Highlights
- Graffiti costs Australia an estimated $ 2.7 billion a year.
- Although there are laws that prohibit graffiti, there are legally designated places in Australia where you can do graffiti.
- For street artist Paulo Licayan, these free walls are a big thing for graffiti artists like him. They can use these spaces as free gallery.
“It really depends on a person. For others, they may consider graffiti as dirty art. But when you're on the scene, it helps you to have a free gallery," says the street artist from Davao City.
"Like in the Philippines and even here in Australia, it’s hard to enter and exhibit in a gallery."
One of Paw Licayan's street arts as commissioned by one of the schools in Canberra. Source: Supplied by Paw Licayan
Free gallery for street arts
Because there are free walls where you can do graffiti, the public can immediately view your artwork without having to pay a dime.
"If you’re doing graffiti or street art, you have a free gallery, you give people free art," says Licayan.
Through graffiti art, "You can express yourself in a way that you don’t have to pay," adds the graphic designer.
Aside from free graffiti walls in Australia, there are also businesses or schools that commission street artists to paint their bare walls or buildings.
'Find us Mate'. Paw Licayan's entry for the Endeavour House Design competition with the theme focusing on climate change. Source: Endeavour House website
With these types of commission works, street artists are able to practice their arts and make money too.
Graffiti in Australia
Graffiti costs Australia an estimated $2.7 billion a year to remove graffiti and other forms of vandalism nationwide.
Although there are laws that make graffiti illegal in Australia, many still dare to do it.
In New South Wales alone, more than 40,000 graffiti incidents were reported to NSW Police between July 2011- June 2016.
According to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), there's an average of 8,063 graffiti incidents in the country yearly.
Despite the numbers, street artist Licayan did not make any negative comments for graffiti artists who take the risk of doing graffiti in illegal places.
"If you're a graffiti artist or if you're doing graffiti, it's a different experience when you go to illegal spots. It gives you hype, like doing extreme sports, where you experience the thrill."
Although graffiti is banned in Australia, the government has designated limited areas for legal graffiti.
The only problem in these areas, according to Licayan is "with these free walls, it's really hard to get a wall 'coz once an artist has painted on one, it's hard to paint over them."
"You just have to find old walls that are already damaged. Rather than going to illegal spots."
Paw Licayan is into using shapes into his arts and really likes to put his art works on things like these shoes and caps. Source: Supplied by Paw Licayan
An outlet for your thoughts
Mr Licayan knows the value of having an outlet where you can express your thoughts, especially if you are going through something in life.
"Graffiti depends on the person. Others might have problems in life. So for some people, graffiti saved their lives. So I respect that. It really helped them connect with other people."
For Licayan, who as a child was already fond of drawing, it is through street art that he's able to unleash his creativity.
"I started when I was young. I was drawing things but I’m not really good at colours, until I stumbled into this thing called vectors where you can draw things in the computer by using shapes," he says.
"I'm into cubism art. And through it, I have managed to create my own style."
Cubism is a kind of art that expresses things through shapes.
Paw Licayan is known for his original and colourful arts.
As he didn’t go to art school, all of his artworks are all experiments.
"My arts are coloured but I used bold outlines 'coz I don’t know how to blend colours and all I do is experiment."
ALSO READ / LISTEN TO
