Is this street art or is it graffiti? What’s the difference anyway? Wandering through the streets of Pamplona suburbia, I wondered…

Both are created and showcased in public spaces, both are unsanctioned and unpaid and both evoke a reaction or emotion. Traditionally Graffiti is done free-hand with spray paint (aerosol) whereas modern street art is created with many techniques including mosaic, murals, stencils and installations of all kinds, but that can’t be it! I guess this brings the word art under fire, eye of the beholder and all that stuff! Graffiti is noticeably more accepted and widely used as advertising these days, also found in home and design mags as wall covering etcetera.

I suppose for me the obvious answer is in on the wall, Graffiti tagging scrawled over amazing street art becomes vandalism in my eyes. More territorial mark and less message by art form. Pamplona like the rest of Spain has undergone many changes during the last few years, suffering economically with impossibly high unemployment rates and yet the street art is remarkably vibrant.

So take a look at the photos below and decide for yourself. Whatever the answer, it remains a fascinating subject and one I’ll continue documenting whenever I travel.