Graffiti on the walls in the apartment (in the rooms)

Contemporary art is invading our lives more and more often. Clothing with designer prints, conceptual advertising, fashion exhibitions and performances are everywhere. You turn into some courtyard, and there on a transformer booth is a portrait of Salvador Dali. Why isn't it art? Graffiti (from Italian graffito, plural graffiti) is an image made with paint on walls and other surfaces. In Russian it is always used in the plural, so graffiti is always “they”. Graffiti can include any type of street painting of walls, from simple words to picturesque paintings. The roots of this phenomenon go deep into the past, to the era of rock paintings. Through such creativity, ancient people expressed themselves and exchanged information. Basically, nothing has changed since then. In the modern sense, graffiti was formed in the twentieth century. Most often they expressed a protest, a slogan or a socially significant thought. Sometimes - a memory of some phenomenon or person. And sometimes all at once.

“Brotherly Kiss”, 1990 D. V. Vrubel. Graffiti on the Berlin Wall.

In most countries, graffiti on private or public property placed without the owner's consent is considered an act of vandalism. But when it comes to the interior of an apartment, no one can forbid the owner to do whatever he wants. For example, decorate the walls in the living room with a cool design. How will it look like? Let's get a look.

What are the benefits of graffiti in the interior?

Individuality and self-expression. Each drawing is unique, no one will have something like this.
Accent. You don’t have to decorate the rest of the walls too much if one of them has a spectacular pattern. Especially suitable for those who want to combine light minimalism and rebellious spirit.
Expansion of space. Large-scale drawings tend to visually increase the area of the room. Unlike bulky furniture.
Masking uneven surfaces. Graffiti will hide small roughnesses and bulges of the walls. They go well with “bare” brick, cracks and other “imperfections”. A kind of grunge chic.
Zoning. A pattern can be used to separate one zone from another. It will turn out stylish and won’t take up any space at all.
Practicality. High-quality paints have antiseptic properties and do not fade over time. And they can also be washed.

Tips for creating and maintaining graffiti

Having decided to use graffiti in the design of a room, which in itself is bold, you should put aside doubts and not be afraid of shocking visuals. Experiments can result in truly stylish results. If success is not so obvious or doubtful, there is no need to become discouraged. Believe: next time it will be better!

In order for the paintings that decorate the walls of your home to live a long life, they should be protected from direct bright sunlight. It is also recommended to maintain temperature and humidity conditions. In case of excessive contamination, graffiti made with moisture-resistant paints is washed.

Graffiti is good because it is democratic and budget-friendly. The costs here are incomparably lower than when decorating interiors with frescoes. The latter, as you know, are another way to decorate walls. But not many people can do a fresco with their own hands.

How to paint walls with graffiti?

The easiest way is to entrust this task to professionals. But you can also decorate your own walls yourself. In any case, the surface must be primed, painted or covered with wallpaper for painting. And the ways and means are:

Spray paint and special nozzles are a must-have for any graffiti artist. As well as gloves and a respirator. Aerosol paints are very volatile, so it is better to paint the walls before furniture appears in the room. Or it will need to be taken out.

One day we decided to paint the refrigerator with black spray paint. All the furniture, covered in thick polyethylene from a hardware store, stood about three meters away, but the dark sediment still settled on it. We were tired of washing it. Conclusion: protective film can help, but you will have to try to seal the packaging.

Paints in cans, brushes and rollers. Can be combined with spray cans. Street graffiti artists may say that this is “not true,” but to achieve their goals, all means are good. This method is more familiar and easier if you decide to draw yourself.

Regardless of the type of paint, graffiti can be applied

without a preliminary sketch,
according to a sketch (for example, in pencil) directly on the wall
according to the finished stencil.

You can also print your favorite graffiti-style design on wallpaper in special printing houses. But this is a slightly different story...

Preparation and application

The sketch chosen for implementation must be transferred to the wall. This is done using a soft drawing pencil, which is used to mark the contours of the drawing. Depending on the skill level of the performer, “options are possible.” Aerobatics - free drawing. Only a professional artist can do this! Those who do not have such qualifications use craft techniques by transferring the sketch, having previously drawn it into squares. It is possible to use a technique that transfers the reflection of the sketch to the wall. The simplest option is a slide projector. True, for this you first need to make a sketch slide. There is no shame in using self-made or purchased ready-made stencils in your work. This simplifies and speeds up the work.

When the outlines of the image are transferred to the wall, begin painting. First, apply the main color over the area and allow the painting to dry. Then, in a similar way, other colors are applied, occupying smaller areas. At the end, thin boundary lines and small details are drawn. The finished painting is given time to dry and the room is ventilated.

Important! When working with caustic paints, we must not forget about safety precautions! Neglecting a gas mask and ventilation, the creator, carried away by the process, risks serious poisoning!

Graffiti in the interior - living room

In the interior of the living room, graffiti will create a dynamic atmosphere. The advantage of this design is that the remaining surfaces and furniture can be without any special decor - a bright pattern will draw all the attention to itself. And you don’t need to think about what photos or posters to hang on the wall - the main picture is already there.

Textiles with prints of the same shade that are present in the picture always look win-win.

Origins of graffiti culture

The names of modern graffiti authors - Banksy, Keith Haring and others - rank alongside the world's most famous artists. It all started on the streets, where graffiti (from Italian graffito - “scratched”) served as a kind of mark, a way to express oneself among young people.

Bright graffiti on a city street

Initially simple inscriptions with names, symbols or names of street gangs gradually turned into paintings. Graffiti artists are talented at expressing their ideas on the walls of their hometowns, and their works often carry deep social, cultural and political implications.

This is how the graffiti subculture assimilates into modern realities, while maintaining its rebellious spirit.

Kitchen

Graffiti in the kitchen looks very stylish. You can paint a wall, a kitchen set or an apron. You should not combine all this together, otherwise you risk achieving a strange effect:

Drawing with your own hands - working method

Beginners are recommended to use templates or stencils. This method will make your work easier and will allow you to focus on the correct selection of colors. After the graffiti artist has mastered his hand and feels more confident, he can apply the drawings by hand. By the way, this is exactly the technique Banksy uses. In order not to be noticed at work, he makes a template in advance based on the author’s painting, and only fills it with paints on the spot. If you want the design to be portable, it is recommended to use a sheet of hardboard instead of a brick wall. Before working with spray paint, you need to prepare the surface. It is cleaned of dirt and degreased. This will ensure good adhesion between the wall and the pigments. Before use, shake the can thoroughly so that its contents are mixed until smooth. A respirator and safety glasses are put on the face. A test jet is released onto a foreign object to evaluate color saturation. The distance from the spray can to the wall to be decorated should be approximately 25 cm. You should not linger in one place for a long time, as excess paint will begin to flow off, unless, of course, the smudges are part of the composition. When working with a vertical surface, they start drawing from the top and gradually move down. If it is necessary to apply two layers, then take a break of half an hour between the first stage of painting and the second. The splash effect is created using a brush dipped in paint.

Appeal to professionals

The easiest way to do graffiti in an apartment is to turn to professionals. You can pre-order several sketches for painting the walls in the room. The artist's services will not cost much. In addition, an image drawn by a professional is incomparable. It is full of energy, dynamism, unique in execution and plot.

Professional writers, as a rule, paint with aerosol paints. Sprays help regulate the density of the paint layer, create rich or blurry and indistinct lines and images. In addition, professionals know where monumental painting ends and real graffiti begins. After all, this street style also has its own characteristic features.

Interesting ideas

Graffiti in an apartment is always adrenaline, challenge, dynamism and an unusual, mind-blowing plot. This is not the kind of art that calms you down. Graffiti appeared on the streets of big cities as a protest, a screaming inscription wanting to attract the attention of passers-by. In principle, this pattern should be the same indoors.

True, it is not always appropriate to use this type of art in an apartment. However, there are many options that reconcile aggressive technology and a calm home atmosphere. Graffiti ideas for apartments and houses:

outline image of people involved in extreme sports;
stylized drawing of a city street with road signs and markings;
squares filled with scraps of phrases and images;
space theme, stars, planets, spacesuits, ships;
signatures with different markers on a background of colored spots;
characters from Japanese animated films;
multi-colored geometric shapes touching and shading each other.

The most famous representatives of Russian street art

Glory to the ATGM

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The artist is originally from Yekaterinburg. Frequent guest of exhibitions both in Russia and Europe. In his works, he often combines Disney characters with figures of Russian film characters, for example, the image of the Black Cloak in the body of Danila Bagrov (series of works “Childhood in front of TV”).

Pasha 183

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Famous Russian artist. Symbol of Russian street art. He created graffiti on sensitive social issues. For example, the famous “Alenka” chocolate bar in his works, instead of a bright image from childhood, became just a product (located on an abandoned construction site of the Losiny Ostrov National Park near Moscow). After his death in 2013, Banksy dedicated “P183. RIP."

Kirill Who

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The artist leaves various inscriptions on the facades of cities. The lyrics always carry a positive message. For example, the inscription: “It will always be better than it was” inspires hope.

Alexey LUKA

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The Moscow creator creates works in an abstract style. They fit perfectly into the image of the city, and Alexey selects a unique combination of colors for each place.

Nikita NOMERZ

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The artist paints faces on old abandoned buildings, revives abandoned buildings with new murals and simply decorates the city. For example, the Living Walls project makes you believe that houses can live their own lives.

Where is the line between street art and vandalism?

First, street art erased the boundary between professional and non-professional art, and then between art and reality. However, where the border between street art and vandalism lies is still not very clear.

Tokyo Space Invader

Real street art inspires, makes you think and reflect, and is simply pleasing to the eye. High-quality art does not offend feelings, does not cause disgust or outrage. It gives hope and encourages action.

Man passing the walls of Blek le Rat

Vandalism, on the contrary, does not carry much meaning. These are obscene expressions, awkward advertising, works that spoil the façade of the building rather than decorate it. This also includes art that does not fit into the context of the city or its architectural image.

Rabat Space Invader

A true street artist must not only draw well, but must also think about how his work will affect residents and the city as a whole.

Violinist Blek le Rat

“Street art is a weapon of mass destruction compared to any exhibition promoted on the Internet.”

Roman Minin (street artist)