

To many people, the idea of graffiti has negative images and responses. If the drawings are done on the surfaces without permission, it is thought of (1) _____ vandalism; and in many instances, a crime. In most countries of the world, graffiti not only has negative connotations but it is also (2) _____ as illegal. One of the reasons is that graffiti is placed on buildings and property (3) _____ owned by the painter. And where it is applied without authorization, it is usually done quickly with products such as permanent markers and spray paint. (4) _____, though, graffiti was important to (5) _____ Romans because it was a way of expressing the knowledge they had as a people as well as a way of expressing (6) _____ appreciation of beauty of a number of subjects. Today, tourists can see for themselves examples of ancient graffiti when they visit Rome or Pompeii. Modern graffiti is considered an art form but it is one which is greatly misunderstood by most people. In the 1970s when the punk rock movement was big, many of the anti-establishment groups wrote and drew on walls and other surfaces to draw (7) _____ to their cause, group, or agenda. A lot of bands also used graffiti to (8) _____ recognition and notoriety. For about a quarter of a century, from the mid 1960s to the late 1980s, graffiti was considered (9) _____ its prime as an art form. In urban areas, graffiti could be seen on the walls of vacant buildings, on subway station walls, and on the subway cars themselves. Political activists used the medium to transmit their messages (10) _____ it was an easy and inexpensive way to do so