffesoli, 1988; Macdonald, 2001; Hetherington, 1998). Adolescence plays a central role for the development of subcultures as it seems to be the period in which belonging to subcultures becomes appealing as a mechanism of identity protection (Erikson, 1968). Subcultural ideologies are a means b y which youth imagine their own and other social groups, assert their

13

distinctive character and affirm that they are not anonym ous members of an undifferentiated mass (Thornton, 1995). Youth is a complex, shifting, and contradictory category that has grasped the attention of man y researchers. Alread y at the end of the previous millennium, the task of defining what it means to be a young person seemed to become of central importance (Epstain, 1998). Adolescence is perceived as a developmental, transitional stage of life in which dependence and independence coexist (Kahane, 1997). Epstein (1998) claims that adolescence is the period in the life course in which individuals are most likel y to be alienated. This happens because adolescents live in a limbo between childhood freedom and adulthood responsibilities, but nevertheless are supposed to make choices and to form their own identities. Central among adolescent choices, is the most frightening one: the choice of a future career.

2.5 Subcultures as a pursuit of identity and identification

The concept of identit y is one of the most widel y used concepts in social sciences and humanities (Duits, 2008). Hetherington (1998), states that the academic contemporary interest in identit y developed out of earlier studies of youth subcultures and alternative lifestyles in the 1970s (Hall and Jefferson, 1976; Hebdige, 1979, Thornton, 1995). Everybod y is compelled to make choices throughout their lives, from questions concerning appearance to ones of beliefs and occupations. As it has been explained above, during the adolescence period questions related to identit y construction, such as What to do and who to be are focal for every young adult living in the period of late modernit y. In modern societies self-identity becomes an unavoidable issue. The self is not something people are born with, but it is reflexively constructed b y the individual. Indeed, the self is something that you do, rather than what you are (Duits, 2008). Peoples everyday actions reinforce a set of other peoples expectations, which tend to follow what is collectivel y understood as normal behaviour. However, some people feel more enabled to make more unusual choices than others. For instance, established ways of doing things can be changed when people start to ignore them, replace them or reproduce them differentl y

14

(Gauntlett, 2008). According to Giddens (1991), individuals construct a narrative of the self, which gives some order to their lives and help them to interpret the choices they have made. Self-identit y becomes a reflexive project that we continuousl y work and reflect on to make sense of ourselves. Each individual creates, maintains and revises a set of biographical narratives-the story of who we are, and how we came to be where we are now (Giddens, 1991). Pride and selfesteem will be given b y the individuals confidence in connection with the integrit y and value of the narrative of self-identit y. In fact to believe in oneself and to command respect of others, people need a strong narrative of what they are, in which they play a heroic role: a narrative that needs to be creativel y and continuousl y maintained. Following Foucault (1988), in order to become the person we want to be, we think and act b y appl ying what he calls technologies of the self. These are tools that allow individuals to transform themselves towards a higher state of being, to achieve personal growth. According to the definition of Foucault (1988) technologies of the self are:

Techniques which permit indi viduals to effect, by their own means, a certain number of operations on their own bodies, on their own souls, on their own thoughts, on their own conduct, and this in a manner so as to transform themsel ves, modif y themsel ves and to attain a certain state of perfection, of happiness, of purity, of supernatural power, and so on .

(Foucault in Kim Atkins, 2004: 214) They help to produce individuals own self-understanding, as they make subjects believe that they can be self-determined individuals that hold agency. They are strategies that the individuals use to perceive their selves and to present their selves to others. In this way these strategies seem to be very connected to the concept of performance, which will be introduced below. Since the self is not given, but has to be created, then life itself could be developed and treated as a work of art (Foucault, cited in Gauntlett, 2008). In Foucaults terms, life as a work of art has nothing to do with looking beautiful, but it is

15

about a beautiful way of living (Gauntlett, 2008). Its about lifest yle: choice and st yle. Coming back to Giddens (1991), lifest yle choices can give peoples personal narratives an identifiable shape, linking together people that have made similar choices. A lifest yle can be considered as a container for identit y or, in other words, the visible expression of a certain narrative of self-identit y. However an individual might have more than one lifest yle, each one reserved for certain stories or contexts, that is what Giddens calls lifest yl e sectors (cited in Gauntlett, 2008). Nevertheless, in order to become accustomed with the lifest yle of a certain social group, initiall y individuals may require some time to adjust. However, identit y seems to be more than self-reflection. It also involves issues of belonging, performance, identification and communication to others. Accordingl y, this stud y is based on the definition of identit y given b y Hetherington (1998):

Identit y is about both similarity and difference. It is about how subj ects see themsel ves in representation, and about how they construct differences within that representation and between it and the representation of others. Identity is about both correspondence and dissimilarit y. Principally, identit y is articulated through the relat ionship between belongi ng, recognition or identification and difference.

(Hetherington, 1998: 15) Following this definition, identit y is strictl y connected to the concepts of performance and belonging as a way of differentiating the self from others that dont belong to the same group of people to which one likes to identify. He relates the three concepts of expressivism, belonging and identit y. The relation between them functions as the major feature of the quest for identit y in modern societies: identit y is not onl y about self-reflection and the development of a life-project, but it is mainl y about issues of belonging, expression, performance, identification and communication with others (Hetherington, 1998). The creation of conditions of support, friendship, and solidarity are all important issues in understanding the role of a structure of feeling within processes of

16

identit y formation. However Hetherington rather than focusing on the individual when discussing issues of identit y, like Giddens for instance, he finds himself closer to Maffessoli (1988) for whom collective identification and belonging is seen as a means of developing individual identit y rather than its dissolution into some vaguel y conceived idea of a collective will (Maffesoli 1988, cited in Hetherington, 1998: 16).

2.5.1 Belonging and performance

As mentioned above, the concept of communit y is strongl y related to the one of identit y and it is hard to consider them separatel y. In fact, the questions who I am and from which communit y I am a part cannot be approached independentl y (Benhabib, 1992, cited in Duits, 2008). Benhabib claims that in the realm of personality formation, the development of individual identities is dependent on the attitudes of individuals to intertwine together a coherent life story (Benhabib, 1992). Most of the time we define ourselves in terms of where we are from, yet according to Benhabib, our inner personal identit y is based on an awareness that is persistent through time. However, Benhabib differentiates the narrative of the self from group or collective identit y, which she claims to be constructed out of a s ynchronic network of affiliations and sentiments. Collective identit y expresses the individuals sense of belonging within a societ y or a communit y, but it also implies the existence of other groups, usuall y either outside or alongside the perimeters of the communit y. In fact group identit y functions b y creating awareness of separation between different groups, some sort of boundary condition between us and them (Benhabib, 1992). Hetherington (1998), based on the earlier works of Durkheim (1964) and Mafessoli (1988), claims that there is an overriding relationship between issues of self identit y affirmation on the one hand, and the affectual basis for wanting to belong on the other. According to him, it is through identification with others that a sense of self-recognition and belonging with others is achieved. People want to belong and they want to show their empathy with like-minded people. According to Maffesoli (1996), this sense of belonging is derived mainl y from fellowship or

17

communion and it is the impetus behind collective lifestyle identifications. Lifest yle linkages provide a form of affectual solidarit y that, through the creation of distinctive s ymbols and forms of communication, creates a process of identit y formation that seeks to develop difference and resistance. The chosen identit y takes place through a series of performances in which identit y processes are played out. In fact identit y is not only achieved through identification with groups of individuals who share a common outlook, but also through recognisable performative repertoires that are expressive and embodied. Performance is a way in which we can address the issue of individual identit y and collective identification without loosing sight of either. [] The expressive, in the form of shared feeling, emotion, lo yalt y, belonging and ritual processes of transformation, is of central importance to this understanding of identit y (Hetherington, 1998: 53). Moreover, it is both about the everyday lives of members and about their more visible activities. One is always on stage, not just when one is performing strong action or protest (ibid.). Goffman (1959), in his work Presentation of the self in everyday life claims that individuals play roles or performances all the time. Societ y is characterised b y the setting, the personal front of appearance and the backstage. The setting is the overall situation, the personal front of appearance is how one presents himself to the audience, and the backstage is what individuals do to rehearse their performances. According to him, the self is not fixed and finalized, but mobile, open and multilayered. This is in line with what Maffesoli describes in Games with Masks (1988). Everybod y performs a persona or mask through st yle. Hetherington (1998:56) argues that a persona can be defined as a combination of bodily dispositions, situated performances and identification with others that use st ylistic effects. Individuals in fact create their own biographies through performances in certain spaces, which are called b y Goffman (1959) theatrical spaces.

Identit yis something one performs and reflexivel y monitors b y arranging strips of restored behaviour into a distinctive

18

performance. In doing so, strips of recognisable behaviour are chosen through a continuous process of experiment and rehearsal, involving forms of sociationwhich emerge in relation to their spatial setting. (Hetherington, 1998: 154) The self is therefore also situationall y located. Both performance and sense of communit y generally involve attachment to particular places. Making space for oneself is a major source of affirmation of the self and identification with others. Some places become important for group identification as they are invested with a sense of home or with other sorts of meanings (Hetherington, 1998). Also ritual processes, through which new identities are created, often stress the importance of the spatialit y of performance in the process of identit y formation. However, it is not always about adopting spaces that are alread y established, but also creating s ymbolic ones. That s ymbolism is given b y the link that is created between particular identifications and their modes of expression in these chosen spaces. These kinds of places are called b y Foucault (in

Hetherington, 1998) heterotopic, which means that they stand apart from the rest of the societ y in some way. These kinds of spaces facilitate opportunities to be different and to constitute new chosen identities. The space becomes a paradoxical one without fixed centres and margins, so that identit y becomes all about multiple locations and the performance aspects within that location

(Hetherington, 1998). Places are seen through a structure of feeling that is attributed to them b y the chosen lifest yles practices.

2.6 Subcultural capital as a means for achieving identity affirmation

Sarah Thornton (1995), in her work named Club cultures: Music, Media and Subcultural Capital, rejects the work of the Birmingham school in favour of the approach of the Chicago School, for whom empirical research of social groups always took precedence over elaboration of theory. Members of a subculture tend to make meaning in the service of power. Distinctions are never just assertions of equal difference, rather they usually entail some claim to authorit y and presume the inferiorit y of others (Thornton, 1995). Thronton draws on the work

19

of Bourdieu (1984), namel y on the concepts of cultural capital and social capital. One of the man y advantages of Bourdieus schema is that it moves away from rigidl y vertical models of the social structure (Thornton, 1995). Bourdieu locates social groups in a highl y complex multi-dimensional space rather than on a linear scale. While cultural capital confers social status through education and knowledge, the category of social capital stems not so much from what you know, rather who you know (and who knows you). Connections in the form of friends, relations and acquaintances can all bestow status. The notion of social capital is also useful in explaining the power of fame or of being known b y those one doesnt know (ibid.) well known people are worth y of being known for example, saying I know him well confers a higher status to the person in question (Bourdieu, 1986). In addition to these forms of capital, Thornton invented the term subcultural capital. Subcultural capital confers power on its owners in the eyes of the relevant beholder. She claims that just as cultural capital is personified in good manners and urban conversation, so subcultural capital is embodied in the form of being in the know, such as using current slang and looking as if you were born to perform the latest dance st yles (Thornton, 1995: 11-12). People gain respect from what they know, own and perform in relation to a specific subculture. Class is not irrelevant in subcultural capital, but it does not correlate in an y one-to-.one way with the levels of youthful subcultural capital. In fact, class becomes obfuscated b y subcultural distinctions. This happens because one cannot learn at school subcultural capital, it is something extra-curricular. As a result, after age, the social difference along which subcultural capital is aligned most s ystematicall y is gender (Thornton, 1995). While girls invest more of their time and identit y in doing well at schools, bo ys tend to spend more time with leisure activities and establish their identit y elsewhere. However, girls are not completel y excluded in the econom y of subculture capital. Popular distinctions

become means b y which people strive for social power, for a sense of self-worth. Subculture can be seen in this sense as a multi-dimensional social space. Cultural differences are not onl y resistances to the domination of some ruling class, but there are also microstructures of power involved in the cultural disagreements and

20

debates that go on between more closel y associated groups (Thornton, 1995). For instance members of the same subculture constantl y catalogue and classify youth cultures according to the different features that constitute the subcultural capital. These mental maps, rich in cultural detail and value judgement, offer them a distinct sense of their place but also a sense of the others place (Bourdieu, 1990, cited in Thornton, 1995: 99). Members of a subculture are generall y happ y to identify a homogeneous crowd to which they dont belong and they feel somehow superior to. On the one hand, youth do aspire to a more egalitarian and democratic world, but on the other hand, they create the same s ystems of power within their own subculture. Classlessness is a means of obfuscating the dominant structure in order to set up an alternative and ideological precondition for the effective operation of subcultural capital. The paradoxical combination of resignation and refusal, defiance and deference would seem to be characteristic of youth subcultures (Thornton, 1995).

21

3. Methods
.

3.1 Research Design

In order to conduct this research I considered an ethnographic approach to be the most appropriate. The aim of this research was to discover some specific internal d ynamics of an illegal subculture, more precisel y the one of identit y performance, which includes personal identit y, group identit y affiliation and a sense of belonging to the broader subculture. Therefore, it seemed necessary for me to be embedded in the subculture in order to see how group members make sense of their experiences. Therefore, the core methods were semi-structured b y means of in-depth interviews and participant observation. The term ethnography means to write a culture. It involves exploration of a cultural group with the aim of understanding, discovering, and interpreting a way of life from the point of view of its participants (OLeary, 2004). The term is often used to refer to qualitative or interpretative research, wherein behaviours are studied on a small scale in an everyday, single setting, with observation and/or informal conversations being the main data gathering methods

(Hammersley, 1990). The process of participation involves the researcher engaging in impression management. In fact, if the quantitative researcher is seeking for objectivity , the qualitative researcher considers subjectivity as a part of the research process: impressions, reflections and feelings become data in their own right. Quantitative or conventional social scientists rel y on survey processes on a limited number of group members to understand attitudes, beliefs, opinions, and behaviours of a certain culture. Conversel y, an ethnographic approach goes beyond the simpl y exploration of what is, and may begin to explore why it is (OLeary, 2004). In ethnography to explore is to understand, discover, describe, and interpret. Ethnograph y can be reasonabl y powerful in understanding the world from the perspective of the participants as it involves prolonged and participative cultural engagement. A qualitative stud y does not pretend to find absolute truths, rather limited offers of interpretation, so every statement is related to

22

subjects and situations; and researches and findings are influenced b y the social and cultural background of people involved (Gilbert, 2001). Ethnographers are responsible for bringing the culture into life through the subjective, partial and variable realities of the participants. However ethnograph y is not onl y about strengths, but also weaknesses. These include: gaining access and building trust, emotional costs, and the potential for the researcher to influence the researched (OLeary, 2004). Ethnographers also need to guard against homogenization which can lead to the risk of treating a particular group as one with no divergence. An ethnographic approach, instead of being based upon a theory as it happens in quantitative researches, aims to create a grounded theory, which, as the term suggests, is grounded in the experiences of others. However the theory can never simpl y emerge from data, because an y observation will always be guided b y existing images, concepts and theories (Henwood & Pidgeon, 1994). I started to explore the subculture of graffiti with an open mind, but not an empt y one. I had questions I wanted to answer, certain dynamics I wanted to discover, a theory to confirm or contradict, and anal ytic gaps I wanted to fill. For this stud y, I applied a multi-sited ethnography, since the research took place in two distinct places: Amsterdam and Rome. My aim was to explore the scene in the two cities not as a comparison, but as two European cities with a considerable graffiti scene. Rather than finding differences, I wanted to look at what is in common. M y purpose was to get a detailed picture of similar processes that are occurring in the two places. The two methods of data gathering used in this stud y have been participant observation and in-depth semi-structured interviewing.

3.2 Participant Observation

Participant observations for this study took place sporadicall y from midJuly until mid- December 2009, in different environments and situations. I wanted to get into the culture and understand the social dynamics within the group and as a result I tried to participate in different activities where writers would get

23

together. These included going out for drinks, spending nights at their homes waiting to go out and paint, attending parties and legal organized events for writers, and observing the action of illegal painting on streets, trains, and along the railings. Several times participant observation also included walking around the cit y or train stations guided b y one or more writers in order to understand which ones are the predominant writers in that particular scene or to show me the places where he left his mark. I am conscious that m y role can be perceived b y some as a partner in crime in this illegal activit y. I was aware I was crossing a line and walking in places forbidden b y the law; however as a researcher exploring an illegal world, I considered this necessary in order to experience the adrenaline and the feelings that come with the practice. All the writers I followed were extremel y experienced and careful in their approach, that I always felt safe in their presence. They helped me to overstep fences and to hide and be prepared to run if needed. Being a participant gave me the opportunit y to comprehend the relations that occur between the members of the same crew and experience the special atmosphere created at night in places where you should not be and feeling the rush and the final satisfaction that comes with it. I documented m y experiences with pictures and short videos. Moreover, field notes were taken on a regular basis, both during the events and at the end of the day. The fact that m y meetings with them were happening at irregular intervals provided me some breaks to elaborate m y notes and reflect on them between one meeting and the other one.

3.3 In-depth semi-structured interviews

The participant observation I undertook always involved conversations with several writers who provided a great source of information, which were integrated with more formalized in-depth interviews. The interviews took place from midJuly until November. First in Ital y and then in the Netherlands, they were therefore taken in Italian and in English. They took place in different settings according to the needs of the participants. Two of the interviews involved 2 writers, instead of one; nevertheless both writers in each interview were able to

24

answer individuall y to every question. An average interview lasted 45 minutes. They have been all audio taped and full y transcribed. In front of the audiorecorder the respondents were of course less spontaneous than during informal conversation, however they seemed to enjo y it and were eager to talk. They felt special and happ y that their voices would be heard and their quotes would appear in this paper. The interviews were semi-structured, which means that the themes and questions were decided in advance and were the same for everyone. However, the order of questions changed with every interview in order to keep the flow of the conversation and delve further into some topics that as a result became relevant during the interview. The respondents were given the flexibility to express issues of interest or concern as they came up during the interview process. Therefore the interviews took place as normal conversations about fixed topics. The interview guide and the respondents desire to talk in detail about their experiences contributed to the ex tended nature of the interviews. The topic list was built around general themes which consisted of general information about their activit y as a graffiti writer, their feelings and reasons for doing it, how graffiti writing influences their everyday lives, the role of illegalit y, and finall y questions concerning group activities and sense of belonging. Inside the general themes, they were of course questions that were more central to m y main research question on identit y performance: territory, time of dedication, who the audience is, the kind of message they want to transmit, what kind of writing they do (whether tag, piece, or throw up), how man y tags they use, what do they prefer to stain (whether street, trains, or subways), and what gives them status. The topic list is set out in the Appendix 1.

3.4 The sample

The sample was comprised of 12 male illegal graffiti writers. This was a multi-sited ethnograph y. Seven of them were Italian, four were Dutch, and one was Swedish. Since this culture is a male dominated one, the focus of the stud y was in investigating this male world and as a consequence the small minorit y of

25

women graffiti writers were excluded from this research. The age of the participants ranged from 19 to 26 years old. As it will be shown later, age, plays a major role in this subculture, being a determinant factor for entering the scene and similarl y the amount of time dedicated to it. For this reason, I preferred the respondents to be slightl y older than the beginners and thus more experienced, so that they could describe feelings and experiences of the past from a retrospective point of view and their current feelings and experiences in a conscious way. However, as mentioned before, the participant observation and the many informal conversations I was engaged in, involved a higher number of writers than the official figure stated in the interviews. Recruiting participants for this research was not an eas y task. This stud y sought to access a hard-to-reach population because of the illegal aspect of the activit y they are involved in. In fact, it was common for the respondents to express suspicions or concerns about who I was, and what my intentions were and wh y I was interested in them. They were sometimes afraid I was sent on behalf of the government or law enforcement. As it had been shown already in previous researches (Macdonald, 2001), graffiti subculture is all about recommendation. Many of the participants I found through people I knew and who trusted me, other respondents were friends of writers I had alread y interviewed. M y recruitment of participants followed a snowball sample. Next to that, I also went in special bars were graffiti writers usuall y hang around, and participated in the street art event called Manifestazione sportiva e non Velletri: stazione fine corsa that took place in a cit y next to Rome the 24 t h and 25 t h of Jul y 2009. However, the voice of my existence and m y project started to spread around this small communit y. They started to trust me and were willing to share their stories and show me places and actions. Man y participants said that the reason wh y they agreed to be interviewed was that they wanted to talk about the good parts of the scene and they hoped that this study would provide a positive and genuine portrayal of the scene.

26

3.5 The role of the researcher

This research was conducted as an overt ethnograph y, which means that the identit y of the researcher and the purpose of the study were clear to all the respondents. M y young age was definitely an advantage for getting their trust and their spontaneit y. Moreover, not being a graffiti writer and being a woman investigating a male dominated subculture made me a double outsider. However, I felt that being a woman was probabl y easier as I was in a non competitive position. In this way I used the informed vision of an insider and combined it with the advantages of being perceived as an outsider, given that in terms of insight no one position is better than the other (Hammersley, 1990): it is the stranger who finds what is familiar to the group significantl y unfamiliar and so is prompted to raise questions for inquiry less apt to be raised at all b y Insiders (Merton, 1972:33, cited in Macdonald, 2001).

3.6 Ethical considerations

In every stud y involving qualitative research, given the human nature of the unit of anal ysis, it is fundamental to consider any possible ethical issues that may emerge during the research and the publication of data. For the specific case of this stud y, since the respondents are involved in illegal activities, ethical issues needed to receive a special attention. As mentioned in the paragraph above I have been open with the writers about the nature of this research, m y role, and m y central focus on identit y performance. They were all aware that I was taking pictures, field notes and recording the interviews. In this way both disclosure and informed consent were respected. Anon ymit y requires here a little more attention. All the real names of the participants are confidential and the data cannot be traced back to the respondents. However, since graffiti writers are using a secret identit y to perform their illegal activit y, they all agreed to openl y appear in this paper with their nicknames. Reaching fame is one of their main targets and they feel a sense of flattery appearing in an academic paper.

27

3.7. Data analysis

As mentioned alread y, in this research I applied a grounded theory approach, which is a systematic qualitative research methodology that emphasizes generation of theory from the data in the process of conducting research. This method may appear in contradiction with the scientific method, as the first step is data collection and successivel y the theory is generated. From the data collected, the key points are marked with a series of codes, which are extracted from the text. The codes are grouped into similar concepts in order to make them more workable. Concepts that pertain to the same phenomenon are grouped to form categories, which are the basis for the creation of a theory (Strauss and Corbin, 1998). For the anal ysis of the data I emplo yed the software MaxQDA, a tool that helped me to evaluate and interpret the qualitative data in a systematic manner. In order to do so, I divided m y anal ysis into three phases, as suggested b y Strauss and Corbin (1998). In the first phase, called open coding, I read all data (field notes and interview transcripts) and built a code tree. I structured m y coding into seven main coding categories: reasons, identit y performance, youth, subculture, life outside graffiti, illegalit y, and cit y. Under these, many other categories were found. In the second phase, called axial coding, I compared, related and ordered the codes. I found patterns, similarities and deviant patterns, and several categories were bounded or split. In the final phase of selective coding, I anal yzed the concepts that have emerged and kept comparing codes and finding relationships between them, so that the story line refined in the Results chapter started to take a shape.

3.8 Quality of this research

In ethnograph y the basis of interpretation is in fact filtering observations and inputs through theoretical and anal ytic frameworks. However, in order to be as fair as possible, I attempted to follow the strategies for credibilit y and verification described b y OLeary (2004) during all the processes of this research.

28

According to her, the strategies for achieving credibilit y are techniques that can be used to ensure thoroughness and rigor to the study. These are saturation, crystallization, prolonged engagement, persistent observation and broad

representation. Saturation is obtained when additional data no longer adds richness to understanding phenomena or aids in building theories. In fact I realized I did not need more interviews when, during the last interview, I already knew most of the answers the writer would give me, I was ending up nodding without the same enthusiasm I had before, and sometimes I found m yself suggesting the answers. So, it was without doubt, time for me to switch off the recorder, collect my notes and start transcribing. Crystallization is given b y seeing one single situation or phenomenon from different point of views in order to obtain a rich and diverse understanding of it. For this reason I got insights from a variet y of participants, coming from different countries and different ethnic and social backgrounds. In addition, I also tried to participate in a diversit y of activities so that I could see every phenomenon from a different angle. Prolonged engagement is given with an investment of time sufficient to learn a culture, understand context, and build trust and rapport. In order to achieve that, especiall y trust because of the illegal nature of the subculture under investigation, I have spent time with graffiti writers beside the main purpose of interviewing them or following them during the processes of graffiti making. To understand their world I needed to submerge m yself in their routines. Therefore, I hung out with them in some pubs, on the beach, and was invited to home parties and other activities. This gave me the opportunit y to create sympathetic rapports with them and to gain trust. During these occasions, I was engaged in man y informal conversations that helped me to deepl y understand this culture and the relations that occur between writers. After these gatherings, I wrote field notes and reflected on what I had seen and heard, so that the strategy of persistent observation was also met. Lastl y, the representation has to be wide enough to ensure that a cultural group or phenomenon can be spoken about confidentl y. The wide representation of the participants has been outlined in the Sample paragraph above.

29

After having described the strategies I applied in order to achieve credibilit y, I will now introduce the ones I used to obtain validit y. OLeary considers triangulation, member checking and full explication of methods as the main strategies to obtain it. I used all three recommended strategies to increase the validit y of this stud y. Triangulation means using more than one source of data to confirm the authenticit y of each source. I indeed used multiple methods to explore the same phenomenon. By continuousl y asking the participants whether my interpretation and understanding of the phenomenon was correct, I followed the member checking strategy. Lastl y, the strategy of full explication of methods is being used here in this chapter, so that m y study can be auditable and reproducible.

30

4. Results 4.1 Introduction

In this chapter, I will describe what emerged from m y field notes, taken during participant observation, and the interviews and informal conversations I had with the graffiti writers. Since identit y performance is the focus of this stud y, this section will illustrate how the process takes place in the graffiti communit y. The process of identit y performance is grounded in three main concepts: personal identit y, group identit y and belonging to the subculture. During m y research, it emerged that identit y performance is also strongl y linked to the respondents feelings, the use of spaces, and illegality. Moreover, when exploring what people do, it seems necessary to consider their subjective reasons for doing it. Consequentl y, it seems necessary that these topics are of main consideration to this chapter. The three main concepts encompass the additional ones mentioned above; however, instead of structuring the chapter under three major sections, I organized the paragraphs in a more linear manner, a manner that has been unconsciousl y dictated b y the writers themselves. The structure of this chapter follows the mental maps of the participants involved in my research; connections are made from their quotes and from the field. I decided to stick with these associations of ideas in order not to distort their perceptions. Firstl y, it seems necessary to assert the tag as the externalization and the affirmation of the writers identit y, since visibilit y is an issue of major concern while affirming the self in this subculture. I will then illustrate the importance of the territory and the role of the city as a space of identit y performance. Territory plays a central role in the process of identit y affirmation and status attainment in the graffiti communit y, with the cit y being the onl y place wherein the identit y has reason to be performed. In this paragraph, I will also describe the component of travelling and meeting writers coming from other places. Meeting other writers is necessary in order to reinforce their sense of belonging, but also to play safer when going to paint in unknown places. Therefore, the

31

topics of belonging and illegalit y will also be introduced. Since graffiti writers generall y belong to crews, their personal identit y affirmation often occurs in accordance with being a member of a group. For that reason in the following paragraph I will explain the relevance of the crew, both in terms of feelings and performances. However, these relationships are framed within illegalit y which is the main characteristic of this subculture, and often the onl y one perceived from outsiders. I will elucidate the importance of it and how it influences the performances. Connected to illegalit y, is the adrenaline rush that pushes man y adolescents to write on the walls as one of the main reasons to do it. Therefore, the next section will clarify the meaning of graffiti, the role of the audience and the main reasons for the graffiti writers to get involved and to stay involved. Last, but not least, identit y performance needs to be in line with subcultural ideals. In fact, even though it is fundamental to show a certain degree of personal innovation, this also has to reflect the range of tastes and common norms that make the subculture what it is and why it is distinctive from outside societ y. The commitment of sustaining the subculture will be illustrated in the last paragraph.

4.2 I tag, therefore I am

The tag is the first choice a graffiti writer has to face. Without a tag, the writer does not exist in the graffiti communit y:

Well the thing is li ke that. Graffiti is the name. Advertising the name. A kind of advertising that is done without spending money, but only with guts. The more you risk, the more you have visibility and the stronger you are. You are in the game. The tag is the fi rst step. The tag is the name, without the name you are nothing, nobody. [ Mirics 22, Rome]

The tag does not always have to be necessaril y a name; it can also be a s ymbol such as a smiley face. After having developed their interest in graffiti, writers must decide a tag or nickname to use in order to be visible and recognized within his communit y. For instance, in the course of this research I

32

have heard stories about a graffiti writer that just writes a cat print, or similarl y whilst walking along the streets of Amsterdam East every now and then there is a coloured fist drawn on the walls. Behind these apparentl y meaningless marks are people that choose this specific signature to present themselves to others. After having made it clear that the tag is the performed identit y of the graffiti writer, in this paragraph I will clarify more extensively why that is, b y delineating the characteristics related to it. The tag is characterized b y three main aspects: it needs to be original, it reflects the feelings of the writer and it is continuousl y reaffirmed and defended as the externalization of the self. The tag has to be something that belongs only to you and searching for it stops onl y when you start to feel that way:

Before I had other tags that I wont tell you But I found mine in the summer99. It was out of coincidence, while talking with some friends, looking for a si gnatureit had beautiful letters. There isnt a special reason. I liked how it sounded I looked for something original, something that nobody had. And slowl y I felt it was mine. At the beginning it looked as a not existing word, meaningless Then slowl y, by writing it all the ti me, it becomes something. [Renok 26, Rome]

It is necessary for writers pride and self-esteem to feel comfortable with the identit y they choose to present. Continuousl y writing ones tag on walls, trains and subways gives more strength to the narrative of self. Moreover, the tag is the source of the writers fame. For this reason, writers generall y prefer to wait until they are read y before marking the wall (see Image 1). In order to avoid peer criticism and be satisfied with their performance, writers tend to practice for long time on paper and closely examine magazine pictures and other pieces on the streets. It is very important to be prepared in order to perform the best:

We grew up in the west side and across the street we had a bridge and then we came down and we saw a wall full colour of wall, from MATT

33

that is our king. Matt put a piece there together with 3 New Yor k writers and then we were thinking where are the drips? How can you spr ay these fucking tags? The wall was so amazing, we j ust sit there three times a week and study, study, study. Why this shit, why this background, why these figures. Why, why, why, why. [Twice 26, Amsterdam] In the beginning I was a lot more st ylish, I always wanted to try a new sketch or a new st yle ever y ti me. I sketched a lot at the beginning. I could see myself for hours in the night j ust sketching. When I was satisfied with something I wanted t o go out to do it. And someti mes I said no to friends cause I had no sketch. I dont want to go out and paint [Aso 26, Stockhol m]

Image 1. Renoks sketch for a whole car piece.

Once the tag is felt right, graffiti writers start to perceive it as the externalization of their selves. For instance tagging a wall is a way of being there even if not ph ysicall y, and when tagging trains there is the idea of movement added to it. The feeling of identification with the tag also grows according to the perception of other people, the audience. In fact, it often happens that some people start to recognize the tag as not onl y a stain on the wall, but as people that speak, fight and travel. For instance, I understood that I was finall y entering into the culture, when this form of recognition started to happen to me. Even nowadays, I often find m yself smiling at the wall when I see a tag that I recognize:

34

When I get drunk I tr ansfor m from my ori ginal name to Twice. I become Twice. In the scene I become Twice. [Twice 25, Amsterdam] There are many peopl e that dont even know my real name. People get to know me also if not physicall y. This is weir d, but gi ves me satisfaction. I meet my friends on the streets. I wal k on the streets and I think Oh nice, there is Philo, Mirics, Deps. [ Renok 26, Rome]

When I paint a wall it is different, its always good feelings, but l ess then a train. I reall y li ke to paint trains, because its me travelling, its me moving, its beautiful. [Philo 23, Rome]

Some respondents claimed that sometimes they use different tags, for safet y reasons or just out for boredom: Nowadays, I also write NOCASH, because I have no cash. And its also a reall y nice name to write. I have a bunch of names (Twice 25, Amsterdam). However, despite the many names a

writer may have , on this occasion it is probabl y better to use the verb write , for the tag cannot be considered an issue of multiple identities, as there is always one that he will identify with the most and others in the know will still perceive the different names as belonging to the same person. Therefore it is one identit y with multiple performances:
Silvia: Did you always have the same tag? Raw: No, I kept changing a lot. Up until today I think I have 4-5 names. I kind of like to change in different period. But thats what most guys are doingThey j ust get t ired of their names, they ve done enough, you kind of like to switch, because you li ke letters. Obviousl y it is more exciting if you have been doing a certain name for a certain amount of ti me and then you tr y to do different letters and then it is like you have a fresh book, so.. I mean if you are known enough and you kind of start writing other names, people will catch up really quickl y, t hey will recogni ze your style. Graffiti culture is like a lot of gossiping. You know If there is somebody running on the city with a new name and he is doing qui te a lot. Then all graffiti culture of that city will think who a fuck is that? and somebody knows and tell somebody else li ke that, you know? And people will recogni ze you And you know there is another part when.. if you ve done so many damage on the same train or subway.. Its all gone into the book or whatever the authority is wor king against you and if I get caught when I am doing that name, theyll put this book in front of me with all these pictures and instead of paying for one car, you are paying for like

35

20 cars. And changing name ever y now and then keeps you away fr om that also. Someti mes peopl e are j ust smashing things and j ust keep wri ting the same name. And I am like oh, man, you are going to get busted one day. In a way thats stupid. Silvia: So, would you say that you dont really identif y with a name, but mostl y with your st yle? Raw: Yes, but its both. Because I still have one main name, thats me. And then I also write it more often. Also when you meet somebody who is a writer, you present yourself or you get introduced through your friends to another writer it is always the same name. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Moreover, the way a tag is performed, in terms of its st yle and the places chosen for tagging, represents the personalit y or the feelings of the writer in that given moment:
By the style I can see how my piece looks like. If I make a piece when I am broken, the piece looks different than when I have a very good situation, feeling good. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

When you do it illegally you have a certain feeling, one ni ght you are angr y and the piece will come out angr y. A common person wont understand it, but the letters, the lines that you do, they are from an angr y person. If you are easy and quiet, you also can see it. You make softer lines. Graffiti represents you, it represents your feelings. If you are angr y, you cant start fighting with people, you cant hurt your gi rlfriend or your parents, you cant go robbing a bank. And so you go painting because you have t his discomfort to t ake off your bodyGraffiti represents the life style of that particular moment for sure. How you think reflects the way you do it, the actions you do, the spaces you take. [Renok 26, Rome]

To sum it up, the tag is not onl y the externalization of the writers identit y, but in addition the onl y expression of their identit y that is presentable in the graffiti world. Being someone in graffiti language is making a name. Without the tag, the writer does not exist. Since it is strongl y believed that identit y is something people create rather than what people are, the tag is the identit y that writers create to introduce who they are to the world. This process of performance will be outlined in the next paragraph.

36

4.3 Affirming the self

I want to say that I also exist. I exist ! I am here! I li ve! [Philo 23, Rome]

Writing on the walls comes from a need to externalize oneself and to make clear to the world ones presence. Therefore, painting in visible spots is of primary importance, since ones identity is strengthened when other people recognise it. Self affirmation is obtained b y the combination of visibilit y, fame, and appropriation.
I am part of this worl d. This is the message I want to say. And, as I said before, it is also about competition: I did two pieces more t han you means that I am in the street, at the station. [] I li ke to paint a train, because the train is always moving, it gi ves me an idea of travelling. People who travel, for eigners, they see my graffiti. Its a way for me to be there. [Philo 23, Rome]

When a mark is made, what gives a unique kind of pleasure is seeing it again. During m y fieldwork I once went with some writers to assist on a whole car piece (see Image 2). This is when the piece full y occupies one car of a train. Both, while and after doing it, there were a great deal of positive feelings that ranged from the rush of adrenaline to the final release of it. However, the key issue was being able to see it again. It was mandatory for the writers to see the train running with the piece on it, so, the day after we went to the main

station of Rome looking for the painted car and took pictures when it finall y passed b y. In order to be able to recognize the train quicker, it is common to tag the head of the train. This action reinforces further the feeling of appropriation, as if the whole train belongs to that crew (see Image 3). While we were waiting for the train, Renok was indeed calling it our train. He explained to me that for him, every time he sees it, there is an incredible emotion, because it is your work in motion.

37

Image 2.Iperswhole car just painted at night

Image 3. Head of the train painted by Ipers Rome central station. The day after.

As will be shown later, different kinds of feelings emerge when painting walls, trains or subways, however the process of seeing it again is one of the main reasons for graffiti to be there, both for others and yourself (the writer).
And the beautiful thing is seeing it again. You put up your name and you see it AGAIN. Ever y t ime you pass you see your own name.[] but its fun if other writers see it as well. So, the main thing I do this is for me and my crew, and for my crew to see this. But of course its fun if other people see this. Other writers gi ve me recognition. [Gear 24, Amsterdam]

Seeing it again, b y some means, can be the reason for a writer to become more a train or a street painter:
I did a lot of trains before, but now I slowed down, but I am doi ng a lot on the streets. There is one big reason j ust that I am mostl y in the city. I have friends that li ve on the other side of the city and they have t o travel to Amsterdam [] and they write on trains a lot, j ust to see their stuff up on the trains; whereas I am j ust biking around the cit y all day and I want to see my shit up on the city, you know? [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Visibilit y is also the first source of fame for a graffiti writer. It brings more respect than the qualit y of the piece or the st yle of the lines. In fact, as Mirics says:

38

Beaut y is something very subj ective. There are some ver y well respected people in Rome that draw things that if you see this, you woul d say I cant believe this. But they are people that will never be crossed out. So, an ugl y piece is not a piece that you rej ect. An ugl y piece made on the hardest spot on earth i s the worthiest piece. So, beaut y is something that a passer by can j udge, not us. [Mirics 22, Rome]

Being recognized by others confers status to the graffiti writer. When a writer makes a large number of tags around his neighbourhood, he can be given the unofficiall y declared title of king . He can be the king of an area, of a cit y, or of a train line. Rarely the title can concern his abilit y, but mostl y his presence . Generall y writers claim to be the king b y putting the s ymbol of a crown on top of their name. A king has to work consistently to ensure his/her name is more visible than others, nevertheless, some writers claim themselves to be kings without the approval of their peers, they add the crown just to reinforce their identit y or probabl y to catch the attention of others. The majorit y of the writers I met have done it at least once, always feeling like they earned it. Another indicator of status, even if a lower one, is given b y adding ONE at the end of the name. For instance, if the tag name is Philo, he would write Philone (See Image 4). It is making a claim to be the first one to use that name. A shorter version of this, is putting an O on top of the name, it means exactl y the same thing. The misuse of these s ymbols is usuall y proper of a toy , or a starter. Conversel y, this indicator is also given b y others and it is added on a piece when it is of a poor qualit y or shows characteristics of somebody that does not know enough.

Image 4. Philone with a circle on top of the tag.

39

Lastl y, besides visibilit y and fame, the process of affirmation of the self on a surface generates a sense of appropriation. Once a piece is done, the writer becomes connected with the surface and with the wall. On the one hand, he affirms the self b y spreading his identity around, and on the other hand his sense of identit y is reinforced b y the feeling of owning that piece of wall he just wrote upon.
This piece that we ar e looking ri ght now is mine. The propert y is not mi ne, but it is mine. There is my name wr itten there. It belongs to me. Once I paint on it, it becomes a part of myself. If I have 100 pieces around, its cool. [ Renok 26, Rome]

With the train it is different because of the travelling and movement components connected to it, in this way it feels like owning all the train line. Trains are used b y the graffiti writers as a cultural baggage, like something to collect and to be proud of in front of their friends. Writers who travel around and paint trains are the most respected (Aso 26, Stockholm). From a conversation with Aso it emerged that not all the trains are the same, but some of them are more important than others.

Some trains are kind of worth more. When writers meet they talk about different trains and different train yards where they ve been. When you meet a new writer, you always have some places or trains to identify with and talk around. Local trains are generall y more worth painti ng. For example the old Dutch banana train (the yellow one floor train called doggie), the Spanish mirror trains, Berlins yellow subway, Southern Swedens purple trains or Danishs old red S-train. People used t o go to Copenhagen j ust to paint that one. [Aso 26, Stockhol m]

Thus, conscious of the fact that trains and subways have to be considered as something a part from each other, where does this self affirmation take place? Which walls are the favourite ones? In the next paragraph the role of the cit y will be discussed.

40

4.4 Territory
I think that certain things go together. If you look at the buildings for example, there are some paintings. Its a bit messy, some stickers. I kind of like this dirty. There is a soul. It shows t hat people live there. [Edge 26, Amsterdam]

Writers do not go out and leave their marks everywhere they can. They choose where to paint. It is not random. First of all, graffiti is an urban culture, it develops within the cit y. It is in the city that many often invisible identities are performed everyday. And, in the city itself there are some places where graffiti seems more suitable than others, for instance the dirty and gray places are often used more than clean ones.
In some places graffi ti look fucking stupid [] as soon as I am in the country side or somewhere in the South of France I am not even thinking about spray cans you know? Its j ust totally ridiculous. And even when you are going to do it, you take a picture, you can publish in on a magazine so the kids in the city will see the magazine and they will see the piece. So it is bringing back to the city again. So, its all about the city. And if you are not doing graffiti or you feel offended by it and you are living in the cit y...I am li ke c mon, you want all the stuf f that is going on in the city, you want the heart beats, you want this, you want that...[] Its a cit y culture, so I feel li ke when you are living in the city you have to take into account that your kids they are going to get bored with the surrounding, so they want to kick against somethi ng and eventuall y they are going to take a spray can and go out, understand that that culture exists and they are going to write on the walls. Some people have al ways been writing on walls. Why wouldnt I do it now? [Raw 26, Amsterdam].

Graffiti is perceived therefore as an integral part of the cit y: Some villages dont seem urbanized to me if I dont read the signatures around (Hero 26, Rome). There exists a mutual relationship between the two: there seems to be no cit y without graffiti and no graffiti without cit y.
When you have some interviews with some hip guys or some stupid magazines they often, so often, portray them in front of some garage with some graffiti on it. Because it is in the city you know? Yeah this is blablabla, he is like a creative desi gner, he does this and that... where are

41

you from? What are you doing? But these guys are standing there...and this is a window and it supposed to be the representation of the city and at the same ti me I am pretty sure that these people will disagree with you if you make a piece next to them: What the fuck are you doing? They will call the cops. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

As Raw affirmed in one of the interviews, you can make the comparison to a dog that pisses everywhere, but then you want to be a big dog that pisses around the whole city(Raw 26, Amsterdam). In fact, the wider the range of territory where the name appears, the more respected the writer and his activit y will be. With the city you sort of claim something. You claim your space, and the bond with the city becomes stronger (Edge 26, Amsterdam). Even though they recognize it as an illegal activit y, writers feel that they have the right to paint on the walls of the cit y because they see it as a public space that belongs to everyone. Nevertheless, all the writers Ive met agreed on the fact that there are some sort of unwritten rules or just common sense from which they avoid writing on monuments or old buildings in the historical centre. This brings back what has been alread y mentioned in the first paragraph of this section. What a graffiti writer decides to stain suggests his personalit y. The space one takes shows the lifest yle of the writer. For instance, some writers push the boundaries of common sense, they paint wherever they want (which is basicall y the significance of graffiti); this can be a wall that has been recentl y painted, or a shop window. In this way the writer knows he is causing a serious discomfort and b y doing it an yway, suggests a more arrogant personalit y.
I have some things that I dont tag. Li ke private houses and monuments. I also dont think it fits ver y well some how. Especially in the cent re with these old houses. It doesnt look good in these 16 t h centur y houses. I think there is a quite clear graffiti aesthetic almost. It sorts of fits in certain places and not in other s. [Edge 26, Amsterdam]

However, in a cit y sometimes it is difficult to distinguish what is a public space and what is not: Its like I feel that the cit y is so dense, that public space is hard to find, so for you to do something in that way you would have to go to write on somebod ys side of a house (Raw 26, Amsterdam).

42

I consider the city as a thing which is all for us. Nobody owns it, so I can destroy anything. You can buy a house, but the front of the house is always on the street. And the street is of nobody and I want to put my tag on the street. I dont have any feelings for the owners of the house. Yet. Maybe it will come, when I am 40 and I am thinking oh, what have I done? But I dont thi nk its going to happen. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

The strong connection between the writers and the cit y is strengthened b y the fact of often being alone in the middle of the night. It is then, whilst walking around a city, that it shows a completel y different viewpoint. The cit y completel y changes when it is looked from a graffiti perspective, street names and monuments disappear. Writers know this map b y heart, an urban map that changes continuously and cannot be found on Google maps now and never: I orient m yself in the cit y through graffiti (Hero - 26, Rome).

Just being in the centre of the city at 4-5 oclock in the night in the mi ddle of the week and there is nobody on the street. Its kind of li ke your kingdom. And thi s is all ver y childish, but still there is a consistence in doing it and consistent in a way when you are outside out in the night all alone and the cit y is yours and you ki nd of put it in your hands [] Its a romantic feeling. But it doesnt mean that it is less real you know? Its good and thats mostly what gets me out. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

As mentioned alread y, the name of the writer should travel as far as possible. This is wh y, besides the walls of the cities, means of transportation are the most targeted ones. In Amsterdam for instance, where it is very common to travel b y bike, man y of the bicycles baskets are tagged as well. However, it is often not enough to make a nice piece on a train in order to get a name to travel, graffiti writers travel themselves (See Image 5). Below, it will be shown what happens when a graffiti writer gets out of his nest.

43

Image 5. Bicycle basket in Amsterdam

4.4.1 Over the borders

I will discuss here the component of travelling which is very important in the graffiti subculture. Pushing the name as far as possible from ones original home is expanding the territory of ones identit y performance. Every graffiti writer travels for graffiti. Ive heard great stories about trips in New York, Barcelona, Berlin, Australia. However, two of the main aspects connected to travel that emerged in this research were feeling different when painting abroad and meeting local writers. The experience of painting abroad can be perceived b y the writers in completel y different ways. Some writers feel the need to write more intensel y because of the limited time of their holiday: When I am in another cit y I want to paint more than in m y own cit y, when I come to Amsterdam again its like ah, now I can chill because I am in m y own cit y. But when I am somewhere else I have to paint 24/7 (Twice 25, Amsterdam). On the other hand, others have the opposite reactions It feels that it is not a waste, but its like ok, I did a piece. When you do a piece in your own cit y it counts, but when it is in a different cit y... Who would ever know?(Edge 26, Amsterdam). After an informal conversation with Raw, it appeared that Walking around in his own

44

cit y and seeing his own pieces on the walls, makes him feel more alive, makes him feel like he exists. He doesnt feel the same when he goes bombing in other cities or in other countries, it does not give him the same kind of pleasure (Field notes). Meeting local writers when painting abroad is one of the best and safest ways to do it. Nowadays, this is facilitated b y the existence of the Internet and the many blogs and forums surrounding graffiti. In this way local writers are often known even before travelling to a certain place.
We have many kinds of holidays. There is the holiday with the girl friend, the holiday with friends and the graffiti holidays. It means that you travel j ust to paint. [] And you are hosted by them. There is a lot of brotherhood. Even if you never met the person, you have the gr affiti in common and thats enough. [Mirics 22, Rome]

Meeting local writers is sometimes necessary to avoid problems with the police. Local writers know where it is safer to go and when: I alread y knew two other people before going. Its reall y an exchange. Everything is much easier when you have a connection there. And it is also a lot of fun. You know that its safer (Edge 26, Amsterdam). In some occasions it is taken as a chance to learn from somebod y coming from a different culture, for instance a French gu y who comes to Rome can show you a different spray effect that we are not used to do (Hero 26, Rome). Nevertheless, there is always a feeling of communion between writers coming from different places.
There are differences. There are always different kinds of writers. You have the guys that only paint legal, onl y illegal, onl y walls, onl y trains. Or guys li ke us that do all over. We li ke to paint the cities, doing truck sides, but also the trains. Its ver y difficult to meet somebody who is doing ever ything. In ever y city there are guys like us. We meet t hem and we are off. [] We share the same. One love: graffiti. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

In this paragraph it has been shown how graffiti connects people. There is a strong feeling of belonging to the same subculture, transcending the localit y. However, within this big international scenario, there are man y little groups to

45

which almost every writer belongs. It is a culture where the affirmation of the self is directl y related to the affirmation of the group, which in the graffiti language is called crew.

4.5 The crew

I am li ving for the guys I meet. Drinking the beers, going out toget her and doing this fucking shit! [ Gear 24, Amsterdam]

Crew members are a group of individuals coming from different social backgrounds and neighbourhoods whose main purpose is to go painting together. When a new crew is created, generall y it represents a neighbourhood

orientation, and later it enlarges and gets new members from everywhere. Some crews have members in another country (LD crew of Amsterdam has a member from the US). And, in some cases, since graffiti is a street activit y, some of the members may not be writers, but rappers or breakers, as it is in the IPERS crew of Rome). Generall y members from the same crew are recognized for having the same approach, a certain crew st yle that can vary from rough mass bombing to more elaborate pieces. However, for a graffiti writer the crew is first of all a gathering of friends that enjo y each others company: a bunch of good people to go out with (Aso 26, Stockholm). Friendship occurs in various ways. A group of friends may decide to get together and create a crew, or the relationships between crew members can be strengthened and afterwards eventuall y turn into friendship later.
Its a bonding cultur e; you go through intensive experiences t ogether. Most of my closest friends are graffiti wr iters, j ust because I ve been hiding in the bushes with them, in the winter like for so many ni ghts. Just coming together because its so cold and stuff. Running away or being in j ail together you know? Those are all things you go through. Ever ybody goes through things and experiences together, bonding things. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Besides painting together, they engage in several activities together, such as trips, drinks, and clubbing: We do whatever! We play mini-golf, go out

46

part ying, just hung out, its niceit is reall y important to have good people in the crewthat have nothing to do with the activit y. Its just to have a good relationship (Aso 26, Stockholm). During m y field work, Ive spent several evenings with various crews to grasp the atmosphere between the members and Ive been told man y times that if I were not there, they would have hardl y talked about graffiti:
They are people I know since I was 12. So.. its j ust nor mal friendship and it happened to be that graffiti is also there. Thats something that we j ust do, its not something we speak about the all time. [Edge 26, Amsterdam]

4.5.1 Group identity performance

We have our own tag and then we have the crew name that represents all of us [Philo 23, Rome].

When a crew is created, a common name is invented and the writers that belong to it will start pushing that name as well. Crew names are generall y represented with acron yms or abbreviations of the full names. Onl y a few know what the initials stand for, and sometimes they can stand for more things, according to internal jokes with the crew members. For instance the Amsterdam crew LD stands for Lekker Drunken , but also Lets Dance . However, it is the abbreviation that is considered and recognized b y everybod y as the crew name. Often, but not always, the crew name is written inside or next to the personal piece. When more writers from the same crew go painting together, it is generall y the crew name that is painted, while the personal tags are written inside. On a few occasions the rest of the crew, even if they are not present, are written down as a sort of dedication. However, disclosing publicl y the names of the crew members happens more in Rome than in Amsterdam. According to what I experienced and observed and furthermore some of the conversations I had suggest the reason for this is probabl y related to greater police controls in the Netherlands than in Ital y. In the Netherlands the police keeps records of graffiti

47

(mostl y the train ones) and a graffiti writer never wants to have the Who is the rest of your crew? question asked. Therefore, they try to avoid it, even if it means writing different names sometimes. This will be explained further in the Illegalit y section below. Dedications are very common when making a piece. More often a piece is dedicated to the rest of the crew (see Image 6), but also to their girlfriends or to other crews.

Image 6. Dedication to the members of the crew.

Sometimes it happens that a graffiti writer belongs to more than one crew:

I am with IPERS since 2005. I also have t wo more crews, one i s called SKM with whom I am painting since 2002 and the other one is GF Global Force that is the most recent one. Ever ybody knows me as belonging to SKM, because I am painting with them si nce many years. [] When I paint alone I can write the crew that I want . But I always write SKM for instance. Its the long-lasting one for me. I write IPERS when I f eel like. [Renok 26, Rome]

Different crews can have different kinds of relationships that are reflected in the st yles of the graffiti such as writing a crew name next to another one or dedications to another crew or the opposite crossing out. Graffiti can reflect both rivalries and alliances for instance some walls are called solidarit y walls.

48

The way the pieces are made and distributed, illustrates bonds among different crews and these can be considered as an example of the function of graffiti as marking social networks. The expression of alliance between different crews is shown on more walls and on more occasions, as if to make clear the connection to the whole of the underground subculture (see Image 7). Several crews can

also come together and form a kind of famil y like crew 47of Rome (see Image 8).

Image 7. Expression of solidarity between the two cities Velletri and Nettuno (near Rome), it stands for the connection between the crews Ipers and Criminals.

Image 8. Family crew 47, to which RC belongs

On the contrary, man y crews are rivals. Often the names of the crews instigate violence, dominance and victory. For instance the Milan crew FIA stands for Fuck It All or the RC crew from Rome means Roman Core , but also Riot Clan . However, there are occasions in which rivalries between two or more crews have always existed, so their members start crossing each others out as a priorit y. This can be a triggering event that touches off a war between them. In fact, some actions are seen as extremel y offensive and disrespectful so that they are immediately interpreted and understood from both parties as a

49

declaration of war. For instance, there are some train yards that are known for belonging to a particular crew, thus other crews should not go painting there without asking or it will be seen as an arrogant act towards them. This sort of war usuall y remains on the walls (this phenomenon is in fact referred to as war of walls in graffiti jargon) or can get ph ysical in some extreme

circumstances. Crossing out somebod y can be done b y painting an actual cross over the alread y existing piece or just b y painting over it with the new piece. It is the most powerful and explicit action to do in order to express antagonism. However, there are softer ways as well to express contrast, such as repetition of a name, size of it, or writing an ugl y piece next to a wall painted b y a popular writer. All these kinds of actions can relate to a real conversation between the writers, they are perceived b y the communit y as dialogues with negative assertions or simpl y as turning up the volume in a discussion. A discussion where each of the participants want to have the last word:
The reasons one time was j ust because a lot of people started to cross MY staff. And then I paid back. Not ver y often t houghI tr y to respect. There are many writers picking down on younger people, but I think thats unnecessar y. [ Aso 26, Stochol m]

Sometimes conflicts go beyond the walls, angers between crews can transform into ph ysical fights. However, this happens in extreme cases and it

depends on the attitude of the crews, in this way it tends to resemble gangs instead of groups of friends enjo ying painting together.
CBS is the crew that started this shit. They cross us, but we know they build their shit to do their shit. [] We met them a couple of ti mes, but most of the time it is not good. You can sense when they are there. They are not about the graffiti, they are about f ighting. If you are a graffiti writer you have a crew. They are older, they have a crew, more history, you can feel that shit if you enter their perimeter. You can feel their kar ma. Their presence. When they were younger they were taught. We respect that. If you ar e going to fuck with them, they are going to fuck you up. So, if they are there, we sense it and we leave. [Gear 24, Amsterdam] Even if I am 200% about graffiti, it is not t hat hard that I would shut or kill a person. Never.[ Twice 25, Amsterdam]

50

Why should I shut a guy for some paint ? And this is the difference between us and them. We j ust do graffiti, we love the letters, we do the graffiti for the end of the graffiti itself. They do it for the end of fighting. But li ke he saidbetter not to compete with them, because they fuck you up. [Gear 24, Amsterdam]

As it has been shown in this paragraphs, graffiti subculture is framed within illegalit y. Experiences, relations between writers, feelings and This is why it is very

performances are to be understood within this context. important to understand the role of it in this subculture.

4.6 Illegality
Doing something that is not allowed makes you feel more alive [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Illegalit y is the core aspect of graffiti. Graffiti is born as an illegal activit y and the fact that it is not allowed brings the greatest feelings to the writers. The thrill is crucial. It is like an extreme sport. Its about risk and adrenaline (Hero 26, Rome). As it will be shown later in this chapter, most writers claim that doing graffiti is like empt ying themselves, releasing certain emotions. The action of spraying per se gives an immediate sensation of discharge which is given b y the action of liberating something and leaving it on the wall: the colour. However, this is enhanced b y the fact of doing it illegall y. In this way one builds up a lot of tension and adrenaline, so that the pleasure when the graffiti is finall y made is at the maximum point. When walking at night, preparing for the action, walking towards the spot to do it, the spray cans are agitated and treated as real weapons read y to fight an invisible and forbidden combat.

I see it more li ke a James Bond thing Actuall y you go and do something, and you get away with it with clean hands and it is j ust kind of different. It is not j ust the aggression, but also intensifying reality. You

51

actually feel the adrenaline rushing into your body and youre nervous and your heart beats are like kicking. And t his is nice. It is the same li ke with bunging-j umping. This is j ust socially not accepted, this is why it is in a different book. But there are the same things playing there. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Illegalit y also stands for respect, the bigger the chances to be caught and the higher the respect that the writer will get from the rest of the communit y. However, even if illegalit y is the main drive for the subculture to exist, it also restricts and influences the way the graffiti is performed.
If you do it in a hard spot and you dont want to be recognised and the chances are ver y bi g to get caught, you write another name so I would not write Twice. But if I put Gear next to my f ake name, they would know I am Twice. So I put up a nickname for hi m. I would always dedicate, for life. [] If I am getti ng caught, for the trai ns they are more prof essional in keeping archi ves of who is writing with who and stuff like that. I dont want to sit for 30 days in the prison. So, I write another name, so if they catch me I say this is my name, do whatever you want with it and they can never say who is the rest of the crew? I dont want to have this question. So, I avoid it. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

Paying attention to places, times and names does not always prevent a writer from being caught. However, being caught is not seen as something to be ashamed of, rather it improves the fame of the busted writer and it reinforces his feeling of passion for graffiti. In fact, being arrested instead of slowing down the activit y of the writer, often provokes the opposite reaction. The more they bust you, and the more you want to paint. (Mars 22, Rome).
It influences you li ke for one week or t wo and again you are itchi ng and you want to write and then fuck it. And someti mes you go back twice harder. Just there and destroy. Whatever you want. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

Generall y, graffiti is the onl y criminal behaviour in which the writers are engaged. Stealing spray cans is also considered as a part of the game, it is a kind of rule to steal them when starting the activit y, however it seems to go away once the writers grow older. Another thing that improves while growing up

52

is the feelings towards the police. Writers seem to understand better what the role of everybod y is in societ y and there is no such a thing as I hate the police.
My feelings about the police officers and the all situation have changed too. Li ke a 15 years old you wake up and you are all the ti me fucking around with them. But now its like no, they are j ust people doing their j ob, they need that stuff. Its j ust reality and if they catch you they are doing a good j ob. It s different. You understand more what everybody is doing. You get a complete picture when you are older. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

4.6.1 Dont tell me I can do it!

Graffiti is considered to be in man y towns as a real plague that disturbs the urban order. Some actions are effectivel y considered a danger for the econom y of a town or a nation, for instance trains and subway painting. Also, residential houses can be seriousl y damaged from graffiti painted on the side

walls of their walls. Moreover, it seems that graffiti encourages other criminal behaviour in the affected areas. Therefore, as mentioned before, different towns adopt different approaches, restrictions and securit y policies against the issue of graffiti. Nonetheless, restrictions are not the only solution, in fact allowing graffiti in certain areas was perceived at the beginning as a great way to control the situation. Beside the fact of giving a vent for the needs of writers to paint, it could also improve the outlook of certain gray urban areas. However this does not seem to greatl y prevent or diminish the amount of illegal graffiti going on. If they are allowed, it doesnt feel like graffiti anymore, the adrenaline is gone, so is the respect.
Legal graffiti is not graffiti, everybody can do that. Its about adventure, is not about how good I can draw. Its about tagging ever ything whenever you want. I get more ener gy from a drinks with my guys and then oh guys, lets do a wall. Ever y paint used in a legal wall is WASTE OF PAINT. [] You can be that good, that fucking creati ve, but if you cannot do this in an illegal environment you are not a graffiti writer to me. You are j ust one of the rest. You can be a creative desi gner of a web site. It is the same for me. Its legal. But if you do it a ni ght and you do it good you get a lot of respect. [Gear 24, Amsterdam]

53

You should not write graffiti legal to get famous. NEVER. [] There are a lot of guys doing that and I hate them. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

Some writers use it as an occasion to improve their st yle. When painting on legal walls there is not the pressure of finishing because the police may be chasing them. Nevertheless, besides the fact of having more time to try new techniques, it is above all a nice way to spend time with the other gu ys of the crew.
Someti mes I do it. Only to put up some ver y nice walls. If you are lucky you do a barbecue, but it doesnt matter. You j ust paint with the boys from the crew. If its shit is ok. Doesnt matter. It is j ust about the crew coming together . [Gear 24, Amsterdam]

Making graffiti legally is close to working for commission. Graffiti pieces can be perceived as beautiful and can attract different kinds of people with the way writers make use of colours and letters. In order to get some economical reward out of this passion, man y writers will therefore accept to do some assignments, which means, getting paid to paint something an emplo yer requests. However, the real passion stays on the walls: I am trying to get with this compan y doing these legal things, projects, then you get cans and cans you can use for illegal. Making money from it and getting cans for the real passion (Twice 25, Amsterdam). All the participants in this research have affirmed that they would never quit the illegal scene for a legal career:

No, I would never leave the illegal scene. Its about freedom. If I am not limiting your freedom, why are you li miting mine? I dont underst and how can they li mit colours? [Hero 26, Rome] I did it, but I dont like it. When you do it as a j ob, you will always have some constraints, somebody that will tell you No, I dont like it, do it like that! So you are not free to do it like you want. I am a bit against. [Philo 23, Rome]

I ve been doing that f or a year. I dont like that. I put so much effort into the all culture, I put so much effort into myself for being part of the

54

culture, why would I now sell it out and throw it all away. It doesnt really make sense to me, you know? It j ust throw your belief out the door. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

This dichotom y legal vs. illegal is parallel to the one graffiti vs. art. Man y writers reject terms such as artist or street art . Legal graffiti is perceived b y writers as something like art, and art has nothing to do with the rush and impulse of graffiti: Legal is different, you do something that looks more like art of graphics. You loose your instinct (Renok). A few of the writers Ive met work in fields related to art, for instance they graduated from the art academ y or they are graphic designers. However all of them firml y point out that the two things are very distinct. Graffiti is not made to be in the galleries, graffiti has to be on the street, it has to be done under pressure and fear of being caught.

Graffiti is intensifying reality for me. And this is what I tr y to do in my art and what I tr y to experience in graffiti. I tr y to visuali ze it in my art, and I experience it in graffi ti []But in ter ms of going out and tr ying to be a street artist, and try to copy Banksy and get famous in the art world through graffiti its just total sell out in a way you know? And you are missing the all point. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

If graffiti is not art, what is it then?

4.7 The blank message of graffiti

If you want to have a message, then you should write a book! [ Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Graffiti, for its characteristic as an illegal activit y, from breaking rules to changing the urban shape of a cit y, has the potential to be a subculture rich of political and social significance. However, facing the question Is there a message you want to transmit? the answer is approximately similar to Heros one: With time I understood that the onl y efficient answer is that I do it for myself (Hero 26, Rome).

55

We have this guy Laser who is doing messages around the city and people really like it because they think there is content added to it, and j ust makes me sick, because this is not what graffiti i s about. Graffiti is about plain messages. It is not even messages, it is plain actions. This is what the culture is. This is writing your name, using your name in a way that no one else is doing it. And he is doing texts and staff and trying to be philosophical, but really it doesnt go anywhere. And now he has this book. I am reall y disgusted f rom the graffiti point of view. If you have a message you do something else. You either make art, you should write a book, but dont do graffiti. [] Graffiti is that empt y, but still is an underground subculture. And this is what it should be, you know? [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Graffiti has nothing to say and does not pretend the contrary, it is an empt y practice based on colours and letterforms: I just find it more useful to decorate a wall than seeing a gray wall (Revs 20, Rome). Therefore any other form of inscription used for political purposes, or to transmit philosophical messages go far beyond the original graffiti. Moreover, doing graffiti is not a statement against someone: you are not hitting someone or something. It is not the owner of the building []. It is not that if the train was late the day before I am going to paint it (Renok 26, Rome). However, if not in the writing, there is a subtle meaning in the gesture of doing it, even if it is completel y out of personal reasons:
Its a bit against the common idea of how to behave along the nor ms of the society. [] I mean the message is like that I want maybe people thinking more what is possible. Maybe whatever you want to do, if you dont hurt anybody else. [Aso 26, Stockhol m]

4.7.1 Audience
Who is looking at graffiti? Millions of people walk b y walls full of tags every day, or enter on a train that has just been just painted the night before, but are they reall y looking at them? To some, probabl y graffiti is an invisible part of the urban landscape; however this study did not concentrate on this aspect. The point of this research is focusing on the question who do the writers think is

56

their audience? To whom are they performing for? Who are the people receiving their (blank or not so blank) messages? Once again, it seems that the writer himself is the one receiving most of the benefits.. The biggest pleasure is given b y seeing his own name up on the walls/trains, since the writer himself is in fact his biggest fan.. Subsequentl y there are his friends and the rest of the crew to which the piece is often dedicated.

First I always thought other writers. But now I dont really care about other writers anymore. I guess it is maybe more for myself and my friends, but of course is also nice when I go to a different city and I always look who is sort of UP. It is always connected to other people. But if I think of it only one way, then I think that it is more for myself and for my friends. [Edge 26, Amsterdam]

Dedications to girlfriends play also an important role here. Writers tend to write in the piece the name or nickname of the girlfriend of that moment. It is like a gift to them, it is showing I think of you. Below is a paragraph taken from m y field notes highlighting the role of the girlfriend:
I spent an afternoon with Renok, looking for the train his crew painted the night before. He brought many things to show me, such as old magazines and articles. However, the most interesting thing it was his sketch book. It is something generall y ver y secret. I was r eally honoured by the fact that he has shown it to me. The most interesting part of it were the dedications to girlfriends next or inside a letter. It was funny to read all these different names: 10 years of relationships in front of my eyes. It can also be a way to celebrat e an anni versar y or a special place j ust because something romantic had happened there once []. While walking along the train cars we saw some pieces of our friend Philo and I noti ced that there was always writ ten One Love inside each piece. He explai ned me that this is for his girlfriend, she is a train writer as well, but she lives in Milan and he lives in Rome. So, they both write One Love inside to dedicate pieces to each others, sure that the other wont miss it. [Field notes] (See Image 9).

57

Image 9. One Love

Nevertheless, it is always a great feeling when people outside the culture recognize them. So, in this sense everybody is the audience:
I li ke when the general public can see the staff. It can never motivat e myself to paint in a spot that j ust other writers see. [] I definitely want the public to see it. And definitely f or my cr ew (Aso 26, Stockholm) .

However, although the public can see it, often the writing is unreadable. Letters are drawn in a way that people outside the culture are not used to seeing and identifying. It is much easer for writers to understand each other because they are more used to playing with shapes and colours. There are also conducting in closed coding, closed s ystems of communication (cross outs, dedications) that are not identifiable to the general public.

If they depict it as a blank activit y, as something lacking in significance, what is the drive for starting it? What pushes thousands of adolescents to write all over their environments?

58

4.8 The beginnings

The reasons to start doing graffiti can vary a lot from writer to writer. However, two of the most common drives are the need to communicate and the fascination for the subculture. I always liked it. M y eyes were onl y on graffiti when I was young and then I became one of them (Mars 22, Rome). Young writers are attracted b y these amazing forms and colours of letters: on the street, in a magazine, coming across a documentary on the TV or b y flipping through the diary of a friend.
The Weber was a magazine. It was a yout h magazine. And it published like graffiti. There was a graffiti magazine in one section. We saw these graffiti and we were li ke wow this is so fucking beautiful. And he [older friend of ours] said oh I know this. It is called tagging. And we knew all the words from the magazine. Li ke what is tagging, what is piecing, what is a throw up. What is a whole car. It told us everything that we needed to know about graffiti. So, than we did it. [ Gear 25, Amsterdam] When I was a child, experiences were only told by my parents, in the family unit I was growing up. So I wanted to externalize somet hing, I always li ked to communicate, also if not verbally. So, an i mage was for me a good way to expr ess myself. [ Hero 26, Rome]

Generall y, writers start to get interested in graffiti around the age of 1214. Youth plays a very important part in the process of becoming a writer. It is a transitional period in life in which the identit y starts to be shaped and wants to be expressed. Some of the writers I researched were alread y involved in some other street activities, such as skateboarding.
I was into skateboarding and I guess it is also really close to something like graffiti. And it j ust has to do with posit ion yourself somewhere. What I like about graffiti, what I li ke about skateboarding. What I like about punk, hip-hop.. all these youth culturesis that they are existing on itself. They are not ruled by certain grown up groups, or massi ve corporations. Now they are obviously, but when they started out, when they developed, its like a youth culture and as soon as grown up people get involved they usually fuck ever ything up. But I li ke t hat, its something like reall y creative can get into such a level of quality and the development goes to youth, goes to children you know? And I think its kind of unique. And I guess I wanted to take part in that. I was i nto skate boardingand at one

59

point I stopped doing skateboarding as I star ted doing graffiti. I j ust didnt have the ti me anymore. I j ust thought I woul d be skateboarding for the rest of my life. I j ust dont get that skateboard off ever anymore. [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

Adolescents are eager to express their creativit y, to achieve a certain position and status: You could just put it there and then suddenl y you made this mark in your environment (Edge 26, Amsterdam). Moreover, the graffiti communit y is relativel y small and if someone is regular and passionate, it will not be difficult for him to get noticed. Graffiti magazines show a carefree world and a beautiful kind of fame that comes out of colouring: I wanted to be good at something. Like mastering something. Especiall y when I got to know the magazine, I was thinking How the hell do they do it [] and you want to make something that looks like it.(Edge 26, Amsterdam).
At the beginning it is a need to emer ge. This is the crucial point. We all try to emer ge in some how. And when you are young, this is more difficult because they dont gi ve you enough spaces. You are treated as somebody that still needs to create himself. So, the beautiful thing about graffiti is the arrogance of taking credit for what you do. [] I wanted to find something in which I was really GOOD and become the best in it. [Mirics 22, Rome]

Furthermore, adolescence is a period of rebellion, doing something that goes against the rules creates a feeling of power: You are anti-establishment and you dont want an ybod y to tell you what to do and all these things in the societ y, all these rules. And you try to find a way out of it (Raw 26,

Amsterdam). It is rebellion about the societ y, about your parents, about man y things. Everybod y finds his own way (Mirics 22, Rome).

4.8.1 Keep it going

At the beginning it was a need for expression. Then it became an habit, then a vice, then a dependency (Mars 22, Rome)

60

There are countless young people that start writing during the first years of high school, the majorit y of them do it as a game, just to try it and then quit after a few months. Nevertheless, some of them keep on doing it and this is when the identit y of the writer starts to mlange with the graffiti subculture with no way of return.
We were young boys; we saw those things t hat caught our attentions li ke that, by chance. When you are 16 you ki nd of absorb ever yt hing. If something sti mulates you, youll do it. And you also have the unconsciousness of doing it as it comes out. Then later you keep doing it, because it belongs to you. [Renok 26, Rome]

It is very difficult for a writer that has been painting for over 10 years to stop thinking about it. It is a dependency that is brought about b y all the intense feelings that the action gives you: Nowadays I am more like for the action and the atmosphere. Its more about the action feeling right now (Aso 26, Stockholm). Feelings can also vary a lot however, the first of all is the adrenaline rush and the release that one feels once the piece is done: Its pure pleasure. Almost an orgasm (Philo 23, Rome).
I can say excited on one hand, but on the other hand relieved. Doing finally the thing I wanted to do and it feels like ah, finall y. [Twi ce 25, Amsterdam]

Graffiti writing becomes with time a way of releasing a certain state of mind: If I am mad or happ y I go to do it and it becomes a product of m y soul (Hero 26, Amsterdam). For some writers it is related to releasing a discomfort that comes from the surrounding environment. The stronger the bad feeling for a certain place or a situation and the greater the need to release this anger and to leave it there, on the wall.
Its a sort of or when you you ve done this account feeling of empt ying yourself, when you ve done a whole line do a lot of tags, or doing really a nice piece on a place, and all the work and you finished it, its this feeling of I made or something. [Edge 26, Amsterdam]

61

I kind of feel free, you know? It is one moment of your day where you kind of like dont have to answer any questions you know? Its still something you are doing when you are believing you know? You spit it out there and you are not expecting anything back from it you know? Other than getting a reaction from within the subculture. [ Raw 26, Amsterdam]

To sum it up, it is mostl y personal reasons that keep the graffiti activit y going, while all t ypes of youth rebellion disappear. It is about dealing with ones own anger and discomfort. And then it becomes normal to solve it b y doing graffiti. However, after man y years of devoting ones life to graffiti, the love for the culture also takes over: I think I am so dedicated to this and after some years it feels like you are a part of this. You have to carry on in some way (Aso 26, Stockholm).

4.9 Commitment
Having the love for a culture, you know? Living it and not trying t o define it further Just loving something and wanted to do it. Someti mes you dont have that answer [Raw 26, Amst erdam]

Writers feel committed to the graffiti subculture, they love it and they let it completel y dominate their lives so that it is hard to decide whether it is more a passion or an addiction. More often than not, it influences other life choices and many other aspects of the life (See Image 10). For many of the respondents it is a passion that will never die: I was thinking about quitting when I was 20. I said I would quit when I was 24. Now I am 27 and I am writing even more than before. So, I dont think quitting is an option. Its there for life (Twice 25, Amsterdam).

You can stop writing graffiti and 30 years later you are still looking at tags. And this is nice because the culture keeps on growing, it doesnt go away, it doesnt slip away. And its growing, its crazy. People keep coming up, people keep starting writing and you would expect something to die out and it is not. [] I dont think it can go away. Wri ting on walls, how can it go away? [Raw 26, Amsterdam]

62

I ve been thinking of that many ti mes. But I never did it. If you think back on how many hours you put into some kind of activit y...then I cant imagi ne j ust quitting t otally. Its j ust terrible. [Aso 26, Stockhol m]

Image 10. This is the numberplate of a writers car. He has a graffiti sign next to it showing commitment.

It is the time that they spend on the activit y that makes it so important for them. For man y of them, in effect, graffiti can completel y dominate the writers lives. In fact, even if the actual painting takes place once or twice a week, graffiti is always there and the writers are: constantl y thinking about it, sketching on papers, examining at their work while biking, walking or

travelling b y train around the cit y. Sketching is always there. It doesnt go away. Once you are reall y caught b y the fever then you can never let it go (Raw 26, Amsterdam).

My all life is dedicated to graffiti. Its li ke a life style. I go off fr om wor k and then I go doing some painting. And when I am at wor k, I am t hinking about graffiti, of doing graffiti. [] Ask to our girlfriends, it is 24/7 about graffiti. And they are always li ke aaaaaaaah! [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

Since they started at a very young age, and the activit y requires so much time, on the one hand graffiti may have had influenced their school results

63

negativel y, but on the other hand it stimulates writers creativit y and interest towards art disciplines. In fact, being involved in graffiti influences important life choices without a doubt: choosing a particular kind of high school or universit y for instance. Man y of m y respondents did art at high school or went to an academ y or addressed themselves towards urban related subjects at universit y.
I wonder if I would go to the art school.. Even though what I do there is really different, anything that is related to graffiti, but still definitely [] if I didnt started with graffiti, maybe I would have studied something else. (Edge 26, Amsterdam]

This minorit y is engaged in completel y different societal activities. A funn y story was told me b y one of the writers who used to work in a popular TV series. He told me that sometimes, b y knowing where the shoot would take place, he would place some graffiti on some of the walls around the shoot so that the piece could also get a part in the scene. This shows that graffiti still remains the prime thought throughout. It is both a passion and an addiction:

Its a passion because you are always doing it and you feel so much about it and an addiction because when you dont do it for two weeks your hands are getting itchy, they really want to do something. [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

Image 11. How the back of a writers car looks like.

64

Since graffiti is an illegal activit y, taking place mostl y at night in often dangerous places, it certainl y causes some problems between the kids and the parents, mostl y at the beginning, especiall y when parents start receiving letters or phone calls from the police. Generall y, parents do not approve it, it is wasting time on something that not onl y does not give any economical rewards, but too often causes problems with the law enforcements. However, in some cases, resigned and conscious of the fact that it is a passion that takes a lot of energy and that it gives a different kind of reward, a more personal one, some parents appear to see the positive value in it:
They always knew. I would come home when I was 15, 16 or 17 all these years I came home really late and they wer e going to wor k and I was like knocking the door to go to sleep. They didnt like it all the time, but they recogni zed the fact that I was actually tr ying to achieve something. I think this is good for parents to do. And it is trueI support their decision in their way I learned to wor k I think from it. [ Raw 26, Amsterdam]

However, most of the writers try to keep the graffiti life hidden from the people they know. This is generall y because of obvious reasons of securit y, but also because it is an underground world that needs to be kept that way to qualify for that definition. There is a romantic feeling connected to the fact of doing something that outsiders do not see and often do not approve.

Some people j ust from wor k go to home and they think this is mi ne and you never can enter my fucking world. And graffiti is mine, this is me and Twice and Raw doing shit I li ke and you can never enter my fucking world. NEVER [Twice 25, Amsterdam]

4.10 Conclusive thoughts

Graffiti subculture is all about performing identities. Identities that are rehearsed, negotiated and portrayed both in fixed and mobile spaces. The cit y plays an integral role inside this communit y as graffiti does not exist in rural areas. The need to tag is in fact generated b y a discomfort given b y the chaos of

65

the cit y. This causes a feeling of alienation, mostl y within the youth as they still have to position themselves somewhere in the society. The need to emerge and to affirm ones identit y is so strong that it pushes thousands of adolescents to take spray cans and claim their identities all over their environment. Moreover, these identities are portrayed with a beautiful use of letters and colours that, this in combination with the relativel y eas y fame that comes with the constant engagement, and the given small number of subcultural members, are the main sources of fascination for it. Furthermore, the illegalit y of the activit y adds a special appeal to it. Even though writers claim to be against nobody and to carry an empt y message, the gesture of making graffiti goes against the rules imposed b y societ y; it is about claiming a right over the cit y. Therefore, it is not the right to be heard that is claimed here, but the sole right to be there. Illegalit y involves risk and bravery, thus if on the one hand it brings hostilit y from many, it also brings respect from peers. No writer would ever give up illegal graffiti for an ything else. Writing on legal walls or for a commission is seen as something more art related, and the impulse and adrenaline that comes with graffiti disappears. If they are told what and where to do it, the value of graffiti is gone. However, being good requires time, energy, courage and dedication so that the majorit y of the lives of the graffiti writers are to a higher or lower degree affected b y it. Their lives are committed to the subculture, which is felt b y every writer as something to carefully safeguard. t is a passion that never goes.

66

5. Conclusions 5.1 Introduction

The research outlined in this thesis aimed at discovering the internal d ynamics of an illegal youth culture of which I was a complete outsider. I did not know anyone from the graffiti world, and I have sometimes been sceptical of what I could have reall y seen and discovered. In order to do so, I needed to get to know these inhabitants of the night that move like ghosts around the cities, leaving their visible marks on the walls with their invisible hands. Man y things could have gone wrong; I could have ended up spending one night in jail or being in the middle of some crew fight; however, surprisingl y everything worked out smoothl y: I took m y field notes, took pictures, conducted interviews and got man y insights from this world that remained unknown to me until one year ago. In this conclusive chapter I will first give an elaborate answer to my research question, and secondl y, I will illustrate the implications of the theory that gave the basis for this stud y before the actual immersion of it. Thirdl y, I will draw a methodological reflection on m y work, and lastl y I will give m y suggestions for further studies in this field. The central research question for this stud y was: How do graffiti writers perform their identity in European cities? Graffiti writers in Europe perform their identit y b y illegall y spraying walls, trains and subways of the cit y. Writing on the wall means I exist, an affirmation that is generated by a desire to emerge and to belong to a communit y. The illegalit y of the actions reinforces the feeling of freedom, of breaking the rules, but mostl y it gives them power and respect. Making a name involves risks and dangers: the greater the danger, the greater the respect. Recognition from peers gives them personal rewards and augments their personal enrichment. Graffiti is a self advertisement done within the cit y with no use of money, but with adrenaline instead. However, insistentl y affirming ones identit y within the cit y does not involve resistance against a dominant culture, as

67

there are not external political goals that want to be achieved; rather it is just about the narcissistic will of freedom and domination of the writer.

5.2 An extensive answer: combining theory and results

In the theory it was taken for granted that the self is something that you do, rather than what you are (Duits, 2008), however what graffiti writers write on the walls is both what they do and what they are in their communit y. Graffiti is claiming I exist. In the graffiti subculture the affirmation of the self is not done b y modifying ones personal aspect in order to emerge within the societ y, like it happens in subcultures such as punks (Hebdige, 1979), Goths (Hodkinson, 2002) , etc. In the graffiti subculture, it is not b y dressing up in an unusual way or b y carrying a different hair st yle that the members of this subculture claim their right to be different. It is not about communicating a substantial difference with the mainstream (Hebdige, 1979), but about creating another identit y presented through an innovative and often incomprehensible s ystem of communication. This new identit y is reduced to the sole name, a chosen name, written on the walls of the cit y, trains and subways. Making a name in the graffiti language means in fact being someone. The name works as the writers mask, which he performs through st yle (Maffesoli, 1988). The new identities are in fact performed through the use of letters, colours and shapes, which together replace all sort of aesthetic accessories and attitudes of the real persona. These attributes constitute the st yle of a specific writer. The real identit y completel y looses importance, there could be an y skin colour, position or educational background behind the tag and it does not matter. I would indeed argue that it is a mask with a missing body. Graffiti writers, through their tags, establish new identities, literall y holding them in their own hands. The way the tag is performed could be approached through Goffmans theory of the presentation of the self (1959): the backstage is the writer sketching on papers, the personal front of appearance is the final piece on the wall, and the theatrical spaces are the surfaces used b y the writers to present themselves. However, Goffman was talking about individuals performing different roles all the time, while graffiti writers have a strong awareness of the one self

68

they want to present to others and, even if rarel y they adopt different names, they work insistentl y for one coherent identit y that is recognizable through their st yle. Instead, the new established identit y reflects Giddens theory of the narrative of the self in man y ways (Giddens, 1991). Writers continuousl y work on their self-identities to make sense of themselves. Indeed, they rehearse for long time on papers before leaving their marks on the walls. The writers sketch book often looks like a diary, insofar as it is the story of the writer growing up as a writer: insecure at the beginning, trying out names, slowl y getting a firmer hand, trying out different st yles, getting a name, belonging to crews, and forming relationships. However, while the sketch book is for the writer, the street is for everybod y, an open diary. Seeing his pieces around helps the writer to construct the narrative of what he is, with the cit y being the canvas where the story line is written, but also read, reworked, and modified. Walls tell stories of identities, of friendships and animosities. However, what is performed there is not only personal identit y, but also group identit y and commitment to the subculture, confirming Hetheringtons view of identit y as something more than selfreflection, but as a relation between performance, identification, and

communication (Hetherington, 1998). In line with Hetherington, in fact, a graffiti identit y is achieved through performative repertoires that are expressive and embodied. The performance of the writers identit y is made in such a way that it keeps both individual identit y and collective identification without loosing sight of either. Indeed, the identit y of the graffiti writer onl y exists when performed, it often involves identification with one crew and with the subculture in general, and it communicates fellowship and dominance. Friendship and support between members of the same crew and fraternit y between all members of the subculture are necessary to reinforce the feeling of identit y formation. As it was explained by Maffesoli (1988), collective

identification with a crew and belonging to the subculture are seen as means of developing individual identit y. Individual innovation is always framed in the context of a general display of commitment to the range of tastes which s ymbolize the graffiti scene. Following the patterns of the subculture enhances

69

personal identit y as the value of the writer is recognized within a certain set of shared values. By behaving in a certain way dictated b y the subculture, graffiti writers conduct a specific lifest yle t yp ical to a minor or major degree to all members of the subculture: going out in the middle of the night, sketching on papers for big parts of the day, hanging out at stations and train yards to take pictures and look at graffiti. These life choices give writers personal narratives an identifiable shape and link together people that have made similar choices (Giddens, 1991). In fact, members of the same crew form strong and intense relationships among themselves b y sharing the same experiences, and b y giving importance to the same things. Their current sense of affiliation is based primaril y on sharing subcultural capital: more than where they are from, it matters what the graffiti writers are into. Subcultural capital, as it was described b y Thornton (1995), is the key player of an alternative hierarchy in which the axes of age, gender, sexualit y and race are all emplo yed in order to keep the determinations of class, income and occupation at bay. Nevertheless, for the graffiti subculture gender and age play an important role when joining the subculture in the first place; however, they loose importance once the writer is on the wall . Graffiti writers tend to classify and judge others b y means of a conscious and mutuall y agreed upon set of standards: the quantit y of tags around the cit y; the crew of belonging and the respect attributed to the other members; the choice of an original, catch y and control expressing name; the abilit y to use letters and colours with st yle; the kind of trains or subways he painted; the danger associated with the spots he painted on; the cities in which he has been seen; his enemies; and even whether or not he has been busted. The degree of status-inducing that one holds is therefore related to the particular tastes or values of a given subcultural grouping. The level of commitment to the subculture confers status to its owner in the eyes of the relevant beholder (ibid.). However, in the graffiti subculture it is the writer himself that claims to be at the head of this alternative hierarch y b y drawing a crown on top of his name, while newcomers are called toys as they dont carry enough subcultural capital. This s ystem of classification induces considerable

70

encouragement for individuals to collect, learn about and exhibit examples of established subcultural st yle and behaviour (ibid.). Graffiti writers are adolescents that want to be good at something and want to express their creativit y in our modern societ y, where just very few people are reall y noticed. Graffiti gives them the tools to become this successful person that they may not be elsewhere. Following Epstein (1998), quest for identit y is greater at a young age, where the need to be someone is greater, and popularit y among peers is fundamental. According to the classification of Matza (1961), graffiti could be situated between delinquent youth and bohemianism, because they seek expressive goals concerned with immediate gratification that they cannot find elsewhere, however they use aggressive aesthetic pursuits of hedonism as they act within illegalit y. Graffiti subculture includes a very restricted number of members, so that with enough dedication everybod y can climb the hierarch y and be as much known as their own heroes. According to Brake (1980), adolescents join graffiti subculture as they feel a discomfort that comes b y a need to prevail on others. However, graffiti writers find the subculture attractive well beyond their youth, because it can be seen as acting as a buffer against social ageing. In line with Thornton (1995), in fact, members of subcultures do not go against the fear of getting older, but of resigning themselves to one position in the societ y. The material conditions of youths investment in subcultural capital results from the fact that youth, from many class backgrounds, enjo y a momentary reprieve from necessit y (ibid.). Since popular culture is concerned with pleasures and identit y rather than efficiency (Fiske, 1989), commitment for the culture comes before any financial rewards. The financial rewards are therefore translated into subcultural capital repayments, such as popularit y, friendship and recognition within the culture. Being noticed from the outsiders does not matter; the recognition has to come from peers (Thornton, 1995). In fact, in contradiction to what has been said b y the Birmingham scholars, writing on the walls is not meant to solve class struggles and to achieve recognition within the dominant culture. Graffiti writers devote their lives to graffiti not because of class frustration, but because of their own discomfort and

71

narcissistic need to emerge as themselves. Adolescents struggle to have their own spaces of performance. As stated b y Hetherington (1998), making space for oneself is a major source of affirmation of the self. The cit y becomes a space for expressions of identities, rather than a territory for battles. Graffiti writers need spaces to exhibit themselves, not to express ideals. The onl y ideals that are expressed on the walls of the cit y concern the character and survival of the group as such (Maffesoli 1996). The cit y becomes detached from its function as a cit y, cit y walls and trains become what is called b y Foucault an heterotopic space or a space that stands apart from the rest of the societ y (1967). Public space is used b y graffiti writers to manifest firstly their own selfish will of fame and domination and secondl y their silent conversations and internal fights. Within the illegality of graffiti it is possible to find the revolt that the fathers of cultural studies, Hebdige above all, were insistently looking for. It is a rebellion against behaving properl y in the societ y, not against the societ y itself. It is about taking spaces otherwise forbidden. However, they are spaces that are available and accessible because they belong to the cit y, and the cit y is perceived b y the writers as the territory of everyb od y, where walls are there for all to be used. Hebdige recognized in fact that subcultures interrupt the process of normalization, against behaving in the way imposed b y the societ y. Graffiti writers attempt to negotiate a space within the dominant ideology: a space where alternative identit y could be discovered and expressed (Hebdige, 1979). Societ y imposes the idea that we do not write on the walls. So, they do it , breaking rules. Members of the graffiti subculture, in fact, steal, appropriate and redefine s ymbols and objects of the everyday world as a form of resistance (Hebdige, 1979; Fiske, 1989). They claim their right over the cit y. They appropriate the walls, the trains, the subways. As Fiske affirms , members of subcultures occup y the places that powerful people construct to exercise their powers, making them their own. The cit y and whatever travels within it or between cities become propert y of the writers that use surfaces as canvas to promote their names. They subvert the conventional uses of commodities b y creating new ones. The walls stop being the architectural elements that give shape to houses, becoming places

72

for exhibiting existence, friendships, love and hate. In this sense, it is appropriate to say that graffiti is, in Hebdiges terms, a spectacular subculture, that through st yle offends the majorit y firstl y b y writing on their walls, or on train windows, and secondl y b y keeping them completely extraneous to it. Nevertheless, the most important function of illegalit y is to be found at the personal level. Illegalit y brings above all personal rewards; it enhances the feeling of self worth and self affirmation. It gives adventure, excitement, release, and respect. It follows the impulse of disruption and affirmation of the self that man y adolescents, mostl y male, feel while growing up (Brake, 1980). If graffiti was onl y about doing something artistic and creative, they would take a more legal approach, but b y doing so the adrenaline thrills and risks would be lost. In opposition to what has been said about graffiti subculture in earlier works (Macdonalds, 2001), illegal graffiti is not a preparation for a future legal graffiti, as man y would expect. Legal works are seen as ways to reinforce group spirit, train the st yle, but above all they are used for illegal purposes. The fact that they use spray cans in a way so that there is still some for real illegal actions has been explained b y Fiske (1989) as tricking the system. And this is what happens during works on commission or other attempts from the art world to absorb graffiti for their own financial purposes. As it was explained by one of the writers, the great thing about subcultures is that they belong to youth, and it is onl y thanks to them if those subcultures reached such a level of quality so that the adult world got interested in them. However, this interest is not seen positively b y the writers, but is instead perceived as something that ruins the core value of the graffiti subculture, which is doing what they want, how they want, where they want. Graffiti writers like to stay detached through it, and rewards given b y the mainstream culture will never count as much as the subcultural ones framed and obtained within illegalit y. The graffiti subculture encourages people to do their own thing, free from the kinds of social pressures which characterize mainstream societ y. The silent conversations on the walls are not meant to be understood b y outsiders, as the walls speak a foreign language spoken in every country in the same way.

73

5.3 Theoretical implications

The main area of research of this study is identit y performance in the graffiti subculture; therefore, it aimed at contributing to two streams of literature: firstl y, the one related to subcultural studies, and secondly the one related to issues of identit y. Overall, this study detaches itself from traditional approaches on subcultures, namely the work of the CCCS group, in favour of post-subcultural studies such as that of Thornton (1995) and Hetherington (1998): the theme of resistance broke into the one of identit y. The CCCS group described subcultures as groups of working class adolescents against a dominant culture. Subcultures are considered b y the CCCS researchers as expressive forms of tension between those in power and those condemned to subordinate positions and second-class lives (Hebdige, 1979). According to this stud y, it does not seem that subcultures are against a dominant wider culture, rather it appears that the societ y is fragmented in separate groups, with each expressing their own values, st yles and ways of life. Traditional subcultural demographics are of little or no importance in the graffiti subculture: class, race and ethnicit y do not play any role in entering the subculture. Therefore, the theme of resistance does not appear to be suitable an ymore to describe the situation of subcultural members; rather, the engine of subcultures is the quest for personal identit y through illegalit y. Graffiti writers transgress the laws of mans second nature (Hebdige:1979: 102) b y using illegalit y as a means to achieve fame and recognition. This stud y confirms Brakes view (1985) of illegal subcultures as tools that help adolescents to achieve individual identities, however Brake still considers them as solutions to collectivel y experienced problems of working class adolescents. Instead, this research showed that crime is the main strategy for achieving masculinit y and power as it was affirmed b y Merrerschmidt (1993). Class completely looses importance, leaving youth and masculinit y as the two main factors for joining a subculture, with illegalit y being the main instrument for achieving self worth and personal rewards. In order to investigate issues of identit y performance, I combined the works of Giddens, Hetherington, Maffesoli and Thornton. The outcomes of the stud y

74

foreground the connection between the self as a reflexive project, identification with others, fellowship and peers recognition. Based on Giddens view of selfidentit y as a reflexive project (Giddens, 1991), this stud y showed that reflexivit y, which is articulated through the process of rehearsing and seeing it again, is essential to build a consciousness of the self. However, it is not sufficient. There is a strong relationship between the perception of the self, the perception of the self as a member of a group, and the perception of the self from the other members of the group of belonging. I therefore propose to incorporate elements of group identit y (Hetherigton, 1998)), fellowship (Maffesoli, 1988)) and subcultural capital (Thornton, 1995)) into Giddens (1991) notion of self-reflection. According to Maffesoli (1988), a communit y is characterized by the emotional impulses of its members connected to their context of belonging. However, Maffesoli was talking about territorial, environmental, or natural contexts as major contributors to a fellowship spirit. Subcultures, instead, transcend localit y in favour of subcultural capital as the onl y contributor to fraternity and fellowship.

Subcultural capital is responsible for both a sense of belonging and a sense of dominance, given mainl y b y recognition and respect from peers. Therefore, subcultural capital is believed to be the central element to the process of identit y affirmation and performance.

5.4 Methodological reflections

As this stud y was conducted through ethnographic research, I would like to unfold some inevitable issues raised b y this methodological approach. First of all, the selection of the participants for this stud y was random and depended mainl y on the network of people that I alread y knew or that I got to know during this stud y. Since access to this subculture was limited b y the fact that it is an illegal activit y, I was not picky in choosing m y participants. This stud y involved graffiti writers in Rome and Amsterdam, however the selection of participants is not to be considered representative of the graffiti scene in the two cities or of the European scene in general. I must admit that I was firstl y disappointed b y the fact of not

75

having had the opportunit y to interview an y female graffiti writers, as I was hoping to get some great insights from a female in a male dominated world. However, having one or more girls in this study would have twisted the attention on gender related issues, while I wanted this study to be centred on issues of identit y performance. In fact, I ended up considering masculinit y as a prior concept, rather than a topic of investigation. One of the most difficult parts of this research was the one of feeling their fear and their distrust. Being a girl contributed to create a feeling of alienation, but as I alread y mentioned, I still feel that this played in m y favour both to get in contact with the writers and to help them disclose themselves, as I was not seen in a competitive role. Some things may have been omitted from their descriptions, but I feel that m y questions were always answered in a way that was satisfying for my study. In Amsterdam I also encountered the language problem; in fact, both I and the interviewed had to communicate in a second language, so that some things may have not been expressed as deepl y as it would have been in a mother tongue conversation. Certainl y, the research and the interpretation of the results were influenced b y m y cultural and academic background. However, on many occasions I found myself forgetting my role as a researcher and started to see the world from their eyes. In writing this paper, I was sometimes afraid that the empathy I felt for the writers I have met would not transpire from these pages. I wanted to write this paper from the writers perspectives, I wanted to give justice to their voices, but I also needed to be academic and objective, so that sometimes I encountered some difficulties combining the two.

5.5 Future research

This stud y aimed at filling the academic gap about graffiti identit y performance in Europe. It contributed to the field of subcultural studies b y investigating issues such as youth, identit y, illegalit y, territory, and group belonging. However, the graffiti subculture offers man y possibilities for further

76

studies. Firstl y, since I consider it to be the major limitations of this study, I would propose a stud y which aims at exploring reasons and attitudes of female graffiti writers. I consider it to be very important to investigate a minor female presence in a male dominated culture and whether their rewards are the same as male graffiti writers. Moreover, since this stud y showed that resistance does not play a role in this subculture, I consider it appropriate to make a distinction between reason for a subculture to be created and reasons for joining a subculture afterwards. It may be interesting to conduct a comparative study between the reasons of the first founders of the subculture in New York and the kids that nowadays join it. Also a comparative research between contemporary American and European graffiti could be of great value.
1

Lastl y, more and more aspects of the culture are becoming inseparable from communications technologies. The possibilit y of spreading pictures on the web is certainl y having a great impact on some aspects of graffiti such as fame and recognition. Does it reall y matter anymore to see the train running with the piece on it as long as the picture is on the web? I would therefore encourage further research on the importance of the Internet for a culture that is so firml y situated in the open air.

Previous research on graffiti in New York for instance (Macdonalds, 2001) claim that graffiti is still very much connected to the hip hop culture, something that did not appear in my study.

77

Glossary
Active: A writer who currentl y paints. Bomb: To tag. Bomber: Someone that onl y tags. Crew: A group of affiliated writers. Cross out: To put a line over another tag or crews name. Family: Affiliation of several crews. Fill-in: The painted interior of a piece, through up, flop. Flop: A quick outline of a name with black, white or no painted interior. Often it is just the first two letters of a tag (in Italy, for the Netherlands see Throwup). Go over: To write over another tag. Hall of fame: A legal or semi-legal wall. King: A respected and prolific writer. Line: A line on the subway. Mission: An illegal painting action. Old school: Older generation of writers. Piece: A more elaborate painting. Retire: To abandon painting graffiti on a regular basis. Safe: Something without risk. Sell out: A writer that works for money. Solidarity wall: A wall that reflects alliances between crews. Tag: Writers name. Tagging: Writing ones name. Throwup: A quick outline of a name with black, white or no painted interior. Toy: An inexperienced or incompetent writer. Up: A productive writer. Whole car: A piece covering the entire surface of a train carriage. Whole train: A piece covering the entire length of a train. Writer: Someone who writes graffiti. Yard: A place where trains are berthed. A train depot.

78

Bibliography
Adams K, Winter, A. (1997), Gang graffiti as a discourse genre, in Journal of Sociolinguistics 1/3: 337-360.

Adorno, T., Horkheimer ,M. (1944), Dialectic of Enlightenment . New York: Herder and Herder. Appel, V. (2006), Ghetto art: Thousands voices in the city

http://graffiti.org/faq/appel_ghetto_art2006.html (visited on the 27th of January 2009)

Bandaranaike, S. (2001), Graffiti: a culture of aggression or assertion? (paper presented at The Character, Impact and Prevention of Crime in Regional Australia Conference convened b y the Australian Institute of Criminology and held in Townsville 2-3 Augusto 2001).

Benhabib, S. (1992), Situating the self: gender, community and postmodernism in contemporary ethics. Cambridge: Polit y Press.

Bourdieu, P. (1986), The forms of capital, in J.Richardson (ed) Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education . London: Greenwood Press.

Brake, M. (1980), The sociology of youth culture and youth subcultures: Sex and drugs and rocknroll? London: Routeledge & Kegan.

Brake, M. (1985), Comparative Youth Culture: the Sociology of Youth Cultures and Youth Subcultures in America, Britain and Canada . London: Routledge.

Chalfant, H. and Prigoff, J. (1987). Spraycan Art . London: Thames and Hudson.

79

Cohen S. (1972), Moral panic and folk devils , London: MacGibbon & Kee.

Downes, D. (1966), The delinquent solution , London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.

Duits,

L.

(2008),

Multi-girl-culture:

An

ethnography

of

doing

identity .

Amsterdam: Vossiuspers/Amsterdam Universit y Press.

Durkheim, E. (1964), The division of labour in society . Translation with introduction b y George Simpson. New York: The Free Press.

Epstein, J. (1998), Youth culture: Identity in a postmodern world . Malden: Blackwell Publishers.

Erikson, E. H. (1968), Identity: Youth and Crisis . New York: Norton.

Ferrel, J. (1996), Crimes of Style: Urban graffiti and the politics of criminality . Boston. Northeastern Universit y Press.

Fiske, J. (1989), Understanding Popular Culture. London: Unwin Hyman.

Foucault, M (1988) Technologies of the self, in L H Martin, H Gutman and P H Hutton (eds) Technologies of the self . Amherst: Uni versit y of Massachusetts Press

Gauntlett, D. (2008), Media, gender and identity: an introduction . New York: Routledge.

Giddens, A. (1991), Modernity and Self-Identity . Cambridge: Polit y Press.

Giroux, H. (1994), Disturbing Pleasures . New York: Routledge.

80

Giroux, H. (1998), Teenage sexualit y, body politics, and the pedagogy of display in J. Epstein (ed.) Identity: Youth and Crisis . Malden: Blackwell Publishers.

Goffman, E. (1958), The presentation of self in everyday life . New York: Doubleday anchor Books.

Grant, C.M. (1996), Graffiti: Taking a closer look. The FBI Law enforcement Bulletin , 65: 11-15.

Hall, S. & Jefferson, T (eds) (1976), Resistance through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-was Britain. London: Hutchinson. Hammersley, M. (1990), Reading ethnographic research: a critical guide . London: Routledge . Hebdige, D. (1979), Subculture: the meaning of Style . New York: Methuen.

Henwood, K. & Pidgeon, N. (1994), Beyond the Qualitative paradigm: A framework for introducing diversit y within qualitative ps ychology in Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology , 4: 225-238. Hetherington, K. (1998), Expressions of Identity: Space, Serformance, Politics. London: Sage publications.

Hodkinson, P. (2002), Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture. Cornwall: Ed. Berg.

Kahane, R. (1997), The origins of postmodern youth: Informal youth movements in a comparative perspective . Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.

81

Locher, D. (1998), The industrial identity crisis: the failure of a newl y forming subculture to identity itself display in J. Epstein (ed.) Identity: Youth and Crisis . Malden: Blackwell Publishers. Macdonald, N. (2001), The Graffiti Subculture: Youth, Masculinity and Identity in London and New York . New York: Palgrave.

Maffesoli, M. (1988), Jeux de Masques: Postmodern Tribalism, in Design Issues , 4 (1-2): 141-151.

Maffesoli, M. (1996), The Time of Tribes . London: Sage.

Maier, C. (2007), Being there: place, territory, and identity, in S. Benhabib, I. Shapiro and D. Petranovic (Eds) Identities, Affiliations, and Allegiances (67-84) . Cambridge: University Press.

Matza, D. (1961), Subterranean traditions of youth, in American Academy of Political and Social Science , 338: 102-118.

OLeary Z. (2004) The essential guide to doing research. London: Sage

Othen-Price, L.(2006), Making their mark. A ps ychodynamic view of adolescent graffiti writing, in Psychodynamic Practice , 12 (1): 5-17.

Powers, L. (1996), Whatever happened to the graffiti art movement?, in Journal of Popular culture , 29 (4): 137-143 Slahor S. (1994), Fighting Graffiti: Efforts to Stop Visual Terror, Law and Order , May 1994: 95-96.

82

Strauss A., Corbin J. (1998), Basic of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing a grounded theory (2 n d ed.) Thousands Oaks: Sage Thornton S. (1995), Club cultures: Music, Media and Subcultural Capital . Cambridge: Polit y Press.

Williamson, P., Roberts, J. (2004), First Nations people. Toronto: Emond Montgomery Publications Limited.

Young, J. (1971), The drugtakers , London: Paladin.

83

Appendix 1
Topic List for Semi-structured interviews

General Information: How did you start? Are you an active writer? Since how long do you make graffiti? How old are you?

Feelings: What do you think was the reason for you to start? (friends doing it alread y, boredom, feeling of wanting to become someone, fascination for other existing graffiti or artists). What changed with the years? What does it mean for you? How do you feel while doing it? What is the thing that makes you feel good the most about it? What is the message you want to transmit? Are you always satisfied? Would you say that your practice is for yourself, for the others, to beautify the cit y, for whom mainl y do you do it?

Bombing How did you choose your tag? Did you always have the same one? How man y tags do you use? How did it develop during the years? How much time did you or you still dedicate to it? (Does it occup y all your time?) How often do you bomb? When (day, night)

84

What do you generally do? Tags or pieces? Do you have your own signature or piece that you always reproduce or sometimes you write messages? If yes, what kind of?

Where do you generall y paint? (trains, buildings, metro, private or public walls?)

What is your public? (Other writers, members of other crew, general public, elites?)

Is it comprehensible?

Graffiti and normal life Do you think it influenced other possible life choices? Do you let the graffiti identit y to interfere with your normal identit y? Do your friends sometimes call you b y your tag name? Does everybody know what you do? (famil y, friends) What do you do beside it?

Illegality Some people refer to graffiti as vandalisms; do you find yourself agreeing with this connotation? Man y things have been written about graffiti being against the s ystem, or the people that own the power of the cit y? Do you think that your practice is against something or someone? What is the feeling you have for the cit y? (is it yours, are you against urban control?) Is this the onl y criminal behaviour you have? What role does the fact of that is an illegal activit y plays in it? What do you feel about all the restrictions and legal measures that man y cities appl y to prevent graffiti writing? Have you ever been caught? Somebody you know? What did it mean for you? Did it influence in an y how your activit y or your feelings for it?

85

Do you ever think of quitting? If yes, for what? Would you (or you already do) legal graffiti and would you leave for ever the illegal scene?

Crews and travels: Do you belong to any crew? What shows that you belong to that crew? How do you relate to your crew? What do you do for the other members? (Dedications?) Do you often gather together? Certain rituals. What do you generally do when you are together? (also music or drugs) Do you stay in your area or do you go in other cities? Do you know other graffiti writers in other parts of Europe? Are you in contact with them? Have you ever bombed together? What do you share with them? Does something change when you write in other cities than yours? So, do you think this subculture is local? Does it have boundaries?

86