This article considers the impact of prejudice, racism, and violence against Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) during the COVID-19 global pandemic and traces the historical origins of anti-Asian racism and violence through the social and political climate reflected in popular culture and media. The authors then share anti-Asian racism…

Despite the dramatic increase in the number of graphic novels created and published, and the growing popularity of graphic novels among students, some teachers think that certain sexual and violent imagery in graphic novels renders them unsuitable for teaching (Weiner, 2003). Additionally, the lack of cultural diversity and the depiction of…

The widespread visibility of George Floyd's murder forced many to confront the realities of police brutality and racial inequities in the United States. Educational institutions, businesses, school divisions, and professional organizations (such as the American Educational Research Association [2020] and National Art Education Association [2020])…

Art educators can be reluctant to study graffiti with their students, commonly citing that the practice of graffiti art is rooted in illegal vandalism. While this is true for a large amount of graffiti, today, graffiti art is also often completely legal in the form of murals, commissioned pieces, works in galleries, billboards, logo designs, and…

This article describes a catchy phrase with more to its meaning than first view. A slogan "All the girls love Earl Lee," appears in street art around the world. Earl Lee is a lovable, handsome man who owns the fictitious Earl Lube industries. Originally intended to bring a smile to people's faces at a time when there wasn't much to smile…

Can art be a sport? Gabriel Lacktman describes the thrill of graffiti. He notes the average artist seeks refuge in the blanket of self-expression, successfully avoiding all disconcerting competition. However, in the 1990s, Lacktman's interest in graffiti became a lifestyle, the theme was all about "the art of getting over" or "the…

On the morning of October 31, 2010, three adolescents were killed by a rail Passenger train in Montreal, Canada, in a well-known area for Graffiti writers to paint. The engineer did not see five boys walking on the tracks and the children did not hear or see the train coming. 17-year-olds Dylan Ford, Ricardo Conesa, and Mitch Bracken-Guenet lost…

The economic state of California is representative of the larger financial health of the United States. The budget cuts and the faltering status of art education in public schools has contrasted much of the rhetoric and statistics for art education and employment in the visual arts. Yet, contemporaneously, California has also witnessed the largest…

While the observations of generalist educators (Irving, 2009; Scheld, 2012) and anecdotal studies have suggested that interests in popular stories can "turn non-reading pupils into readers" (Smith, 2005) and increase critical writing skills (Kell, 2009; Thomas 2006), many art teachers fail to recognize the educational merits of fanart,…

Today's global digital culture not only engages young people in daily consumption of visual images, texts, and artifacts, but also provides them with the tools to actively participate in the production of imagery and narratives. Whether they post a picture on Facebook, create a blog, or make a YouTube video with their peers, they engage in what…

Place is defined by Lippard (1997) as "temporal and spatial, personal and political. A layered location replete with human histories and memories, place has width as well as depth. It is about connections, what surrounds it, what formed it, what happened there, and what will happen there" (p. 7). Thus exploring place extends…

In this article, Miguel Aguilar describes the process of mental preparation he performs before beginning a new graffiti mural. This may include reviewing recent sketches and his lists of color palettes. Aguilar mind maps ideas he wants to connect, thinking about intentions or the goal he wants to accomplish. Aguilar further states "this…

Street artist Morley describes how his perspective on graffiti changed when more cosmopolitan art school peers introduced him to what at the time was being redefined from "vandalism" to "street art." Morley explains that, as fascinated as he was, his untrained suburban eyes couldn't make out the words or their meaning in…

Graffiti artist Sentrock sees his graffiti as a selfless act, a way of giving back to the community--when done legally--and inspires a group of middle school students. This is a case study of an artist and educator who teaches about graffiti art in public schools. He is unique in that he delineates between graffiti art and vandalism, and teaches…

This article adds to the small collection of art education studies on video games (Parks, 2008; Patton, 2013; Sweeny, 2010) by critically examining the association between violent video games, the U.S. military, and mental disability--from a critical disability studies perspective. Derby overviews the controversies surrounding violent video games…