Glasgow Grafitti Abenteuer
The Glasgow Skyline. It’s not beautiful to look at but it is interesting. I enjoy the mix of architecture. There are many different styles and time periods. Running between me and the city centre is a motorway I recognise. The sign reads “Stirling” and I have passed under it easily more than 1,000 times in my own car alone. Not counting bus rides or the times I was a passenger in other cars. I remember coming off at a nearby exit by accident a few times. I wonder if I have ever driven up here in order to turn around or check the map. I look at the passing cars and think that I never imagined I would ever be here looking at that same sign from this perspective. I see a sort of heat map of all the times I, holding the steering wheel, passed by. During the day going to meet my sister for a coffee and some shopping. Driving to my brother’s place for a video game night. Or passing by at 3am crying after having a fight with my partner and not being able to sleep.
I think about the significance of the ability to now access that sign. I start to wonder if there is a mark or a tag I can leave for myself so that next time I pass I know: I was there. I occupied that space up there but now I am down here occupying this space. Spitting distance from each other but at the same time so inaccessible to each other. A whole different context for the same sign. I can see there are ladders going up one leg of it and they are walking distance from where I stand. Great! Tol! Easy. The bottom few rungs will probably be taken off or locked though. I looked over at a nearby guy seeming to be training on monkey bars. I guess it will be useful to have some upper body strength.
I Khan be pretty disciplined but one thing I struggle with is the motivation to move. I enjoy yoga but do it actively and intentionally almost never. I try to make good habits appealing and tie them to pleasures. But with physical movement I’ve struggled. In terms of self development it feels like my lowest priority at times. But maybe this is the ticket. Working on fitness not for the sake of abs but to increase the confidence in my own body’s ability. Then in these moments of no bottom rungs to a ladder I know I Khan lift my own weight.
I continue on my walk having had enough of the motorway.
SURPRISE
I come across a cool little skate park! The colours on the walls are vibrant. And what Khan I smell..? Fresh paint!
I basically skip through the gates and am welcomed by a kind wizard. I notice it is in quite a bit of disrepair and I can’t see the whole space yet. So I hum to myself in order to not startle anyone who may be sleeping or hanging out here. The pieces are amazing! I awe and ah to myself and walk from corner to corner feeling a bit overwhelmed with where to start. I position myself far enough back from each one to see the piece as a whole. Then I go closer and try to identify spray strokes (Brush strokes but with a spray can). Sometimes I mimic the arm arcs of the spray lines I can see. It’s a cool thing to feel because these take so much physical repetitive effort. There’s something nice about feeling close to the artist and the movements they made. Occupying that space.
I notice there have been efforts to fix and rebuild some of the ramps. And I see it is possible to climb up some rubble to a second level. I do so and start to hear music and see some movement. It is two young girls playing hiphop music. Yes! Literally couldn’t have hoped for better demographics. They are quite a bit younger than me and with the ever present threat of violence in the UK this matters and makes me feel at ease. I nodded at one and she smiled back. I started to follow the smell of the paint. Fuck me!
I love the scenes left behind. I feel like through them I Khan investigate the vibe. I try to tell if this artist was hanging out with all their friends when they made this. Was it the girls behind me who did it? What did they drink or eat? This can say a lot about age and even socioeconomic background. What music were they playing? And if the letters are readable in the art then what were they saying? So exciting. Before I left Berlin I went to the Banksy exhibition. He set up a scene that I loved for these reasons too.
I skip over the thick layers of broken glass. Jaw dropping as I realise this level is clearly reserved for the best. I sit down on a patch clear of shards of glass and dangle my feet over the tall decaying ramp and sketch some of the styles. The girls stop their music and leave quite soon after. I feel like they left because of me which made me sad. I thought we were just hanging out. I hope I didn’t make them feel uncomfortable. I regret not chatting to them.
My favorite.
xx
