Professional street artist Tony Brady, from Hulme, who paints under the name Kayze, made his call at an exhibition in Manchester celebrating street art and hip hop music.
The Upper Space gallery on Newton Street, in the Northern Quarter, invited street artists from all over the world to take part in the exhibition.
The event was set up to encourage people to ask whether graffiti was art or crime.
Thomas `TJ' Dolan, 20, was sentenced to 15 months in jail last year for spraying graffiti on railway property with his tag `Kreky'. His friend Thomas Whitaker, 19, was jailed for 12 months after the pair, from Macclesfield, caused damage worth £13,000.
The sentences triggered a huge campaign and the convictions were quashed on appeal.
Over the weekend, spray artists were asked to transform the outside of the Upper Space gallery as well as paint canvasses erected on the walls inside.
Gallery bosses wanted to highlight the artistic skills of the painters, as well as asking local councils to provide somewhere safe and legal for them to express themselves.
Tony, 38, said: "I've always done it legally. I've painted all around Hulme on buildings the council were knocking down.
"From that, I got a lot of commissions, painting a set for EastEnders and the Beastie Boys' shop in New York.
"Just because you own a spray can doesn't mean you are a detriment to society - I do a lot of good with my time and I've worked with disabled kids and young offenders.
"I've been professional for 16 or 17 years and I've travelled the world. I've made up to £20,000 for one commission - I've done really well out of it.
"Manchester is a brand new city and whether it's in the city or just outside, there should be somewhere people can just paint in front of their friends."
Earlier this year, Tony spray-painted a tribute to the late pop mogul Tony Wilson, after the former Factory Records boss died of a heart attack.
Measuring 28ft across and standing 8ft high, the Ancoats painting pictures Wilson smiling wryly against a backdrop of his pioneering Manchester nightclub, the Haçienda.
Tony dedicated the mural to Wilson's partner Yvette Livesey, who became his agent in 2001. She and Wilson helped him make the transition from graffiti guerrilla to exhibited artist, he says. Tweet
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what is a KAYZE?
"Gallery bosses wanted to highlight the artistic skills of the painters, as well as asking local councils to provide somewhere safe and legal for them to express themselves."
I seriously hope my taxes will not be going toward creating a space for people to make pictures. If these gallery bosses think so highly of thee people why don't they spend their money on creating a space, instead of asking for ours to be spent.
I don't think many people have any objection to what may be street art, as long as it has permission. It's the ugly scrawl and defacement that makes our towns look trashed. Wanton scrawling doesn't show ability or intelligence, and it gives street art a very bad name.
Some of these 'artists' have bigger egos then painting skills. The majority of this graffiti is ugly and a pure blight on whatever surface it's sprayed on. I don't want tax used to create anything for these 'top' people as it will attract others who'll want to 'tag' over whatever is created thus areas covered in unsightly graffiti.
I will never fail to be amazed my the grumpiness that exists from the MEN posters.
People want graffiti to be stopped on public property, a solution is given whereby these artists can have an arena to show their talent out of sight of the grumpy MEN posters, and yet....still they moan!
If tax payers money can be spent on the awfulness that is Piccadilly Gardens, I have no problem with this.
what's wrong with them spraying those awful concrete walls in piccadilly gardens facing the busses?
can only be an improvement....
Why have tax money spent on this, next we will have artists of all kinds asking for paper, paint and travel expenses to their drawings sites payed for by the public.
I assume these artists live somewhere - why don't they 'spray & tag' their own houses, take a photo of their handy work with their mobile mobile phones, show these to their mates and then whitweash the walls and start again?
Where's the harm in that?
give the kids a chance,what would you rather have them doing, robbing houses or painting, which they enjoy so give them a chance.
range, wales - "give the kids a chance,what would you rather have them doing, robbing houses or painting"
Is this it just two choices how about not robbing but at the same time using their own wall to paint, they don't have to use other peoples belongings.
Why do they have to rob houses? To pay for their tools of the trade?
why not paint on paper like the rest of us???
Graffiti is just another excuse for a lack of real talent
Strangeways could do with some interior decorating.
All you are moaning about your taxes going to waste... come on your taxes are going to worst stuff for instance ian brady gets your tax money... so why can't normal public have a bit of?! stop moaning.
And for the people who say why don't they use paper, if you understood graffiti then you would see that people do use paper to sketch then part of the art is can control which you can't do on paper!!!!! you need to open your eyes, theres 1 legal spot in the whole of manchester and i have been there and so many people compliment what we do, stop being grumpy.
They'd get hijacked by political extremists of all stripes.
Calling graffiti 'art' is just an attempt to decriminalise what is criminal damage and vandalism. Graffiti is and will always be vandalism.
Any of these talentless 'artists' who say we are 'misunderstood' should get a more constructive job/spare time interest.
Graffiti is art. They are calling for a legal space to work in thus taking the 'vandalism' out. I personally like the more artistic graffiti as it brightens otherwise dull, corporate spaces.
Calling graffiti art is like calling hip-hop music.
Hip-Hop is music. There are good and bad forms. Music isn't just limited to white men and guitars. Just as Art isn't limited to posh, effeminate men with a paint brush and easel.
CoC says "Music isn't just limited to white men and guitars."
Yes I know, Jimmy Ruffin,Otis Redding, Al Green, The Four Tops and The Supremes to name just a few prove your point,but hip-hop and rap? C'mon CoC I have been a musician most of my life and I enjoy all forms of artwork but spray painted in public places, no thanks.
i know at least one teenager who thinks he's a graffiti 'artist' when in actual fact he's just a pikey spraying his name all over public property. it cracks me up that he gets caught for it every time simply because he cannot fight the urge to spray his own name.
this, however, is something different. this is real graffiti artists asking the authorities for permission to display their talent. you may not like it, you may not understand it, but it is most definitely an art form.
i've been a musician for most of my life as well and really good album art goes hand in hand with music. graffiti goes hand in hand with hip-hop. as someone has mentioned, there is good hip-hop and bad hip-hop, in the same way that there is good graffiti and bad graffiti. give these lads a chance to prove that they're not the mindless criminals people think they are.
PW, i couldn't agree with you more.
If they want to do it so much then they shouldn't be too bothered to fund their own hobby just like everyone else.
I think what Once Again is trying to say is....why do they get money and I dont!!