For Cities and Public Schools
Cities: Prevent Tagging with Stencils
(See Before and After photos in Gallery)
“Tagging” refers to spray paint scribbles, or “tags”, on businesses and public buildings/structures.
Olive’s stencils (mostly the large trees) have been successful as a tagging prevention tactic.
A local business owner in Ann Arbor, Michigan, conducted a year-long study (2015-2016) focusing on anti-tagging solutions. She chose ten of the most frequently “tagged” businesses in Ann Arbor and offered to stencil them for her experiment. She monitored them for the next year.
The results were amazing: There was over a 90% reduction in tags in that year. Part of the reason appears to be due to the subject matter: trees.
Trees are calming
Researchers on the psychological and/or physiological effect of trees have concluded that trees are calming and beneficial for health and well-being. This happens to us involuntarily when we are taking a walk in the woods, or even looking at pictures of trees.
“New studies suggest that viewing even an image of a tree or a forest canopy bolsters the parasympathetic division of the central nervous system that naturally induces calm.” – from Huffington Post article by
Knowing this, it is easy to understand why re-tagging almost never occurred on the tree-stenciled walls. And who doesn’t like trees? In Ann Arbor, many passers by have been spotting taking selfies against these stenciled walls. Not only are they a great tagging prevention idea, but the trees also bring smiles to everyone walking by.
Stencils vs. Murals for Tagging Prevention
Wall murals of any kind can reduce tagging. They can, however, be quite costly. It also costs to repair a mural. Damage and re-tagging are always possible.
Anyone can paint a stencil, however. That eliminates the cost of hiring a professional artist. Stencils are reusable and often, you will only need one to create a whole forest scene. An additional money-saver is storing the stencil for future use. This is a quick and easy fix for any damage or re-tagging. Therefore, because not everyone can afford a giant wall mural, stencils are a wonderful option.
Check out our Large Tree Stencils page. The trees were created from Cate’s original, hand-drawn artworks. If you have a large area to cover, you might prefer a larger, custom stencil (like the Magnolia Trees in Ann Arbor). See our gallery for more photos.
Contact Cate for more information about custom work and/or an artist’s visit.