Graffiti and cultural heritage: tensions between the momentary and the permanent in Armazém Vieira’s intervention in Florianópolis, Brazil

Abstract

Graffiti plays a leading role in the contemporary city. It shows the variety of social dynamics that lie beneath the urban fabric. This article briefly discusses graffiti’s interrelationship with cultural heritage, considering the different relations that it makes in terms of the visual communication it establishes with the city. “Armazém Vieira’s” intervention with graffiti in Florianópolis is presented for the purpose of analysing the tension bet- ween the past and the present in terms of the re-attribution of meaning and the appropriation of places. The role of cultural heritage material is examined as an indisputable reference of a place, of its people, and its culture.

Keywords

• Graffiti
• cultural heritage
• identity