Graffiti Staircase
I wasn’t sure which staircase was the graffiti one, so I asked and was told to check with security. Unfortunately, the person who could help me wasn’t available so I left my contact information and went for lunch at SAIT’s culinary school (#1 in Canada and #14 in the world). When I didn’t hear back from security after an hour, we wandered back to the University to flaneur a bit more. As luck would have it, and luckily one of the instructors kinda recognized me and gave us a quick tour of some of the studios on our way to being shown the Graffiti Staircase.
The staircase didn’t disappoint. It is literally covered from floor-to-ceiling in graffiti art. The colour and density of the imagery was dazzling. I was in my element.
Backstory: In the mid-80s, I travelled to New York City, specifically to see the graffiti art that was being created and applauded at the time. I came back and created the controversial “Graffiti for Gleichen” art project, in the town of Gleichen where I was living. To this day, I find graffiti imagery fascinating. I love the synergy of the visual and verbal to create a narrative that is both intense, playful and sometimes thought provoking.
Here is a video taken while walking up the stairs which I hope will give you a sense of the AUArts Graffiti Staircase Experience. Ironically, there is a building in Berlin that is full of artists’ studios that has a very similar staircase.
Is it that artists hate blank walls, or that they see every blank wall as a canvas?
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