Frequently Asked Questions

Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, or more usually spray-painted on property that does not belong to the artist. It is often regarded by others as unsightly damage or unwanted vandalism.

Graffiti has existed since ancient times, with examples going back to Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire. The term comes from the Greek word graphein which means "to write." Webster’s Dictionary it as "an inscription, slogan, drawing, etc., scratched, scribbled, or drawn, often crudely, on a wall or other public surface." Graffiti can be anything from simple scratch marks to elaborate wall paintings.

In modern times, spray paint and markers have become the most commonly-used materials. In most countries, defacing property with graffiti without the property owner’s consent is considered vandalism, which is punishable by law. Sometimes graffiti is employed to communicate social and political messages. To some, it is an art form worthy of display in galleries and exhibitions.

However, the public generally frowns upon "tags" that deface bus stops, trains, buildings, playgrounds and other public property. As a part of many green environmental initiatives, many municipalities are debating the idea of imposing fines on building owners who do not deal with graffiti as part of their building maintenance program.

View latest news on anti-graffiti bylaw

The presence of graffiti gives the impression that vandalism is tolerated and that owners do not take pride in the upkeep of their homes and business establishments. Property values can decrease and the safety of the neighbourhood is questioned.

Gang graffiti is used to mark gang territory, list members, offer drugs or contraband for sale, or send warnings to rivals. It may include letters, symbols, or numbers known only by gangs and law enforcement.
More information on gangs from the Edmonton Police Service: http://www.police.edmonton.ab.ca/Pages/Gangs/default.asp

Generic graffiti (or conventional graffiti) includes random markings, initials, declarations of love, social commentary, profanity, graduation events — "Class of 1997" — and other non-threatening messages. Generic graffiti has no particular style.

Ideological or hate graffiti is any racial, religious, or cultural slur.

Tagging is the graffiti vandal's moniker applied quickly and repetitively.

• It is the simplest and quickest, involving only the marking of the tagger's initials, symbol or alias. This may be in the manner of unreadable writing or initials, often made with spray paint in large rounded bubble-style letters. These taggers are called "writers."
• The goal of the tagger and their crew is to get "up" as much as possible. Therefore, tagging crews go on "bombing" raids, doing extensive damage to the community in one night. The goal of the tagger is exposure.

Bombing takes a little more time to complete and may be multicolored and detailed.

Pieces, short for "masterpieces," are large, detailed drawings. They are colorful, can include cartoon-like characters, and may take an hour or more to complete.

Please see our section on graffiti prevention

The best and most effective strategy to stop repeated graffiti hits is to remove the graffiti as quickly as possible. Also from a technical point of view, the fresher the graffiti, the easier it is to remove.

Delays in removal tend to encourage graffiti vandals to expand the graffiti to adjacent properties. In this way, graffiti can act as a magnet and attract more graffiti to the area.

Our staff is expertly trained to suspend the stain in the substrate and then release the stain with our specialized cleaning tools, hence removing the graffiti from your brickwork without damaging the mortar or bricks.

Graffiti has been termed a “quality of life” crime and the impacts graffiti has on a community are numerous.

Property values — Neighbourhoods containing graffiti are less appealing to those who may be looking to buy or rent property. Property becomes more difficult to sell and values are reduced.

Retail sales — Graffiti can contribute to lost retail sales – people tend to feel less safe in areas with a lot of graffiti and are therefore less likely to shop in those areas.

Public impact — Graffiti reduces enjoyment of public spaces such as parkland and civic areas. It also causes the area to look unsafe and makes people concerned about their personal safety.

Impact on tourism — Tourists feel unsafe in areas where graffiti is abundant.

Impact on business — Business owners feel victimized and frustrated when they discover their business premises have been tagged with graffiti.

Graffiti breeds more graffiti — If graffiti is not removed promptly, the space invites more graffiti as the “tagger” is confident that their “tag” will be displayed for some time.

Graffiti sends out a message that pride of ownership does not exist in the neighbourhood. This creates an open invitation for littering, loitering and more graffiti.

Battle, getting up — a competition between two crews or writers to settle a confrontation. Both participants try to apply their tag as often as possible in a given amount of time (one week to one month).

Battle, skills — a "skills battle" is similar to a "getting up battle" but the goal is quality instead of quantity. The two participants compete by producing elaborate pieces of graffiti within a specified time.

Bomb (noun) — a large tag or throw-up

Bomb (verb) — to cover an area with a tag or throw-up

Buff — a person or company that removes graffiti

Crew — a group of taggers or graffiti artists with their own distinct name

Graffiti — best suited to be used for a very nice piece or graffiti style artwork, legal or otherwise

Heaven — any large, highly visible surface at a great height; for example, overhead freeway signs or water towers

Hero — a citizen who tries to stop or confront a tagger

Hit — to apply graffiti to a surface

Hit up — when something is covered with tags

Kill — to hit or bomb excessively with graffiti

Piece — Short for masterpiece: a graffiti painting containing at least three colours, good style and can control

Tag (verb) — the act of writing their name, statement or symbol

Tagger — the term used to refer to those who usually do tags and throw-ups instead of pieces. Taggers who never piece are sometimes called "scribblers" by more experienced, piecing writers.

Stenciling — the commonly-seen spray painted-out stencil of a picture or saying; a stenciller’s way of tagging