OZ Hamburg

It comes down to this again: is graffiti art or vandalism? For 25+ years, a single man with a spray can has forced Hamburg courts to weigh this very question. A judge ruled it was in fact vandalism, sentencing the 61-year-old spray painter, who goes by the name “OZ,” to 14 months in prison. Referred by the courts as Walter F., the Hamburg resident has more than 120,000 graffiti to his name. These consist mostly of smiley faces and the letters OZ, and they are sprayed on the walls of buildings, on gables and manhole covers, and on electrical distribution boxes. He also once painted a concrete block house in the Hamburg district of St. Pauli. To refund lawyer fees and many more expenses there is an official website to follow the case and to join the support activities. On february 3rd 2012 an Exhibition kicksoff showing artworks from OZ.