Aliona Ryzhova

The Making and Consumption of Youth Subculture: Graffiti in a Russian Province

A paper considers the role of mass media and local government in constructing new function of graffiti as a means of social control over the youth. Transformation of cultural meaning of graffiti is shown as it changes from the global to the local context. Power relations are present in all types of graffiti but the locations of power are not the same.

Writings on the wall as a means of exploring a modern urban space may differ according to the authors social class, cultural style, interests, nationality, age, ethnicity, race and gender. It also depends on the materials and tradition of the art of graffiti which a person follows. In todays Russia several types of such traditions can be observed that represent various shapes and sizes of characters and signs, as well as language and content, places and tools that are used to produce graffiti. Local tradition of graffiti in the second part of the 20th century reproduces drawings of words and pictures with invectives, love- and threat messages, by 1970s it is enriched by music or sport fans appeals (J.Bushnell). In 1990s there are two significant innovations into these practices. A chronologically first one is a message of political type which usually contains a name of a party leader, propaganda slogan or invective addressing the fellow-opponent. This type of wall drawings practice is activated during the electoral campaigns and disappears afterwards. A product, however, often would remain on the wall even if the hero has lost his credits in electoral struggle.

A second innovative practice is the most remarkable one. It reproduces famous style of the Western megalopolis slums, subways or other places of gangs congregations where it was and still is utilized as a means of demonstrating power and marking urban space as a gangs property. However, in Russian province it appears from and for another point. It is introduced into local cultural knowledge from the top, through cultural mediators, by special events and programs which present a new type of art to the Russian youth. Mass media supports the this idea by claiming its socially approved status. The new art is shown as semi-professional activity performed by the talented and loyal to the government youth for social good in contrast to those who were ashamed for writing inside the doorway in the past. The new activity is promoted as a positive channel for the youths energy, as a cultural practice which is initiated and controlled by larger society and the state. A recent Festival of Street Culture in Saratov, Russia was sponsored by the regional administration and private foundations and involved promotion of graffiti artists who demonstrated their production process for the public. A question is risen, however, to what extent this new style is adopted and in what way it becomes a cultural language for Russian youth.

Globalization of culture implies unifying strategies of consumption, including the consumption of cultural styles. The fall of iron curtain was followed by the opening information channels for mass culture but it has unpredictable effects. The information on youth cultural styles has been grasped by the policy makers at first, reshaped, and packed for another context and different purpose. However, in Russia, in the local cultural knowledge, the Western practice of graffiti does not remain itself but becomes a cultural hybrid (H.Bhabha). The research is being conducted using the interview and observation methods as well as visual text analysis and crosscultural comparison in order to highlight power relations in making of youth subculture in a big Russian city.

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