Tagging

Well, I guess my title is a little misleading. There's a vast difference between tagging and actual pieces.

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After I moved into a larger city when I was about eighteen or nineteen, it was then I had a real glimpse at visual and street art. The thought of vandalism never crossed my mind when I laid eyes on each work. To be honest, I didn't really understand what most names said, because I didn't know how to read the pieces. Graffiti script comes in various shapes and sizes, and some are more difficult to read. Took me about a year, to be honest, to fully understand which shaped what. I met up with a few street "thugs", and that is how I became obsessed with the art known as graffiti.
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As I was driving around, I noticed an abandoned building. The walls were white and looked almost clean, besides the crumbled areas. I saw a few tags here, a few there, but it was my perfect canvas. I went over there as soon as dark spread throughout the city, clad in my usual wear. I did a few pieces of Slenderman, to start out, readying myself for a much more beautiful work. I even did a variety of silk moths and my name. This wall really was the perfect canvas.

However, I wanted to do something different. Besides being a "minion" to Him, I do have a fondness for other things. Plague doctors always intrigued me while growing up, learning about them in several history classes. Hell, there's even a mythos about "The Plague Doctor" (which I have still yet to read). I sketched out a few pieces in pencil, but figured that wasn't enough to visualize it on a wall. My drawers were never really filled with writing utensils, so I had to go to the nearest store, a god-forsaken Wal-Mart, and buy a few packs of sharpies.

I attempted this Doctor in a multitude of colors, ranging from black to a very vivid hot pink. The different copies were all inked differently, and I even attempted to color some of them in. Black and white was the way to officially go, because it all depends on the color of the wall. My chosen target was, like I mentioned, white, so any array of  colors would fit perfectly on it. But the Doctor had to look more... Ominous.

This was the final piece of what I had created. Within my stash of cans, I managed to find several black and gray, since, of course, the alabaster wasn't needed at this particular time. Several hours were spent just making a massive stencil, even though it was only a 3'x4'. There's the ability to freehand pieces, but there are times when a stencil is needed, if you think about it. Names and simple things would be able to be freehanded, but more complex and detailed items would require stencils. I usually manage to find cardboard and freehand the sketch on there before carefully cutting it out. I can admit that some areas, I didn't find a use for the stencil, thus discarded it back into my car.

All in all, tonight was fun. Law enforcement weren't hanging around the areas I decided to hit up, marking my territory. Although, I did find another alleyway where some imbecile marked over my masterpiece of Him. I will have to find this kid and teach 'em who's boss. Disrespectful children need to be taught a lesson.