Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
janaline's world journey

Top 5 Reasons Why Street Art is Important

I just love the colourful pieces of street art popping up everywhere
My friend Lara, also a street art lover!!

In the last couple of years I have come to appreciate street art. I now go out of my way to see street art and even go on street art walking tours if they are offered. There are so many reasons why people love street art and why it is becoming more popular or important for people of all walks of life. Street art is an important part of history and identity for many metropolises, and sometimes even has the ability to breathe life into communities.

People are starting to accept that the creative and talented people involved are seen as artists, not vandals. And that their work, however ‘urban’, is still worthy of being considered art. People are becoming more open-minded to urban and street art and appreciating where this art form has come from.

There is a major difference between lazy ‘tagging’ and truly valuable street art
Alien done by artist ‘Stainz’
Cape Town has given birth to a number of talented street artists – many of whom travel the world beautifying countries further afield.

Here are the top reasons why Street art is important and why you should love street art.

1. Street art is freedom and diversity

Art is about expression, creativity, freedom, asking and raising questions, protesting, analysing and even beautifying. A way to step beyond convention. There’s freedom with putting work in the street. You don’t even need to be considered a ‘legitimate’ artist; don’t need to have thousands of fans, have a huge social media presence, be taken seriously by galleries or be picked up by an artist agency. all over the world.

Street art is a very diverse form of expression for people from all over the world. There are street artists in nearly every country in the world who are influenced and inspired by a multitude of cultures and styles. This has resulted in a wide and diverse body of urban or street art found all over the world.

I Must not write on the walls
Piece done by ‘Pure Evil’
Done by steeet artist , JAZ (Argentina)
Street art is a way for many people, and in particular minority urban youth, to express themselves.
JackFox was born in the 1998, the street artist based in Cape Town, South Africa.

2. Mystery &Intrigue

There are so many questions when you’re a street art lover! Who did it? Why did someone put this work there? What does it mean? Does it even mean anything?

But with the invention of Instagram it’s now easier than ever to find artists’ official profiles and learn more about their work and why they do what they do. But a lot of street artists prefer to remain anonymous or use aliases for both privacy and legal reasons. There are also still artists who don’t even tag their work so the intrigue and mystery lives on.

This mode of expression allows them to feel part of the community through an investment of the tag name on public property.
Today, street art is a widespread feature of the Mother City, decorating homes and buildings with brightly colored murals, and smaller artworks that are equally captivating.
First piece of Conform we saw on the tour
The time is now
Cape Town street art emerged in the Cape Flats during the 1980s, an expansive area southeast of the city, where people of color were forced to move following the Group Areas Act.
Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
Doing a street art walking tourn in Woodstock, South-Africa.

3. Political or Social Statements

Graffiti and street art has always had a history of being influenced by the present political and social issues. A lot of people have painted on the walls and buildings in their cities as a form of anonymous political protest.

Some political statements are quite controversial; scrawled illegally and boldly in various countries and for various reasons. When people feel they have no power or influence but want to express their anger, hatred or defiance towards political injustice, this kind of art happens. But it is still a peaceful kind of protest.

My friend Lara admiring piece of art by DALeast
DALeast studied sculpture at the Institute of Fine Arts and began doing art on public space at 2004.
DALeast was born in China, 1984. His work is a reflection of his fascination by how the spiritual world unfolds and the infinite space around.
Here in the Cape, these works enable a spectacular form of expression that allows everyone to benefit.
Many works are commissioned by the city, while other pieces have a somewhat more covert presence.
DALeast uses different mediums, methods, disciplines and spaces to create his works.
Generally seen as a nuisance and illegal activity, street art has become a popular way to deal with current issues and beautify decaying areas around the city.

4. Colourful surroundings = Happier Life

Art in the street makes people happy and can cheer them up. Street art makes their day and their commute more interesting and adds character to what would otherwise just be grey and boring. Art reminds people to feel alive. It’s there to beautify a space. It wakes people up, inspires and motivates them. And sometimes it can make people think.

It may have some broader social commentary, or just be there to bring some chaos to the establishment. Street art takes the ‘normal’ and makes it a thousand times more interesting. Even if you live in poverty, there’s something about bright colors and beautiful art that seems to fill the area with a contagious, buoyant optimism.

While simple forms of graffiti are often thought to be a sign of urban blight, graffiti can be transformed into tremendous works of art in some cases by talented graffiti artists.
Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
I just have this inmune system
Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
Nard Star is a Cape Town based graffiti and street artist

5. Sense of Community 

Street art is important to keep urban areas and their residents energized and inspired. In some areas artists and building owners come together to foster the creation of artwork that can be viewed as beautifying and reviving a city, rather than destroying it.

In some cities independent graffiti murals are designed and implemented by artists with a personal connection to the neighborhood in which they are installed. In many of the cases these pieces are created with the permission of the building owner. This relationship can then help develop positive interactions between businesses and members of their community. It is a very cost-effective way both to keep surfaces free from vandalism and to create visual cues to residents that the place they call home is desirable.

Woodstock is one of the foremost areas for street art in Cape Town.
Many of the businesses in the area are adorned with street art, and a host of impressive murals can be seen around the suburb.
If you take a walk or drive anywhere in the Mother City, you are likely to encounter at least one amazing piece of graffiti.
Many people who do graffiti are just normal people trying to make a statement.
Done by artist ‘inkfam’
Woodstock, South-Africa, Street Art
Piece done by artist ‘Conform’

Next time you travel somewhere, take some time to explore the street art of that city. You will undoubtedly be led of the normal tourist path, but I am sure you will be surprised by what you find.

68 comments

  1. Great post! Each year Sacramento hosts “Wide Open Walls.” Artists from all over the world are invited to paint a mural on a wall sponsored by local businesses and corporations. We photographers make our way around the city to find the murals. They are stunning! Some have social messages and some are just fun.I don’t know what they’re going to do in the Pandemic this year.They sure brightens up the city with color and imagination.

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  5. I love street art! One more reason it’s important is that it is free, accessible to the public who might not have the opportunity to see art at a museum or gallery.

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    • That is so true. I love experiencing the different street art in the different cities I explore. Each piece of art is influenced by the surroundings and the culture of the artist. Making them all so dfifferent and amazing.

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  21. Yes! I also completely love colorful street art! You are so right; high quality, well-made art pieces of street art really adds something extra to a city, and it can have so many different functions of a community. Great post! Thanks for sharing!

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  30. Street art has a freedom that studio art doesn’t, and not just because of the size of the canvas, but because it doesn’t have to sell, it doesn’t have to impress critics, it doesn’t have to pass professors’ muster. It’s imagination on display. I saw my first great street art in Vienna, but watching PBS travel shows I’ve realized that there is great street art all over the world. It’s even reached my hometown in Iowa, which surprised me when I saw it last year.

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