Graffiti Silence

These tricontinental ekphrastic poems feature graffiti art(ists) that have caught my heart off guard. The first poem titled “Graffiti of Silence” is a response to the anonymous “listen bird”, ubiquitous in Edmonton's urban geography from 2003 to about 2008. Stenciled, spray painted or stickered...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Adriana Onita
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Department of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies, University of Alberta 2014-11-01
Series:TranscUlturAl
Online Access:https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/tc/index.php/TC/article/view/23326
id doaj-91fc7b40aed74d268bd79cb552efc157
record_format Article
spelling doaj-91fc7b40aed74d268bd79cb552efc1572020-11-25T02:33:17ZengDepartment of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies, University of AlbertaTranscUlturAl1920-03232014-11-0161676910.21992/T91K9V23326Graffiti SilenceAdriana Onita0University of AlbertaThese tricontinental ekphrastic poems feature graffiti art(ists) that have caught my heart off guard. The first poem titled “Graffiti of Silence” is a response to the anonymous “listen bird”, ubiquitous in Edmonton's urban geography from 2003 to about 2008. Stenciled, spray painted or stickered, it always featured a speech bubble with one word: listen. It quickly became part of Edmonton’s local iconography, but the city’s Graffiti Management Program managed to eliminate the bird from its streets, but not from public memory. The second ekphrasis titled “The Fisherman” features the work of El niño de las pinturas (Raúl Ruiz), an internationally-renowned graffiti artist based in Granada, Spain. Known for his large-scale wall murals which are almost always accompanied by his own poetic text, he dresses the skin of this city in sienna strokes, covers its bruises with layers of light, becoming a source of symbolic pride for Granada. The third poem, “Monsters in Montevideo,” is inspired by Alfalfa (Nicolás Sánchez), an iconic street artist based in Montevideo, Uruguay. His unique style uses organic lines and bright colours to create fantastical creatures that add a sense of play and surprise to many of the city’s streets. These three ekphrastic poems are an attempt to translate the poetic experience of viewing street art. Through poetry, the impermanent art of graffiti is rendered immortal as a self-portrait of each city and each spectator.https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/tc/index.php/TC/article/view/23326
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Adriana Onita
spellingShingle Adriana Onita
Graffiti Silence
TranscUlturAl
author_facet Adriana Onita
author_sort Adriana Onita
title Graffiti Silence
title_short Graffiti Silence
title_full Graffiti Silence
title_fullStr Graffiti Silence
title_full_unstemmed Graffiti Silence
title_sort graffiti silence
publisher Department of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies, University of Alberta
series TranscUlturAl
issn 1920-0323
publishDate 2014-11-01
description These tricontinental ekphrastic poems feature graffiti art(ists) that have caught my heart off guard. The first poem titled “Graffiti of Silence” is a response to the anonymous “listen bird”, ubiquitous in Edmonton's urban geography from 2003 to about 2008. Stenciled, spray painted or stickered, it always featured a speech bubble with one word: listen. It quickly became part of Edmonton’s local iconography, but the city’s Graffiti Management Program managed to eliminate the bird from its streets, but not from public memory. The second ekphrasis titled “The Fisherman” features the work of El niño de las pinturas (Raúl Ruiz), an internationally-renowned graffiti artist based in Granada, Spain. Known for his large-scale wall murals which are almost always accompanied by his own poetic text, he dresses the skin of this city in sienna strokes, covers its bruises with layers of light, becoming a source of symbolic pride for Granada. The third poem, “Monsters in Montevideo,” is inspired by Alfalfa (Nicolás Sánchez), an iconic street artist based in Montevideo, Uruguay. His unique style uses organic lines and bright colours to create fantastical creatures that add a sense of play and surprise to many of the city’s streets. These three ekphrastic poems are an attempt to translate the poetic experience of viewing street art. Through poetry, the impermanent art of graffiti is rendered immortal as a self-portrait of each city and each spectator.
url https://journals.library.ualberta.ca/tc/index.php/TC/article/view/23326
work_keys_str_mv AT adrianaonita graffitisilence
_version_ 1724815086464270336