Art Will Not be Silenced Brentwood Rail Cars Become Self-Proclaimed Mural

One thing about change is that it makes people feel uncomfortable. Settling into a comfortable daily routine can lead some people into complacency. It’s not until revolutionary type of thinkers rise against the daily grind that truly extraordinary changes occur.

For example, you may be familiar with the name Rosa Parks who stood in the gap between what was permissible and what was ethically righteous. Perhaps no industry is on the fringe of such ethically gray area as much as the art industry.

Artists have to continually struggle against topics such as copyright infringement, acceptable artistic expression, libel claims, and much more legal jargon as they seek to further their profession. Some have cast the art industry as characterized by starving artists who aren’t able to make their voices heard. Well if anyone had those opinions than they should just take a look at the Brentwood Union Pacific rail cars to realize that unheard voices will not be silenced. The cars have been covered in the undiscovered expressions of artistic revolutionaries.

Some may argue that graffiti is not really art, but who actually decides what is art and what isn’t art? If a painting is able to be seen by over hundreds of thousands of people every day does this make it art? Webster describes art as something that has been produced by artistic efforts for decorative purposes. According to this definition the graffiti that has covered the Brentwood Union Pacific rail cars would actually be considered art by some.

The art is apparently making some residents feel uncomfortable and has caused quite the outrage in recent Brentwood City Council meetings. If this was the intended effect of the artists or not remains unanswered. However, one thing is for sure that Brentwood should encourage these artists to produce more work. Whether or not the Union Pacific rail car canvas is the correct median for these artists to express their work is open to interpretation. There is definitely something unique about having a citywide mural painted on rail cars. In fact, there are few cities in the world that have specifically designed a project like this.

Many in the community actually have recommended that citywide mural projects be created to offer youth a chance to channel productive energy into non-destructive activities. Even though it’s technically illegal to spray paint these Union Pacific cars, should that be the case? What if the city actually encouraged a Union Pacific rail car mural project? If this type of project was actually sanctioned might the youth violence that has plagued the city decrease?

Currently, these artists are in a rift between being able to express themselves and the legality of their actions. Some fear that this rift is creating tension between local law enforcement communities and the graffiti artists. However, this rift does not necessarily have to exist if the project or a similar project was sanctioned by the city. In working cooperatively with graffiti artists and law enforcement agencies the city has a chance to reduce the tension between “crime breakers” and “crime enforcers”.

In a state where criminal convictions can bar citizens from certain industries for life, mitigating these convictions before they happen can lead to a reduction in career criminals. Isn’t this the whole goal of the city’s PAL program? Perhaps PAL should start a citywide mural project that is similar to the current self proclaimed project. There’s just so many undeniable benefits of artistic expression that creating a program like this would benefit everyone. Not only does artistic expression increase self-esteem, but the mental benefits of designing likely go far beyond even what scientists currently know about the activity.

Related Links:

Update on Antioch’s Self Proclaimed Mural Project

Antioch Graffiti or Self Proclaimed Youth Mural?