Street artists are up in arms against graffiti sprayed on the Ximenes Redoubt in Salina, insisting it broke the urban art’s unwritten rules.
“There are basic ethical codes which we all adhere to and this broke a few of them,” James Micallef Grimaud told Times of Malta.
There are countless walls to use in Qawra just down the road
The angry graffiti artist insisted that urban art was meant for urban spaces and not for historically important buildings.
“There are countless walls to use in Qawra just down the road. This was just senseless and against our code of conduct,” he said.
The recently restored fortification was originally built in 1715 as a costal watch tower by the Knights of St John and forms part of a regeneration of the area’s salt pans.
The historic site was splashed with a symbolic signature known as a tag, normally seen on the walls lining urban settings.
The symbol, identified by sources as belonging to foreign artist ‘Verve’, is among the most basic forms of graffiti and draws its origins from American gangland subcultures.
The source said the man has since left the country.
Mr Micallef Grimaud insists these sorts of acts contribute to Maltese society’s ill view of urban art.
“As graffiti artists we are faced with criticism and misconceptions. A lot of people aren’t properly informed. This sort of thing doesn’t help,” he said.
Lifelong graffiti artist Craig Macdonald agreed. He described the act as selfish, insisting it was far removed from urban art. “What was done was wrong and rightly considered vandalism. The real artistic talent in local street art speaks for itself.”
Mr Macdonald believes it was unfair for the two to be categorised together, insisting more incentives were needed to recognise street art.
The act comes on the back of a controversial graffiti sprayed on Renzo Piano’s new City Gate entrance.
A symbolic heart-shaped stencil was sprayed on to the left part of the gate, which forms part of the controversial €80 million project. The graffiti stirred uproar but many also claimed it added value to the project.
The image was eventually removed by the Grand Harbour Regeneration Corporation to the cost of €4,000.
Meanwhile, graffiti was also the main attraction at the Urban Arts Festival in Sliema earlier this summer.
For three days the town’s bustling seaside promenade was littered with installations, easels and sprawling murals.
“A lot of misconceptions exist. Hopefully, society will be better informed in the future,” Mr Macdonald said.