Graffiti Writing and Street Art are two terms that are often used naively and unknowingly exchanged. In truth, they are two artistic movements with profound differences, even of a social nature. In this article we will try to explain their differences.

The differences between Writing and Street Art.

The two disciplines are often confused, but they are two very distinct artistic phenomena: Writing was born and evolved as a cultural movement and a social event in New York at the end of the Sixties , while Street Art can be seen as an evolution of graffitism , for this reason it can also be called post-graffitis . Its appearance can be linked to the presence of the first non-alphabetic subjects in 1974 , to then develop in the 1980s , branching out into multiple executive techniques, such as Mural Art , Poster Art , Sticker Art and Stencil Art . 

Who is the writer?

The writer , unlike the street artist , is formed "on the street", in fact it is precisely on the street that he develops his technique, perfecting his stylistic code and operating secretly and in many cases illegally, writing on train carriages or on the walls of a city. His is a creative outlet , or rather a way of rewriting the urban landscape that is often dehumanizing and depersonalizing for him. The writer is elusive, his culture is linked to the tag , i.e. the writer's signature made with markers or spray cans, and to the lettering , through which he wishes to notify the world of his existence and reiterate it several times, but wants to be legible and recognizable only to other writers, not to all.

What does the street artist do?

The street artist , on the other hand, develops his idea in the studio and it is always in the studio that he perfects his technique. Only after having created the definitive project does he move to the street where he practices his art in the light of the sun and in an institutional way. In fact, the street artist wants to be recognized and the message he wants to convey with his works wants to be understood by everyone, which is why he sometimes prefers the use of the figurative .

In general, Street Art is a vast and boundless artistic field, which includes different techniques and countless materials, such as spray cans, stickers, stencils, paper, glue and even road signs .

Naturally there can always be nuances: there are writers who wanted to operate only following the approval of the local administrations. There are, for example, Halls of fame , or Walls of fame , walls granted by public administrations where writers can perfect their technique and improve their style. Similarly, there may be street artists who prefer to paint on the sly, such as Banksy .

The first exponents of American writing are Julio 204 , Phase II , Super Kool 223 , Daze and Lady Pink . As Italian writers , we can mention Flycat , Bros , Ozmo , Eron , without forgetting the well-known EAD crew from Padua.

As far as Street Art is concerned, however, the first to transform the movement into a global phenomenon is certainly Blek Le Rat, an artist already active in the early 1980s and specialized in the stencil technique. 

We can mention some artists involved in the various executive techniques: for muralism we know Eduardo Kobra , Ruben Sanchez , Vhils or the Italians Blu , Ericailcane , Bastardilla and Millo . As poster artist we can mention Shepard Fairey , while as sticker artist the Italians Microbo and Bo 130 .

In the next articles we will delve into both writing and street art, hoping to have clarified the difference between two artistic trends that are so important and so appreciated nowadays. To stay updated on the latest news, we suggest you follow our social channels: Instagram @cdstudiodarte1968 and Facebook @cdstudiodarte !