Graffiti

The first drawings on walls appeared in caves thousands of years ago. Ancient Romans and Greeks would write their names and protest poems on the side of buildings.

Modern graffiti seems to have appeared in Philadelphia and New York in the 1960s. Writing your name (or nickname) on a wall or subway, often by marginalized young people, became a popular way of making your existence known in a society that didn’t seem to care.

This series of "HOPE" lettering sprang up in and around Port Talbot during the depths of the pandemic and recurrent Lockdowns.

Graffiti "tagging" is illegal in this and most other countries. Regardless of the hope that it might bring, to overlooked individuals and communities, it is often seen as a blight on modern society and its hopes of a cleaner, better, less messy way of life.

ARTwalk only features legal street art, on private property, with the permission of its owners.

We hope that any local graffiti writers will do the same, or send us a message and hopefully we'll be able to find you a wall.