One of the great things about youth is that they’re very creative. They tend to lack the the inhibitions that come with adulthood. They have a great idea and want to go forward with it. They just do it. We’ve shared about countless youth already that are doing amazing things with their great ideas.
Unfortunately, some great ideas get youth into trouble.
Like graffiti art or ‘tagging.’
Which in most places is illegal.
Use this graffiti art youth work session plan idea to create a workshop that can help channel that talent and passion into something positive and worthwhile that they can be proud of.
Read
Spend some time researching other projects and learning about how graffiti art can be an important form of self-expression.
Youth can read about the GAP project in Palo Alto, California which was a collaborative project between Police and a local non-profit, MMAP.
Or youth can explore the connection between self and graffiti by learning how a Native American youth used graffiti to explore his cultural identity (sorry, the link for this article is no longer available)
Youth can find out how graffiti art can provide structure for youth like it did in Brazil.
By reading about different projects, like the Aerosol Angels, youth can find ways to be constructive with their tagging.
Watch
There’s a fantastic film about the graffiti art world featuring arguably the greatest graffiti artist out there today – Banksy. Watch this to get youth excited about the possibilities beyond just tagging their name on something (n.b. review first for language/content).
Exit Through the Gift Shop – A Banksy Film
Do
For a one-off session, dabble in the world of graffiti art online or invite in a graffiti artist to teach a few basic skills.
Use an online program to create a word in graffiti art
Learn how to draw graffiti names and practice
Create
Research and start an ongoing graffiti art project or consider holding a graffiti art-themed youth retreat.
Carclew House holds Cans Graffiti Art Workshops (Aus)
Mural Music & Arts Programs runs the Graffiti Arts Program (GAP) (USA)
Contact Graffiti Workshops (UK)
Amy Gascoigne started Aerosol Angels (Aus)
You can find out more about graffiti art and about artists and projects around the world at Graffiti.org.
We also have many other free youth work session plan ideas for you to use.
Question: Would you run a Graffiti Art youth work session? Would you extend it into a project or even a weekend-long retreat? Why or why not? If you’ve already done this, was it successful? Let us know in the comments below.
You can also connect with us by:
- Signing up to receive our posts via email
- Following us on Twitter
- Liking us on Facebook
- Signing up to our RSS feed