URBAN ART IN CANADA

Graffiti Tags

Living in small-town Canada rarely affords citizens the opportunity to experience urban art. Unless, of course, they live in one of the many communities served by the Canadian Railroad. The railroad is accessible to 75% of the population of Canada and the United States, which means that the bulk of North Americans, both urban and rural, experience urban art in the form of train graffiti on almost a daily basis.

Most train graffiti in Canada takes the form of tags. Graffiti tags are the signatures of graffiti artists and artist collectives. These stylized signatures range from simple initials drawn with permanent markers to the elaborate spray-painted hip-hop tags.

The colorful hip-hop style of tagging originated in the New York City subway system, and can now be found on freight trains, trestles, tunnel walls and buildings all over the world.