ABSTRACT
The first decade and a half of the new millennium has both condemned and embraced graffiti and street art. Ordinances worldwide have been passed that have clearly restricted creative expression on public and private property. New York City’s anti-graffiti campaign in the mid 1990s served as an urban renewal model for other global cities in the early 2000s.1 In an effort to improve the quality of life of neighbourhoods across the United Kingdom, the Anti-Social Behaviour Act was passed in 2003. Among other outcomes, it facilitated graffiti abatement programmes by providing local councils the legal framework to remove graffiti from public property.2 In 2005, the Bylaws for the Means to Foment and Guarantee Communal Living in Barcelona, Spain, established hefty fines of up to 3,000 euros for graphic expression on public space.3 Madrid followed suit with similar laws in 2007 and 2009.4 Los Angeles in the US, also in 2009, passed an ordinance requiring all new homes to be covered with a finish that resists spray paint. Although homes are private property, they are often visible from public spaces (sidewalks, streets) and hence graffiti and street art on private property affect how public space is experienced.
