The Function of Art in Urban Space: Investigating the Experience of Athens’ Graffiti Art in the Midst of Greece Economic Collapse

 
 
Today, graffiti is considered as a street art that is carved with paint, brush, spray, stencil or with various tricks on walls, vehicle bodies or spaces, and in which the message of the oppressed or deprived class of society is reflected. Urban space has been evaluated by thinkers from two physical and social aspects. This means that the view of architects was mostly focused on physical studies and social studies were from the perspective of urban sociologists, planners and urban geographers. Graffiti is the product of the last decades of the 20th century in America. But the political murals of Athens in the contemporary period go back to the occupation period of the Axis powers in 1941, the civil war of 1949-1941 and then the dictatorship period of 1974-1967. In these periods, it is different from the modern concept of graffiti as an art form. A new form of Athens’ graffiti appeared in 1998 at an international festival celebrating Athens' winning bid to host the 2004 Olympic Games. From that period until now, the walls of Athens have been the stage for the transmission of political messages. So that this city has been described as "the most stained and saturated city in the world".Until the 20th century, art, philosophy, science and social institutions were not separate from each other, the urban space represented the community and there was no difference between the form of the urban space and its function. With the beginning of the 20th century and the spread of modernism, modernism considered the urban space to be the result of the social functions that take place in the city, and relying on functionalism, the separation of urban elements, zoning and dividing the city into four main functions of residence, work, leisure and commuting left the urban space in the hands of oblivion. In fact, modernism considers the existence of any cultural and historical information in urban spaces not only unnecessary but also harmful and uses all its efforts to erase these works. This is the achievement of modern rationalism in modern times. In the sixties, the modern attitude towards urban spaces, which assumed it to be something infinite and abstract, was questioned, and the modernist view of urban space was questioned, and since then, urban space in its true sense was raised again. In new perspectives, the urban space is a space full of crowd and includes various economic, social, political and cultural uses and a new understanding of the space of perception in the fields of philosophical, psychological and sociological thoughts. is presented. The experts of this period consider urban space to be the result of the art of communication and believe that since space is nothing but society, changing the environment means changing social relations. Graffiti, as a form of modern art, which, like many other types of art, has its roots in the depths of history and prehistory, has the deepest social characteristics of the place where it is seen. Social issues may appear in different ways depending on the cultural, political and geographical features of a region. Group ritual gatherings, traditional or classical shows, singing and hymns, etc., each one shows a form of art in which the culture of that people can be evaluated. Graffiti is one of these forms of art that is more connected with the modern urban space. So that sometimes it is felt that some citizens use it to pretend to enter the modern age and break from the previous traditional atmosphere. Graffiti art has a common root in the history of the West and the East. Athens graffiti were the product of a protest movement in response to the deep economic crisis of Greece in the last one or two decades, which were different in context, how they were presented, and the subject and content; but they were all a protest reaction to a situation that was not managed. The purpose of this research is to know the experience of the Athens’ graffiti movement as a function of urban art in overcoming the crisis as a modern method of protest. This research has a theoretical approach in terms of purpose and is descriptive and analytical in nature; The author has purposefully selected 27 works from Athens’ graffiti. The provided data based on documentary and field studies are analysed with a qualitative method. The artistic experience of chaotic Athens with its graffiti may not be very pleasant to the mayor and visitors of this city, but for those who have the experience of the war-torn cities of the Middle East, this experience has been a fascinating period. Athens’ graffiti artists have considered this city as an ideal place to express their requests; with the new attraction it has created for tourists and foreigners, the city also shows an artistic reaction from the intellectual sublevels of its own society. These cultural and political views in which they are crystallised are interesting for many foreigners and they also find a part of their contemporary history in them. Among the graffiti works, there are messages with radical anti-materialist, socialist, anti-Nazism and fascism content. The Greek government's response to graffiti is not only directed at its content, but also includes the volume and size of advertisements. They had to accept the new look of the city and then appreciate some works of art; By explaining that they were forced to distinguish between art and the labels without aesthetic value that they were determined to destroy. From the very beginning of the new wave of graffiti design in Athens, parts of the government also agreed with it. During several decades of activity of graffiti artists, the existing works are now recognised as symbols and signatures of Athens, and government institutions hold ceremonies in their commemoration from time to time. Athens' graffiti boomed after the country's Great Depression. In them, the protesting cry of the voiceless class of the society against the existing situation was clear. In 2009, the first aspects of Greece's economic collapse were seen, and the government declared a high budget deficit and received financial aid for reforms from the Eurozone and the International Monetary Fund. The first reactions of the society towards the economic strictures, the next year in 2010. A year later, private investors forgave half of their outstanding claims from the government; but an opening was not achieved and the government changed. In 2012, the second foreign support package was injected into the Greek economy. But in the same year, the Greek government changed for the second time and again for the third time. In 2013 and 2014, austerity measures intensified and protests were formed accordingly. In the first month of 2015, for the fourth time, a new leftist government led by Alexis Tsipras took office. He also put the capital control program on his agenda. In the same year, a referendum was held and people voted against these plans; but the ruling party turned to new austerity reforms. In 2017, the International Monetary Fund announced the end of aid programs to Greece, and in 2018, Europe joined this decision. The international financial aid packages did not lead to financial stability and regulation of the economy, but instead led it to a long-term deep recession and skyrocketing unemployment. The effects of the austerity packages weighed heavily on low- and middle-income households, leading to deep poverty for the working and "ruined" middle classes, upward redistribution of wealth, the closure of thousands of small businesses, and a dramatic decline in living standards for the majority of people. With the conducted investigations, three spectrums of Athens’ graffiti performers can be identified. In the first row, there are parties. They usually do a large part of their goals and messages not officially, but through their fans. Due to the legal aspect and party responsibility, they refrain from destructive methods and present their message often in relatively appropriate ways. These messages often appear on public spaces under the control of the government and in the urban space at certain times when election campaigns are peaking. The mentioned economic collapse of Greece has provided the necessary social context for the slogans of leftist parties. Together with the radical nationalists (although both of them are opposites), they make strong slogans for fundamental changes. The second range of performers consists of six political, citizen, anti-totalitarian, religious and ecological groups. Religious messages in Athens’ graffiti are considered the third spectrum. Religious images with moral themes are often executed by experienced graffiti artists. The third spectrum belongs to the works of individuals; whose voices do not resonate in any group, they do not find any significant groups of like-minded people or they cannot be proposed in public spaces at all, and it may even have consequences for them with legal prosecution.