The writing on the wall: can commercialism kill street art?

Against a silver-grey backdrop, the black letters were framed by a white outline that made them appear three-dimensional, as if forcing their way out of their depressed, brick-layered bastille to smack each passer-by with vigorous defiance against the laws of surface and society. In this part of East London, almost every exposed area is vulnerable to the impending swipe of a spray can, but I found these painted messages shouting all over the city. They dressed shop shutters and tattooed the sides of buildings. ‘BRILLIANT’ read one, which to me they were, bringing colour and curiosity to the streets. ‘SCARY’ said another, as was their proliferation, popping up and disappearing like moles as authorities frantically bopped them out of sight in an attempt to <a href="http://www.keepbritaintidy.org/sites/default/files/resources/KBT_Good_Graffiti_Bad_Graffiti_2008.pdf" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">‘Keep Britain Tidy’</a>. This alphabet art, depending on your perspective, lettered or littered the streets. A few years later, I saw them again. This time, the letters didn’t cover bricks, hoardings or shutters; they were arranged in an orderly, geometric pattern on silk. <a href="https://medium.com/@dda_wood/the-writing-on-the-wall-can-commercialism-kill-street-art-9d2ff635ddfa">Learn More</a>