Graffiti in Toronto,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada, is a cause of much disagreement among its residents.

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 ...

is seen by some as an art form adding to the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

culture; however, others see graffiti as form of

vandalism Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property. The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The term ...

, viewing it as ugly, or as a form of property damage.

History

Graffiti was well established in downtown Toronto by the early 1980s. By the mid-1990s, many graffiti pieces and tags were observable in various alleyways and other outdoor areas around the city, with a book collection of some of those works (the book also viewable digitally in PDF from the “Tags & Pieces” footnote link below) appearing in 1997. One blogger remarked that pieces on Toronto buildings, walls and overpasses embrace the culture of New York City. In September 2019, graffiti art on 26 garage doors near Ossington Street and

Queen Street West Queen Street is a major east-west thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It extends from Roncesvalles Avenue and King Street in the west to Victoria Park Avenue in the east. Queen Street was the cartographic baseline for the original east ...

were accidentally painted over black. Weeks later, graffiti artists were invited to restore the street art.

Debate over graffiti

There has been a debate regarding the issue of graffiti in Toronto as to whether or not graffiti constitutes art or

, with former Mayor

Rob Ford Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Before and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councillor representing Ward 2 Etobi ...

vowing to remove all graffiti from the City of Toronto, defining graffiti as "One or more letters, symbols, figures, etching, scratches, inscriptions, stains, or other markings that disfigure or deface a structure or thing, howsoever made or otherwise affixed on the structure or thing, but, for greater certainty, does not include an art mural" and defines an art mural as a "mural for a designated surface and location that has been deliberately implemented for the purpose of beautifying the specific location." Mural work also serves as a platform to create and link communities, document history and tradition, and to facilitate purpose and voice to its collaborators. Mural painting is not simply about making something visually appealing; the majority of active mural artists create work that captures the human experience and transforms intangible words and emotion to something that can be seen and touched. Graffiti is managed through a coordinating body established under the

municipal government of Toronto The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city of Toronto in the Canadian province of Ontario. Its structure and powers are set out in the '' City of Toro ...

's Graffiti Management Plan. The body provides support and municipal recognition for legitimate instances of graffiti, although also provides support, and enforcement against illegal instances of graffiti. By-laws governing legitimate and illegitimate instances of graffiti are found in the City of Toronto Municipal Code.

Efforts to curb graffiti

Grafitti artist caught in action (205407504)

There are many coalitions that have been created to deter and remove graffiti in Toronto. These organizations or groups agree that graffiti has many negative effects on the city. The official website for the City of Toronto has stated that graffiti can promote a belief that community laws protecting property can be disregarded and that graffiti creates a sense of disrespect for property that may result in an increase of crime. The "Graffiti Transformation Program" is an annual community investment program which hires youth to remove graffiti and resurface the walls with attractive murals. Since the program's start in 1996, over 9,000 tags have been removed, over 300 sites cleaned, and 430 murals created. The program has provided jobs, training, and skills to approximately 1,276 youth. The Toronto Police Services have also undertaken the "Graffiti Eradication Program" which is defined as "a service-wide initiative focusing on the reduction of crime, fear, and disorder as it relates to graffiti."

Bylaws

The Council of the City of Toronto has adopted a graffiti bylaw in 2005 (revised in 2011) that lists definitions, prohibitions, and the cost of the offense. "Graffiti art" and "graffiti vandalism" are distinguished. Individuals and businesses under this bylaw must remove graffiti vandalism on their property at their own expense or else the city will remove the graffiti for them and send the bill. Graffiti allowed by municipal permits is called "graffiti art". Graffiti art does not need to be removed.

Legitimization of graffiti

A public effort that legitimized the use of graffiti was established by the Queen Street West Business Improvement Association (BIA) for the area colloquially known as Graffiti Alley (originally Rush Lane). Chair of the BIA, Spencer Sutherland, initiated this movement to protect property owners who did not wish to remove the graffiti street art and were being ticketed. The BIA claimed that the area was culturally significant, citing Rick Mercer's use of the

laneway An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in the older parts of towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane) ...

, between Queen Street and Richmond Street, from Spadina Avenue to Portland Street, during his "Rick’s Rants" monologue on his CBC Television shows, notably

The Rick Mercer Report ''Rick Mercer Report'' (also called the ''Mercer Report'' or ''RMR'') is a Canadian television comedy series which aired on CBC Television from 2004 to 2018. Launched in 2004, as ''Rick Mercer's Monday Report'', or simply ''Monday Report'', by ...

, and argued that it is a popular destination for photography and draws urban tourists to the area on a daily basis. The entire laneway south of Queen St West from John Street to Bathurst Street was officially designated as an area of municipal significance in the Graffiti Management Plan adopted by Toronto City Council on July 12, 2011. In September 2015, Vogue Magazine cited Queen West as the second coolest neighbourhood in the world, crediting the area's trendsetting "street style" to Graffiti Alley. The Queen St West BIA and local tour company Tour Guys host walking tours through Graffiti Alley for visitors to experience and learn about graffiti street art. The Laneway Project and Queen Street West BIA host a party in Graffiti Alley called ''Layers of Rush Lane: A Party in Graffiti Alley''. The ''Press Pause'' artist collective is recognized as contributors to ''Rush Lane''. ''Style In Progress'', a graffiti and hip hop event, takes place at

Yonge–Dundas Square Yonge–Dundas Square, or Dundas Square, is a public square at the southeast corner of the intersection of Yonge Street and Dundas Street East in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Designed by Brown and Storey Architects, the square was conceiv ...

and in Rush Lane.

Notable Toronto graffiti artists

In an attempt by the City of Toronto to clean up graffiti while not differentiating between art and vandalism, many graffiti artists or "writers" are only identifiable by their signatures in order to remain anonymous. Serious and experienced writers follow unwritten rules amongst each other in order to maintain a hierarchy of respect within the community. Toronto maintains the StART Program maintains a directory of street artists and writers based/from Toronto, or have graffiti in Toronto. The registry has grown to approximately 200 entries as of April 2019. Artists and writers that have a background in graffiti that is registered in the StART program include ARTCHILD, Getso, Jessey Pacho, Li-Hill, MEDIAH, Nando Zevê, Peru 143, Shalak Attack, shayne rivet, SPH, Style Over Status. Takeo Ten.

In popular culture

The "Rant" segment of CBC Television's '' Rick Mercer Report'' featured comedian Rick Mercer walking along the graffiti-covered alleys of Queen Street West, in which he discussed his personal views on contemporary

Canadian politics The politics of Canada function within a framework of parliamentary democracy and a federal system of parliamentary government with strong democratic traditions. Canada is a constitutional monarchy, in which the monarch is head of state. In pr ...

. This segment was originally on another CBC Television show ''

This Hour Has 22 Minutes ''This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' (commonly shortened to ''22 Minutes'' since 2009) is a weekly Canadian television comedy that airs on CBC Television. Launched in 1993 during Canada's 35th general election, the show focuses on Canadian politics w ...

'' before ''Rick Mercer Report'' was spun off. In 2019, the bar ''Graffiti Spot'' was opened in Richmond Hill, a municipality situated north of Toronto, with the aim to promote art by local graffiti writers.

References

External links

Graffiti Management (City of Toronto)Graffiti Map (StreetARToronto)
{{Toronto Graffiti in Canada Public art in Toronto