Outer Space, Inner Time

Political Graffiti and Street Art’s Audience Research

  • Francisca Andrea Fernández Merino School of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London
Keywords: Audience, Embodiment, Graffiti, Social Space, Time

Abstract

According to Velikonja (2020), there are three starting points of Graffiti and Street Art Research (GSAR): the contextualisation, the intentionality of the producer, and the reception, which is related to the audience/viewer/observant, where the audience is one of the starting points less approached in the literature. Consequently, I pretend to explore the potential level of analysis from time and space and its relationship with Graffiti and street art audiences. Time and space will not be considered in linear or geographic terms but in relational terms. Therefore, literature on the social construction of space, the historicity of phenomena from oral history, and audience studies will be considered. In this exploration, I intend to argue that to find the meaning and role of both Graffiti and its audience, it is necessary to consider literature that points to their relationship and how this develops. In this article, I delve into the ways scholars study Graffiti and Street Art audiences, highlighting their methodologies, techniques, and results. Then, I provide a fresh approach to Context in Graffiti and Street Art Research that integrates renewed emotional, temporal, and spatial elements. Lastly, drawing from both scholar’s experiences and my own, I propose embodiment as an innovative tool that has yet to be fully explored in this field. By utilising this means, we may be able to bridge some of the gaps that currently exist.

Author Biography

Francisca Andrea Fernández Merino, School of Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London

Francisca Fernandez Merino (°1993) is currently a PhD Student in Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary University of London, Great Britain and holds a scholarship from the London Art and Humanities Partnership (LAHP). In 2022, she completed her Master’s degree at the University of Passau, Germany and in 2017, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Universidad de Santiago in Chile. Her research interests lie in semi-ephemeral public art expression and performances during contentious episodes. She aims to gain a better understanding of the relational aspects between public art expressions, particularly, political graffiti and street art and its participants and spectators. She undertakes this aim with special attention to affect theory and the social construction of space.

Published
2024-09-06
How to Cite
Fernández Merino, F. (2024). Outer Space, Inner Time. GoINDIGO, 186-195. https://doi.org/10.48619/indigo.v0i0.982