Art or vandalism? Graffiti lines are blurred

A Regina business owner has started a conversation about graffiti, exploring the line between art and vandalism.

The discussion arose after Charity Marsh spent some time scrubbing away spray paint that was applied to her shop windows.

Marsh said she appreciates artistic expression, on murals for example. However, she found no real merit in the scrawl applied to her windows.

"Quite uninteresting, not esthetically pleasing. [It was] tagging," she said. "This was definitely not very interesting, very creative and this was, I suppose, more an act of vandalism."

Marsh has murals on the walls of her business and appreciates — and respects — graffiti art.

She took a picture of the tag, and posted it to social media so others could contribute to the discussion.

Artist Josh Goff agrees with Marsh's assessment of the tag, but adds there is a fine line between creativity and crime.

He said that years ago, when he was a teenager, he tagged an abandoned building and was charged with mischief.

"My intent was not to destroy but to create, but I did break the law," he said.

Goff said much of the debate depends on your point of view.

"I've been a part of it. I understand it as an art form," Goff said. "But maybe not everybody else in the world understands it as that. They just want it to be vandalism."

As far as police go, however, the issue boils down to one of permission. If a property is defaced without the owner's permission, it's vandalism — no matter what the artistic merit of the image may be.