We Have Graffiti, Do We Have Gangs?

Graffiti in the Old City, Knoxville

Graffiti has never been high on my list of concerns downtown. I see random tagging, but I see it outside downtown, as well, so I figured it just goes with modern society. An irritant? Sure. A big problem? Not so much. I've blogged about graffiti in one form or another here, here, here and here, often taking a positive view of the graffiti in question.

Graffiti in the Old City, Knoxville

I'm slowly being brought around as I understand more about the unique dynamics that are downtown Knoxville. We aren't just the neighborhood for downtown residents; we are the collective neighborhood for the region. We also have some baggage that we have a hard time leaving behind.

Graffiti in the Old City, Knoxville

Graffiti in the Old City, Knoxville

For many years, perhaps starting in the early eighties, downtown Knoxville was not a place that most people thought of as a destination. Malls were the wave of the future and inner cities were increasingly suffering from white flight and a crumbling infrastructure. Downtown Knoxville, like many other inner cities came to be seen as blighted and dangerous.

Graffiti in the Old City, Knoxville

Knoxville's downtown in 2012 is a far cry from those days, yet, we still struggle with perceptions people carry from those darker days of the city's history. When people visit the city today we want them to have a good impression, and I would suggest, an accurate impression, which is that our downtown is a safe, fun place to visit and bring your family.

Graffiti, 100 Block of Gay Street

We do not have gang activity in downtown Knoxville. This is a fact according to the Knoxville Police Department. The graffiti which some people might connect with gang activity is simply the act of random, bored teenagers or skaters who enjoy seeing their tag around the city. It is unsightly, in no way connected to the street art whose virtues I've previously extolled and it is a problem because of the connection in people's minds.

So what to do? Get rid of it as rapidly as possible is what studies have shown. If it is repeatedly painted over in short order, taggers move elsewhere. If you see graffiti on your own property, please remove it quickly. If you see graffiti on another person's property, please call 3-1-1 and report it. Hopefully, the city will notify the owners and they will take some action.

Graffiti, Union Avenue

Graffiti, Union Avenue

It's important that we keep downtown clean and safe and that we communicate that image to our visitors whether they be from far out of town or from our area. Many people who have avoided downtown for decades are beginning to take a second look. We want that look to be a good one - without graffiti.

Graffiti Quest

Tagging east of the Old City, Knoxville October 2010

A recent article in Metropulse mentioned a new mural covering and designed to prevent further graffiti. Still mourning the recent loss of the downtown graffiti wall on Wall Avenue, I set out to investigate. The only clues were that it was east of the Old City and on something called the Fireproof Storage Building and it is visible from the James White Parkway. The name of the building wouldn't be too comforting to me if I had something stored there. I mean, if they have to put the word "fireproof" in the name, doesn't that sound like they are protesting just a little much, like a minister who's favorite sermon is about the evils of homosexuality or the car dealer who uses the words "honest" and "fair" five times in the first five minutes after you meet him? But I digress.

Razor Wire around a stock yard, Jackson and Humes, Knoxville, October 2010

Tracks parallel to Jackson, east of James White Parkway, Knoxville, October 2010

E. Jackson looking east past Florida/Randolph St., Knoxville, October 2010

Walking east from the Old City is somewhat unnerving. The razor wire, empty streets and seemingly abandoned buildings don't exactly exude warmth and comfort. I found the building in question, but learned that the precise name of the building is the "Fireproof Storage and Van Company." That raised a new question in my mind: Why the "van" in the title? What kind of company provides storage and rents vans? Or did they build or sell vans? Live in vans by the river? Jack Neely, where are you? It sounds like a question for Doc Knox.

Southwest corner of the building



Close-up of the southeast corner

Finding the burgeoning mural was somewhat anti-climatic. There are actually two large orange swirls, one on either side of the westward-facing wall, just over the lower roof-line.

Northwest corner of the building (look closely)

Northwest corner close-up

I'm assuming the black squiggles were there before the advent of the mural and are slowly being covered by the larger work. Kudos to the person who spotted this in the first place as it isn't easily seen. I'll try to check in on the progress of the muralist in coming months.


Tracks looking west, toward the Old City, Knoxville, October 2010

I walked away thinking of this section of Knoxville that seems so desolate to me, though I realize these buildings may hold vibrant enterprises I can't see nor fathom. It is so close to the Old City, yet it in no way resembles its grumpily vibrant neighbor. Is it possible it could ever become part of the flow of the city? The pending addition of a new upscale bar a block east of Regas on Magnolia seems to be an attempt at movement in this direction, as well as an attempt to bridge the gap between downtown and Old North Knoxville.

"Graffiti the world, I saw the writing on the wall"

I suspect Knoxville is pretty good or bad, depending on your feelings about graffiti, compared to other cities. I remember the great cover for Bob Dylan's "Oh Mercy" that featured a graffiti artist he came across in New York City. We don't have anything that would make a New Yorker look at us with envy, but, on the other hand, we don't have a constant battle with taggers and graffiti marring buildings or statues, either.



We have one primary graffiti wall and/or giant community message board, that has been around for years. Interestingly, it could soon be a victim of downtown's success. The wall is located on Wall Street, which seems perfectly appropriate, on the block closest to Gay. Every type of event anyone wants to hype gets posted here, from the high brow concerts to the lowly blogs and everything between the two. Sometimes legitimate art breaks out on the plywood among the staples and fliers. Knoxville artist Cynthia Markert has been known to leave her signature works featuring 1920's style women on the wall, even though she now is able to command significant money for her work.

The most consistent artist to present his work there is Brian Pittman whose etchings of cathedrals have drawn gasps of surprise and delight at the wall for years. Interestingly, with the advent of the construction on the front of the building on the Northeast corner of Market Square, the wall's days may be numbered. It's hard to imagine the front of the building being beautiful and the side remaining covered in plywood. Where will the artists and the anarchists go when the canvass is removed?