Reading the Walls of Bogota: Graffiti, Street Art, and the Urban Imaginary of Violence

A cultural imaginary is a structuring space through which collective understandings of cultural and society phenomena are formed, reproduced, and accepted as the norm. Reading the Walls of Bogotá explores the urban imaginaries of violence in Bogotá, Colombia, through graffiti and street art, offering an insight into citizens' everyday experiences and perceptions of violence from the political to the personal to structural inequality. Artists and their viewers form vernacular theories through creative expression, showing how residents respond to imaginaries of violence, critique the norms, appropriate space to challenge or negotiate violence, and push back against inequality.

Format: Hardback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 13 June 2023
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press

A cultural imaginary serves as a framework that shapes and perpetuates collective perceptions of cultural and societal phenomena, fostering their acceptance as the prevailing norm. In the context of Reading the Walls of Bogotá, graffiti and street art are employed to delve into the urban imaginaries of violence in Bogotá, Colombia. These artistic expressions are created and consumed in diverse ways across different parts of the city, providing a window into the daily lives and perceptions of violence experienced by citizens, ranging from political to personal and structural inequalities. Graffiti, as a medium, embeds critiques of memory, space, politics, and aesthetics, enabling artists and their viewers to develop vernacular theories that shape their interpretation of the world and the spaces they inhabit. By centering on creative expression, Alba Griffin explores how Bogotá residents respond to imaginaries of violence, challenge prevailing norms, appropriate spaces to challenge or negotiate violence, and resist inequality.

A cultural imaginary acts as a structuring space through which collective understandings of cultural and societal phenomena are formed, reproduced, and accepted as the norm.

In the context of Reading the Walls of Bogotá, graffiti and street art are utilized to explore the urban imaginaries of violence in Bogotá, Colombia.

These artistic expressions are created and consumed in diverse ways across different parts of the city, offering a window into the daily lives and perceptions of violence experienced by citizens, spanning from political to personal and structural inequalities.

Graffiti, as a medium, embeds critiques of memory, space, politics, and aesthetics, enabling artists and their viewers to develop vernacular theories that shape their interpretation of the world and the spaces they inhabit.

By focusing on creative expression, Alba Griffin examines how Bogotá residents respond to imaginaries of violence, challenge prevailing norms, appropriate spaces to challenge or negotiate violence, and resist inequality.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780822947790