Both. No gettin around it it is vandalism but art too. Takes skill and not everyone can pull it off, that makes it art on the other hand you get busted if caught so its vandalism
All graffiti is vandalism. All vandalism is not graffiti. Art can be graffiti. Not all graffiti is art.
it is art- i like to think that as graff writers/painters we are not committing a crime, we are beautifying the community, For example one day there is a ugly blank grey wall...and over night it becomes a beautiful local landmark for socializing and creation... i dont remember who first said this but graffiti is ancient from when cavemen were writing on walls,
It isn't so black and white. It all depends on the intention. If the intention is to create art then the method, entailing vandalism, is art in itself. The idea of graffiti is art but how we manipulate it isn't necessarily art.
I'd say graffiti started as vandalism, and it remains so. But through the years, people have taken pride in it. It's fueled revolutions, changed political outcomes, upset millions of people and inspired millions more. On top of the contexts it's put it, it's visually stunning. It's fluidic, striking, and uses components of art that ALL artists use. It's art in the fullest sense of the word. History will due graffiti justice. I can already see it happening today.