Photo taken by Makeela Alexander, at Anna Street, Port of Spain.

“The Voice of the Urban” is an incorporation of the elegance and beauty of nature, the serenity it brings, one’s inner being, mentality and character. This piece of street art in the photograph above as a whole symbolizes what the artist wants to city to become, a place of peace and love, where nature and the people can live in a balanced environment. Graffiti always convey the voices of artists and sends a message to those who take the time to observe and try to analyse them. It was widely used during the era of hip hop evolution, especially within music videos, where graffiti was actually an inspiration to music artists and helped spread their messages across to their audience. This in some cases led to inspiration of the audience which led to even more creative graffiti. With reference to the Widewalls website[1], on the history of graffiti, it was stated that this subversive culture was extreme within the 1970’s and 1980’s and is the earliest form of street art. It was done mostly by gangs in New York in the 1920’s and 1930’s as youths responded to the changing society. Another use of graffiti that is becoming more prevalent is where it is used to create tributes or memorials to commemorate special persons such as those who played a big role in society or are public figures, as well as victims of murder or tragic accidents. The photo above has three different aspects and each one has a different meaning.

 “The Serenity of the Urban” is demonstrated by the artistic expression seen in the image which portrays a figure seated in the Padmasana position; a meditative pose. It symbolizes the coexistence of nature and people not only within rural spaces and places, but also within our urban areas. Although there may not be a lot of nature in these concrete jungles, there can still be an existing bond. The day and night background depicts that balance is needed to maintain inner peace, tranquillity and spiritual growth.

“The Nature of the Urban” is represented by a variety of colourful flowers of different captivating designs that is guaranteed to capture the attention of the everyday urban dweller. The different colours were possibly utilised as to evoke emotions of bliss and deviate from the hustle and bustle of urban life.

“The Reality of the Urban”, is associated with ideologies of development, high rise buildings, concentration of wealth, mass production, high income populations and other aspects are not really taken into account. Factors like poverty, crime, the development of slums and “ghettos” which are all underlying aspects of urban areas. This relates to the lion in the image, which normally is perceived to have a fearless, brave, and tough character, but in the image, a different side is seen, a comical and playful side, which is the total opposite of our usual perception.

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[1] Marić, Bojan. "The History of Street Art." WideWalls. Accessed February 12, 2016. http://www.widewalls.ch/the-history-of-street-art/.