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<\/a><\/span><\/p>\nTwo blue fantasy faces smile beneath a bridge. Bobar explains that the majority of the \u201cart\u201d people see out there is not the good kind of graffiti. Bored teenagers or adults will make crude remarks or spray their artist name on a public wall or park bench. This is not the same as what he does.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a difference between vandalism and graffiti,\u201d says Bobar.<\/p>\n His graffiti will catch your eye immediately. The swirls of unexpected colours blending together on the side of a wall often form designs within other designs. He will contrast colours, paint with perspective, use optical illusions \u2014 anything to make people look twice.<\/p>\n One of his murals will simply look like a car from a distance, but up close there is a cityscape within the car. Get even closer and you might notice that the buildings in the cityscape are actually stereo speakers.<\/p>\n When he paints, Bobar says he chooses his location carefully. The busier the place, the harder it will be to actually paint there, but the more rewarding the completion. Since he does his work quietly and without permission, location is key.<\/p>\n \u201cI try to choose places that people see every day, but they don\u2019t really see,\u201d says Bobar. \u201cPeople will stop and stare at a wall they\u2019ve passed a hundred times before, because of us.\u201d<\/p>\n An homage to Ray Charles in a Gatineau park.<\/span><\/p>\n Ephemeral art<\/p>\n \u201cIt is sort of strange. Knowing that I\u2019m doing all this sort of work, and I know this won\u2019t last forever,\u201d says Bobar. \u201cIf I\u2019m lucky, maybe it will still be here a year from now.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Bobar, graffiti art differentiates itself from other media because it is in a public place for everyone to see. Bobar\u2019s graffiti art is just as expressive and beautiful as the work he does in his home, and he says that he appreciates using a larger canvas that is visible to more people.<\/p>\n \u201cHow is it any different if the Mona Lisa was painted on the side of a bridge instead of a canvas?\u201d Bobar asks. \u201cWith graffiti you have a guaranteed audience. A lot of them will probably hate it, but not all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n For larger murals, Bobar will usually work with other graffiti artists he has met over the years. These collaboration pieces are often some of his most impressive, because each artist will bring his or her own style and unique skills into the art. One of Bobar\u2019s longtime friends, an artist who goes by the name Dizzer, says that when they do collaborations, spectators often think the worst.<\/p>\n ‘How is it any different if the Mona Lisa was painted on the side of a bridge instead of a canvas?’ \u2014graffiti artist Bobar \u201cPeople probably think we\u2019re all in a gang or something when they see us,\u201d Dizzer says. \u201cBut none of us are drop-outs, and none of us are living on the streets.\u201d<\/p>\n Bobar currently studies art in college, and is gifted not just in graffiti. He does everything, from sketching to oil painting and even computer-generated 3D art. He has sold some of his work for hundreds of dollars.<\/p>\n Some like it, some hate it<\/p>\n Local residents are divided on the issue.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t bother me,\u201d says Chris Lawrence, 22, an Ottawa citizen who has never met a graffiti artist before. \u201cI\u2019m not sure if I would call it art, but this stuff seems better than the rest. I like the way it looks, sure. I\u2019m just not sure whoever owns this building feels the same way.\u201d<\/p>\n Other residents like Sylvia Harb, 28, say the graffiti makes the neighbourhood seem run-down, no matter how good the artwork. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t really matter if it\u2019s beautiful or not. They make this whole area seem trashy,\u201d says Harb.<\/p>\n The City of Ottawa has a very strict policy on graffiti, designating it as illegal. Christine Hartig, the policy officer for the graffiti bylaw in Ottawa, says that no matter the circumstance, graffiti is unacceptable. If people are caught spraying illegally, they can be fined up to $610.<\/p>\n A graffiti-fantasy portal: towers of the sky and sea.<\/span><\/p>\n The city has designated specific walls and bridges as legal graffiti zones for anyone to spray on, but Bobar says these walls are not enough for all the graffiti artists in the city.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way I see it, I mean, it\u2019s not like we\u2019re hurting anyone. All we\u2019re doing is bringing life into something plain,\u201d says Bobar.<\/p>\n Related Links<\/p>\n Ottawa Graffiti Flickr Album<\/a><\/p>\n
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