The other day, I was driving to pick something up in West Oakland, CA when I spotted this mural of graffiti art, which was fascinating to me. Of course I've seen really cool graffiti before, but something about this graffiti was different. I suppose the scale of the mural was overwhelmingly powerful (the pics don't do the size justice), but I think what intrigued me the most was the use of colors, textile-like, abstract composition mixed with street. It seemed to mesh a variety of different styles and cultures rolled into one, which was unusual.   Anyhow, graffiti, to me, reminds us and gives voice to the underground language of the street, which is alive and vibrant. I work with young people in the community to teach them about design choices and this is the type of expression that I work to develop and foster, so that the expressive pieces seen here are supported and explored.

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