Graffiti
source: "SEARCH & DESTROY: Rebel Youth Culture No. 10 1978"
MAGIC MARKER: Heavy Industrial Type. Buses, restrooms, walls (interior &
exterior). Good for everything. People seldom bother to paint out small
areas defaced with marker, so it lasts a long time. Very safe.
SPRAY PAINT/STENCILS: spray paint/stencils made of thin-glossy cardboard.
Sidewalks esp!, walls of buildings, traffic signs. Fast, Catchy -
Lasts forever on sidewalks. Rarely removed Fairly safe, but a lot of
equipment to handle.
SPRAY PAINT freehand: anywhere you can get away with it. Versatile - heavy
adrenalin rush. Not much equipment, but time factor make it not safe.
POSTERS: poster, paint brush, wallpaper paste. Telephone & Light Poles
especially. People like to peel this off. Make sure they are pasted down
on edges. Night is best, to allow drying time before viewing. Relatively
safe, cops don't care unless you are obviously defacing property. Can be
done in broad daylight.
DEFACING BILLBOARDS: paint-filled eggs (plastic bags don't always burst).
Any billboard you cannot reach by hand. Nice effect, long range for those
hard-to-reach places. Does not really deface billboards unless you throw a
lot. Fairly safe due to time factor.
COMMENTS AND TIPS
1) 3:00 to 5:00 AM Sunday thru Thursday is best time, least amount of
potential observers
2) Shake your spray paint WELL BEFORE leaving the house
3) Tile walls are especially good surfaces/hard to remove graffiti from
4) Some concrete is very porous & absorbs paint quickly without showing up
well. Needs several coats, not always worth it. Painted concrete is less
porous
5) Stencils stick togheter after being used once. Carry a newspaper & stick
them between the pages
6) Need i say - "Dress inconspicuous". A good drag is hippie street person.
Looks like you belong there!
7) Groups of two people is best: one to paint & one to look-out. 3 or more
looks to much like a gang
8) It's hard to see cop cars until is too late. A good rule is, if a car
comes, stop and wait. walk away, or just stand there and be cool. Graffiti
is not very visible at night, and probably no one wil notice
9) Some buildings are better exposure -- pre-existing graffiti is a good
sign that your message will still be there tomorrow. Some locations,
particularly city property (streetcar waiting stations, blue BART stations,
freeway underpasses) get painted every few months and are prime spots for
longlasting messages. private homes are Not a good idea. Non-residential
welltrafficked areas are best if you want it to last, although Bank of
America & Fox Plaza etc. are short but sweet....
SECTIONS 594 & 594.5 Of The PENAL CODE relate to vandalism & defacing of
private property with spray paint. Both carry a maximum penalty of $500
and/or 6 months i jail.
If you get caught defacing private property, it is often likely that the
charges will be dropped if you agree to make Civil Restitution. This
entails meeting with the owner(s) of aforementioned defaced building, and
coming to some agreement about Restitution. This could be in the form of
cash or painting the building yourself (most likely cash). When you appear
again in court with a receipt for damages, case should be dismissed. You
will have an arrest but not a conviction.
https://www.autistici.org/2000-maniax/texts/Graffiti%20SEARCH%20and%20DESTROY%20Rebel%20Youth%20Culture%20No%2010%201978.txt
