New Graffiti Technologies

The article “Geek Graffiti Takes On New York” by Dave Cohn discusses new technologies being developed by graffiti artists to combat their work getting painted over. The first technology mentioned is called a Throwie, and was developed by the Graffiti Research Lab (GRL). Two street artists Q-Branch and Fi5e founded the GRL to connect other artists and discover new techniques to get their artwork or message across without the risk of being covered up. Throwies are LED lights that stick to surfaces, only cost 75 cents to make, and stay bright for two weeks. These also allow artists to put messages in places they normally would never have been able to, such as sculptures or higher scale buildings.

The second technology being used is the Electro-Graf. Artists use conductive spray paint or magnet paint to allow LED displays to shine or move in their work. The article goes on to discuss interviews with some of the inventors. Cohn relates the artists struggles with police to “a game of cat and mouse”; both groups are rapidly working on new ways to out-smart each other, but still pretty much remain neck and neck.

Cohn’s explanation of these new graffiti technologies takes on a cultural determinist point of view. At no point throughout the article does he, or any of the artists he speaks with, attribute the development of the graffiti tactics to just their inventors. They have come about through use of prior technological knowledge as well as a need to keep the art form alive. Police can be attributed Throwies and Electro-Grafs as much as their creators because without the police painting over messages and artwork, there would be no need for either invention. By putting the focus more on why these technologies have come about over how, Cohn shows the reader that Throwies Electro-Grafs were influenced just as much by the culture in which they were invented as they were the inventor themself.

https://www.wired.com/2006/04/geek-graffiti-takes-on-new-york/