Borf was a

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

campaign seen in and around

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

during 2004 and 2005, carried out by John Tsombikos while studying at the

Corcoran College of Art and Design The Corcoran School of the Arts and Design (known as the Corcoran School or CSAD) is the professional art school of the George Washington University, in Washington, DC.Peggy McGloneUniversity names first director of Corcoran School of the Arts and ...

. This four letter word was ubiquitous around the Northwest quadrant of Washington, and ranged from simple tagging to complete sentences to two-color stencils to the massive defacement on an overhead exit sign from the

Theodore Roosevelt Bridge The Theodore Roosevelt Bridge (also known as the Teddy Roosevelt Bridge or the Roosevelt Bridge) is a bridge crossing the Potomac River which connects Washington, D.C., with the Commonwealth of Virginia. The bridge crosses over Theodore Roosevelt ...

Constitution Avenue Constitution Avenue is a major east–west street in the northwest and northeast quadrants of the city of Washington, D.C., in the United States. It was originally known as B Street, and its western section was greatly lengthened and widened bet ...

. Tsombikos was arrested on July 13, 2005 after tips led police to his latest tag. One of the most visible tags was the "BUSH HATES BORF" message painted above other graffiti on the back wall of the Vision Lighting Building and visible from the

Metro Red Line The Metro Red Line is a bus rapid transit line between the Twin Cities suburbs of Bloomington, Minnesota and Apple Valley, Minnesota. The Red Line travels primarily on Minnesota State Highway 77 and Cedar Avenue from the Apple Valley station i ...

near the Takoma Metro station. This message was later replaced by a message saying "OBAMA HATES BORF" in early 2009. Then in late 2011, the notorious icon of Washington, DC culture was seen for the last time and finally painted over during the week of November 28. The graffiti was also reported to have appeared in

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, Rome, Italy, and elsewhere. In 2009, director Paris Bustillos created a documentary film about the campaign entitled ''Borf!''.

Rationale

The campaign attracted widespread attention without first explaining its motivations. According to Tsombikos and subsequent Borf communiqués, both the nickname "Borf" and the Borf face belonged to Bobby Fisher, a close friend of Tsombikos' who had committed suicide. In a video shown on July 29, 2006, the Borf Brigade – the group claiming responsibility for the graffiti spree – asserted that capitalism and the culture of aesthetics created alienation and feelings of worthlessness that contributed to the 16-year-old's suicide. The group said that they used other peoples' property to commemorate and pay homage to their deceased friend. The graffiti usually had overtones of anti-authority sentiments and youth liberation.

Court appearance

Approximately four months after his arrest, Tsombikos appeared before the

Superior Court of the District of Columbia The Superior Court of the District of Columbia, commonly referred to as DC Superior Court, is the trial court for the District of Columbia, in the United States. It hears cases involving criminal and civil law, as well as family court, landlor ...

. His paint-stained coat, which resembled one that he wore in

Libby Copeland Libby Copeland (born 1976) is a freelance writer in New York City, and was previously a staff writer for the ''Washington Post''. She started her career with the Post in 1998 as an intern in the style department, and went on to cover culture, crime ...

's July 14 article in ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' (published after his arrest), was declared evidence by the judge and handed over to the prosecution. On December 12, 2005, Tsombikos agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony destruction of property. He also agreed to perform community service (cleaning up graffiti) and to pay $12,000 in restitution. Judge Leibovitz ordered him to stay out of the District except for court appearances and classes at the

. On February 9, 2006, Tsombikos was sentenced to 30 days in the D.C. jail, with an additional 17 months suspended, as well as the community service and restitution specified in his plea agreement. At his sentencing, the judge said, "You profess to despise rich people. You profess to despise the faceless, nameless forms of government that oppress. That's what you've become. That's what you are. You're a rich kid who comes into Washington and defaces property because you feel like it. It's not fair. It's not right."

Communiqués

At a

Dupont Circle Dupont Circle (or DuPont Circle) is a traffic circle, park, neighborhood and historic district in Northwest Washington, D.C. The Dupont Circle neighborhood is bounded approximately by 16th Street NW to the east, 22nd Street NW t ...

event after Borf's arrest, young people distributed spray paint and anarchist pamphlets."A Borf-in at Dupont Circle", DCist.com
The following was distributed as a "communiqué" at the event: On July 29, 2006, a group of young people calling themselves the "Borf Brigade" held a march in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, and projected a "video communiqué" on a wall in which a young woman wearing a Zapatista-style face mask read a statement labeling Tsombikos a "minor Borfist" and announced that he had been "purged" from the group. The video also said,

Consolation of Ruin art show

In April 2007, wheat-pasted posters announcing a "BORF SHOW" slated for the weekends of May 18–20 and May 25–27 began appearing around Washington. The location was "The Bobby Fisher Memorial Building" at 1644 North Capitol Street NW. The show, entitled "Consolation of Ruin" and sponsored by philanthropist Chuck Burgundy, featured two floors of oil paintings, screen prints, etchings, installations, and video, all for sale in an effort to pay for Tsombikos' $12,000 restitution. One installation (a direct reference to Banksy's "

elephant in the room The expression “the elephant in the room” (or "the elephant in the living room") is a metaphorical idiom in English for an important or enormous topic, question, or controversial issue that is obvious or that everyone knows about but no one ...

" piece) was of a male figure hanging from a belt from the ceiling and painted to match the wallpaper designs on the wall, camouflaging the lifeless figure. A number of the original stencils used in the graffiti campaign were on display. After the Borf show, the Bobby Fisher Memorial Building served as a youth-oriented space for music and art until its closing in July 2008.

References

External links