Highland Town: A Short Story

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“The principles of true art is not to portray, but to evoke.” Jerzy Kosinski My body stood stagnant while my eyes stared at the LOVE mural in Highland Town. My facial expressions showed concentration yet my mind was a revolving door of words formulating into questions and incomplete thoughts. This simple four letter word made me feel so many emotions that never wanted to stay suppressed. “Hey kid, you know I created this to make people happy right?” I looked over at the well-known street artists and gave him a slight chuckle “Yeah…funny isn’t?” Michael gave me a quizzical look “That something created out of genuine joy, makes someone want to cry.” “It evokes emotion…you’re feeling what this city is crying for — love.” I nodded my head and continued to allow the revolving door to spin thoughts in and out of my mind. I diverted my view from the mural I saw on basically every hipster's laptop and back at the man who created this art. Michael nodded at me as if silently saying, “Go ahead and say it.” “How do you validate your art as true art?” I cringed at the way I had worded the question. Michael gave me a small smirk “You feel something in your chest right?” I nodded “Then its art kid.”
Society scrutinizes graffiti to be a …show more content…

Individual artists became crews who not only had graffiti artists yet also rappers. Rappers were the poets behind the images, they put what you view on the passing trains into words for your ears to digest if your eyes didn’t understand. This form of art displayed such a freedom of expression out of oppression the next generation had a voice, such an influence that it spread across the world inspiring other artists to express the voice of the communities that were and are viewed as “less than.” The constant message graffiti throughout the years has been trying to convey is all these city needs is LOVE just a little

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