Rash goes inside the exploding street art scene in Melbourne, the world-Mecca for graffiti artists, and speaks to the voices behind this alternative, anarchist mode of expression. Delving into the methods, messages and issues around street art, it asks the question whether graffiti (and all its affiliated artistic styles such as stenciling, tagging and paste-ups) is a sophisticated art form and an important way for people to relay democratic messages, or a nuisance.
Long considered a problem by Melbourne’s various city councils (representatives of which are also interviewed), street-art gets a fair treatment in Nicholas Hansen’s documentary. With messages that range from political comment on the media, to satirising graffiti itself, the street-smart artists interviewed are unified by their desire to make art for the public and to be seen as serious artists and commentators.