Sticky Opinions
Graffiti is often used as a silent protest, a vehicle to loudly communicate a thought without making a sound.
Seen outside of the Rhode Island state building.
The streets will literally tell you everything you need to know about any place in the world. Being outside, literally in the streets, anywhere in the world will offer a perspective that can’t be replicated by online platforms or distilled via surveys.
If you’re curious about what’s happening, if you want to understand the sentiment of your neighbors — take a walk through the a densely populated area in your city or town. As a street photographer I’ve trained myself to observe the small details of daily life, as communications professionals I’m keen to observe trends in social behavior. All of that translates to mean that I can interpret graffiti as more than just a public display of art or counterculture rebellion — I see the message in the art. The key is to observe where the graffiti is placed, given that location is paramount to the success of any messaging campaign, paying attention to where something is placed carries just as much significance as the piece itself.
A little context can go along way, especially when making an observation on the sentiment of unrepresented people. (The artists weren’t present to tell me why they posted their artwork)
Providence has a really large population of students, something like 35,000 young people from all over the world flock to this small New England town every year. Along with their tuition payments and burgeoning caffeine addiction, also comes their opinions, societal norms and rebellious energy. PVD is the ideal city to actually read through the graffiti that gets thrown up, because there’s a large diverse population of people all experiencing relatively the same thing at the same time. Some additional context, Providence is home to Brown University, RISD, Providence College, and Johnson & Wales University — just to name a few of the 8 institutions of higher learning that call the city home.
This collection of photos was captured in two adjacent neighborhoods, downtown Providence and the campus area for Brown University and RISD. I wasn’t surprised to see pieces speaking about politics, Gaza, police, or the local tattoo shops — it was the sticker about being white.
As someone who’s no stranger to the dealing in problematic ideas and unsavory perspectives, I work in communication focused on multicultural audiences, I was most intrigued by the where I saw the sticker. This stark white sticker was stuck to the side of black electronic trash bin (not a Tesla) just outside of a wealth management office on Thayer Street, right across from the Brown University bookstore.
This has now been removed.
Location, Location, Location! I genuinely laughed out loud, and thought to myself “Man, this person really knows where their people might be in this city!”. Again, I’m trained to notice the standout moments in an area, because this wasn’t the only sticker on the trash bin, the bin was covered in stickers, in fact the entire corner was — but this gem stood out.
I’m all for public displays of thoughts and opinions, even if they conflict with my thoughts and opinions. At best people see these stickers as they move around town, and it’s sparks some conversation. The mostly likely scenario is the stickers and posts are ignored, because people tend to see what they want to see.
Hope you enjoy the photos.
Peace!
The Providence River Pedestrian Bridge & Fox Point Area
Brown University & RISD Campus Area
Downcity PVD
