February, 2013 – Graham Miln

Graffiti in Lyon

Graffiti in Lyon tends to be a form of tagging. Marks executed with no artistic intent; an expression of defiance and a desire to mark a location. One tagger went a step further than marking a wall, they had tagged a hedge.

A hedge tagged with the initials “BF”
A hedge tagged with the initials “BF”

I appreciate graffiti art but dislike tagging. I hope the notion of tagging plants is rare.

There is some political graffiti here and there around our neighbourhood. It tends to be cleaned away quickly. One instance stood out for being repeated in two languages – particularly enjoyable given the subject matter.

Political graffiti reads “frontex mur d’europe”
Political graffiti reads “frontex mur d’europe”

Political graffiti reads “no ground for frontex”
Political graffiti reads “no ground for frontex”

I much preferred the attitude and execution of graffiti in Melbourne. There the council had a different approach and it seemed to encourage a thriving world of street art.