Brunswick walls

Brunswick trackside walls are hot property in Melbourne. Its a balancing act of don't cap what you can't burn or try finding a new wall or if there's no wall space go up. Multi-storey graffiti is a sign of healthy and thriving graffiti scene. Its good to track change. Brunswick like most inner-city places has gone through a huge change in the last 10, 20, 30 years. Even since the 2013 visit I noticed lots has changed. More built up, more green space and graffiti is flourishing. 

2013

The roll-up days of Ha ha and Sync. Ha ha featured in the Melbourne street art documentary Rash from 2005. Ha Ha was Melbourne's answer to Banksy. His passion and productivity for street art, was hugely influential. In contrast to his big bold roll-ups along train lines his main icon was his stencil work. Without artists like him its hard to imagine what the stencil scene would have been. In 2005 the stencil graffiti capital book was released. This boom in street art lead to laneways dedicated to stencil work like Canada Lane Carlton and Blender Lane in Melbourne. Interview with Ha Ha. We all but lost Canada Lane, fortunately it was immortalised somewhat in the book Uncommissioned Art an A to Z of Australian Graffiti. More on that later.  

2024

Golfa appearing seemingly everywhere.

2013 Artists below

Retayner

Bailer

Bailer and Retayner famously put Melbourne on the map with their album Hedge Burners. Over Spray stands strong as one of Melbourne's best graffiti themed hip hop songs released in 2012. These two artists traversed the medium of lyrical abilities back to back with visual artforms. They've done it beyond most artists lifetime dreams. On one hand Retayner has released burners on walls across Melbourne and united the Oz hip hop scene to bring together to bring best unrivalled cyphers. Bailer's book Wall Stories was published, showcasing a comprehensive take on the Melbourne graffiti scene. Probably the biggest Melbourne graffiti book since the likes of Kings Way. Publishing anything on this scale in the graffiti scene is fraught with challenges where the legality of artwork can make writers run the other way. Between them a solid combination that's influenced the likes of many Melbourne and Australian artists.

2013

2024

To go back to the same walls 10 years later and see the same artists holding the yard, what a sight to behold. Especially in a trackside environment where the space is premium. Resume and Bailer piece holding ground. The new emergent generation pieces above of Kewl and Cola. There's consistently and increasingly a range of artists that get the highest and best spots, includes the likes of Uzi, Cola, World, Smel, Getting Up, Golfa and of course Nost and even Porke from New Zealand was notorious for it.

Recipe for good graffiti?

To produce good graffiti like the trackside example below, requires some of the listed different elements,

• Surface-high quality smooth surface.... primed concrete is premium and the brick wall is not far behind
• Audience-the spot is public and seen on a regular basis by different people 
• Accessible/Inaccessible-Accessible sites will always attract the majority of graffiti artists, a smaller minority will be encouraged to go further and "break and enter" for harder to reach spots gaining notoriety amongst graffiti artists
• Buff-Lack of buffing over years will often allow walls to naturally establish.... generally walls improve over time and you reach a climax period when the art rarely changes
• Fame-directly linked to audience and inaccessibility

Trackside graffiti near East Richmond, Melbourne

This wall demonstrates the aggressive territorial approach of KSA crew. They tend claim large areas by progressively expanding their pieces and throw-ups onto adjacent wall space. 

Slap-up

Stickers or slap-ups are often seen in areas of high pedestrian traffic. Technically its street-art, which is art by the people for the people to see and interpret. Traditional graffiti is done with a spray-can with the intention to fuck with the structure of society. Street-art is undertaken by "radical" arts students avoiding their homework (*jokes). I respect everybody in the business of urban art. The raw element however of "getting up" with a sticker is as easy as piss. The work can be completed in the studio and is on the street sign in seconds.    

Hosier Lane, Melbourne

Flinders Lane, Melbourne

Clifton Hill

Brunswick St, Brunswick

Back streets of Richmond

Melbourne is full of intricate laneways. Find a main road in the inner city-suburbs like Brunswick St, Nicholson St, High St or many others and go for a wander. Chances are you find a graffiti "littering the walls". More often then not you'll find more detailed works than what you find on the main streets. Laneways and alleys provide time for the artist to perfect a piece and take the time. Secluded spaces away from cops and angry wankers are a key part to Melbourne's Graffiti Culture.