“My intention is to explore what happens when an organization’s bathroom becomes the locus of heated debate and cynical resignation. In contrast to viewing this rarely studied space as irrelevant to culture and identity, I argue that addressing such a space as culturally important has strong implications for understanding how authorship is constituted in organizations.“ […]
Tag: graffiti
Toilet graffiti studies 1731 – 2007
The first scholarly work on toilet graffiti was very likely The Merry-Thought: or the Glass-Window and Bog-House Miscellany. Part 1 written and published by ‘Hurlo Thrumbo’ in 1731. ‘Hurlo Thrumbo’ was, many believe, none other than poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor, lexicographer. and man-of-letters Samuel Johnson himself. “The Original Manuscripts written […]
On the non-omnipotence of Elephant Snot: Cactus graffiti
Elephant Snot is not the solution to every problem. The Arizona Daily Star confirms that, in this article: Elephant Snot isn’t the answer. Saguaro National Park officials tested a viscous product — with the odd brand name of Elephant Snot — to remove graffiti from saguaros at the park. It didn’t work. “Elephant Snot is out,” […]
A snail clad in graffiti
Biology and art join almost as one, in this example of graffiti on the shell of a living, city-dwelling snail. It appears in the blog Inner City Snail. (Thanks to investigator Norma Inman for bringing it to our attention.) BONUS: The artist, named Slinkachu, has a blog called “Little People“, filled with artificially (thus the […]
The handwriting off the wall
In 1992 a professor named T Steuart Watson discovered a completely effective way to prevent people writing on public toilet walls. Watson published a report in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, describing both his method and the relentless manner in which he tested it. Watson, then at Mississippi State University, is now a professor […]