'It's art, but not good art:' Local artists weigh in on graffiti popping up around Windsor

If you've noticed some new graffiti around Windsor, you're not alone and it seems that many aren't fans.

"I've worked very hard at bringing some higher level artists and muralists to Windsor," said Windsor artist Daniel "Denial" Bombardier. "Just to see something so lazy and so thoughtless and just destructive, it really bothers me.

"This is not a skill."

The silhouettes can be found all over the city, from Riverside to Sandwich, often on the sides of buildings. Each shows a person outlined in red making a thumbs upgesture.

Some of the pieces are signed "WAR" or "Whisky Alpha Romeo."

Bombardier called the illustrations "lazy, immature and disrespectful."

"It's one thing to do vandalism that's saying something, or speaking to an idea, or a disagreement even. But this isn't saying anything to anyone other than I want to destroy the city it's just ignorant.

"It's art, but it's not good art."

Artists working to show positive side of street art

Bombardier said he's working to showcase the positive impact of street art.

His next big project will be a street art and mural festival, planned for September, called Free for All Walls. It would bring 30 artists, half from Windsor and half visiting from out of town, together to complete 30 murals within a 10-day span.

"With this festival and what we're doing, we're trying to show that people what those murals do for a city and for a neighborhood, it's just unquantifiable. The values of properties go up like people enjoy their communities more. It engages you.

Artist Daniel Bombardier talks about the latest artworks

2 years ago

Duration 1:36

The installations will be on Maiden Lane for the next month, according to Bombardier.

"Stuff like this, this guy with the thumb, it's just not saying anything and it's making what we're trying to do with the art form look really bad."

Street artist registry, proposed street art committee all ideas downtown

Billie McLaughlin is a local artist and teacher who works with Bombardier. She said she's asking the city to create a street art committee to better document local street art.

McLaughlin said the history of graffiti art comes from protest and "wanting to be heard." Especially with a signature like "WAR," she cautioned the apparent artist to be clear on their message.

"[Graffiti] is the people's art for the people outside of the institution," McLaughlin said. "If you want to be valued as an artist, you have to make sure that you're you're championing a cause and making the city better, not worse."

The chair of the Downtown Windsor BIA said it can't condone graffiti - butthey have supported other street and public art projects in the downtown.

"It's vandalism. It costs property owners money to repair and to repaint. It's no different than smashing a window or doing any other kind of damage downtown," said Chris MacLeod.

"That being said, we are supportive of street art."

MacLeod said the BIA recently sponsored WIFF Alley, a collection of murals and street art downtown, and also have a registry of street artists they can call upon for projects downtown.He said they'd encourage any artists to join.

MacLeod noted another local street artist Kalvin Mercier, known as Kurs who was charged by police before eventually trying to make amends and hosting an art exhibit.

"I would just really hope that this individual finds a pathway to expressing themselves positively within the community," he said.

"Other downtown artists are great examples of how we can positively beautify our city with with street art and not randomly vandalized buildings."