Follow the link here to the Google Drive folder containing all my pictures/video for the post.

Kensington Market is unquestionably my favourite neighbourhood in Toronto. Its vast cultural richness, laid back atmosphere, thriving alternative music scene, and collection of some of the best cafés, bars, and niche restaurants, have me frequenting this area of the city quite often. The wonderfully diverse and welcoming community is not without its problems, however. One may often find used syringes or rolling papers in the park where children play – not to mention the amount of illegal graffiti plastered around alleyways and buildings. Although some aspects are negative, the wonderfully flawed culture of this neighbourhood is intricately woven into its residents – who are, stereotypically speaking, eco-friendly, freedom-loving, cyclists coexisting alongside Toronto’s Chinatown and U of T’s St. George campus.

This piece of graffiti has been located at the topmost protrusion of the [formerly male] washroom since I first started visiting Café Pamenar. The washrooms are located adjacent to a storage room, down a flight of dark-stained, creaky, asymmetrical stairs. Mysterious and somewhat filthy, the Pamenar washrooms are the last place one wants to be; it's strictly business in there. This particular piece of graffiti equalizes the perfection of the beautiful upstairs with the raw unfiltered character of the downstairs. In neutralizing the energy of the café, the graffiti aids in making the space as a whole less intimidating. I personally feel safer in the space because I realize that even the most perfectly organized and decorated cafés can have their flaws. While bringing the space alive, the provocative imperfection this graffiti creates, aids in making me feel more comfortable and welcomed in the space.

The message that this particular quote portrays is that of frustration and loss of hope. The author of this particular quote indirectly exclaims that realizing when life has presented you with unfavourable circumstances is the first step in working towards improving your situation. They begin by stating that everyone is different and has a story. When the author concludes with “Be Fucked”, they suggest giving up self-command and, instead, realizing there are things with which we are presented that are beyond our control. Through vulgar language, a prime choice of location (at eye-level), and a powerful message, this particular piece of Latrinalia (graffiti on lavatory walls) creates and sustains the culture of this washroom, and café as a whole, by increasing its level of privateness, contributing to its classification as male-gendered, and ultimately making the space safer for all, more interesting and alive.

Washrooms, even those outside the home, are perhaps our most private regularly used spaces. The more private, the better; socializing is kept to a minimum and loitering inside is usually considered strange. Public washrooms are arguably the least public, publicly labeled, space in society – the gendered door sign controls who gets in and the lock on the stall door keeps them out. The role of latrinalia is to produce a message for an audience who, for better or worse, has nothing better to do than read the thoughts of the artist or author. However, by taking the opportunity to place graffiti on the walls of a washroom, the tagger has fundamentally transformed the space from public-private to ultra-private. To the best of my knowledge, this poem is nothing more than an impromptu scribble; however, by using a particular form of poetic structure invisible to the untrained mind, the author may be targeting a specific audience. In doing so, they create an even more exclusive and private space. The documentary “Claiming Space” speaks to a similar privatization of ‘public’ space. In this instance, contributor Megan Williams investigates the movements surrounding women loitering as a technique of reclaiming space. Williams spoke to two professors (and the authors of “Why Loiter?”) who found that using loitering as a technique to reclaim public space leads to an increased level of safety for women – women make themselves seen thereby neutralizing the gender of a space. (Williams, 2015) Just as women are starting to claim ownership of spaces not previously considered ‘theirs’, this piece of graffiti contributes to the reclaiming of a space not previously considered as belonging to the artist. By claiming this space, the graffiti influences how the author connects with the washroom; it belongs a little more to them as a result of this graffiti and they may feel more comfortable in the space while making it more private to others – those who do not understand the author’s poetic structure, message, or idea.

Washrooms, although generally very practical and secluded, are exceptionally gendered spaces. Individuals must often fall into either gender category to be permitted access to the space. Thankfully, the owners of Pamenar decided to abandon this philosophy and have recently taken down the “Male/Female Washroom” sign; apart from this, the space has remained largely the same (and significantly masculine-gendered). The progressive nature of the elimination of the gender restrictions speaks to the sustainment of the culture in Kensington Market – an area that, although profane and imperfect, is working toward improving their situation so that all may feel more welcomed. The profane language and contrasts between the graffiti found on the other [formerly female] washroom, contribute to the further advancement of the washroom’s masculine gender. The unafraid vulgarity, an aspect of the Kensington Culture, used in this particular piece makes the individual hyperaware that they are entering a male space. Using vulgarity often supports the societal definition of masculinity because it is outlandishly provocative and [more or less] courageously defies societal norms – two characteristics habitually considered masculine. Further, the fact that the washrooms were previously labeled “Male” and “Female” gave rise to immense differences between the types of graffiti between the two spaces, or lack thereof. When entering the formerly male washroom, one is immediately confronted with detailed images of penises, aggressively Sharpied tags, and profane poetry. The contrast is extremely evident when one enters the formerly female washroom where there exists very minimal sharpie ink. The Atlantic author Julie Beck writes about the tremendous differences between male and female washroom graffiti; she noticed that “the mere fact of being in a [gendered] public bathroom could skew how people present themselves when they uncap that Sharpie.” (Beck, 2014) While women were more inclined to write about love, she writes, men wrote more and about ‘dirtier’ things. The likelihood that this piece was drawn by a male is evidenced in the sharp distinction between these formerly officially gendered spaces and fundamentally supports Beck’s argument. Although well intentioned, the removal of the official gender label did little to neutralize the gender of this space as it is, clearly, still male-dominated.

Graffiti is a form of claiming and occupying space. By tagging and claiming ownership of a space, graffiti artists occupy and claim it as their own. Doreen Massey speaks much about the “Occupy” movement and how it was groundbreaking in, not only questioning the hierarchies of power which exist in society, but also how monumental the movement was in simply getting people to talk to one-another. In her interview with Social Science Bites, Massey was fascinated how the Occupy movement “created a [meaningful] space, [where] people didn’t just pass by each other on the way to work or shops or whatever, they talked, they conversed, they argued.” (Massey, 2013) Space, and ironically, its occupation, has the power to influence the ways in which people behave. It has the potential to bring about change as it gets people out talking and interacting with each other. Massey recognizes that these are all beginnings of social changes. As the Occupy movement created and championed discussions, arguments, and thought, latrinalia has the power to do much the same. By simply entering a space with graffiti, and especially graffiti such as this piece which is vulgar and thought provoking, one is forced to think, to question, and to form an opinion. It is through questioning and thought that the user is able to escape an otherwise dull routine of using public washrooms – the space is, therefore, transformed from an ordinary washroom to an interesting incubator of ideas and inquiry.

This piece of graffiti, its message rooted in hopelessness and frustration, is undoubtedly controversial and elicit. It serves the culture of Kensington Market, a culture of struggling artists and University students, all trying to make ends meet. It represents much more than the spontaneous modification of this washroom (a body of practicality and lethargy). The graffiti in this space must stay if it is to continue to encourage thought surrounding its male gender, its level of safety and of privateness, and its interruption of robotic and customary washroom conduct.

The graffiti is what completes this space; it forces one to see, to question, to f***ing think.

Reference List

Williams, M. (Contributor). (2015, May 15). Claiming Space [Radio series episode]. In Ideas with Paul Kennedy. Mumbai, Vienna: Paul Kennedy.

Beck, J. (2014, November 14). Behind the Writing on the Stalls. Retrieved October 29, 2015, from http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/11/behind-the-writing-on-the-stalls/ 383016/

Massey, D. (2013, February 1). [Online interview]. Retrieved October 29, 2015, from http:// www.socialsciencespace.com/2013/02/podcastdoreen-massey-on-space/ .