In Ann Arbor, there's a kind-of-Z-shaped alley lovingly called Graffiti Alley. It started in 1999 as a mural in an attempt to attract people to an unpopular part of town. Katherine Cost was the original artist hired, and she did a beautiful job of making a 5,000 square foot piece of art full of columns and archways covered in flowers. While it was stunning, the art community didn't feel like it reflected the then-current ideas largely held, so they graffiti'd over it. Soon enough, the entire alley was covered in different people's contributions. Even today, going during different times of the year will result in a totally different sight to see. The alley is impossibly covered from head-to-toe as people do anything from spending forever spraypainting their incredibly temporary mark to drawing a tiny, quick doodle which sharpie. What used to be an impressive solo-work has turned into a collaboration of thousands from over two decades, showcasing the ever-flourishing humanistic nature of Ann Arbor's community.
What I personally find intriguing about Graffiti Alley is the intent. It wasn't meant to be a free-reign among citizens, but there seems to be a wide-range understanding that this is an area of peace, neutrality, and creativity. I've watched police compliment a teenager's work in progress, allowing the kid's skittish behavior to subside and continue spraying the cans their parents must have bought them. I've seen a man hunkering in one of the corners for the day express pride in a child taking their graduation photos, both beaming with smiles when most people would encourage the two to never make eye contact. I've cringed as I watched a woman, watching her partner paint under the starry ceiling, lean against the wall dedicated to paint-cover chewed gum. Each time I spend pacing that coordor while taking hundreds of pictures, I can't help but to imagine how each little mark was a decision made by so many different people. No matter how different everyone who enters that alley is, they've all got the same spark of creativity nudging their hope to make a mark on their world. Even if each layer of paint and marker will get covered up eventually, it will be encapsulated forever, always being a part of this giant, accidental, piece of art.
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