New urban canvas for Taiwan's graffiti artists

Taipei

ONCE vilified by the authorities and threatened with jail, Taiwan's graffiti artists are now being encouraged to get out their spray cans to revive urban areas.

Rundown districts around the island have become legalised graffiti zones as Taiwan seeks to cast itself as a hub for creativity and design.

But while some artists welcome the chance to show off their skills without repercussions, others say sticking to areas approved by the authorities goes against the spirit of the anti-establishment art form.

In Taipei's Ximending shopping district, drab city walls have been brightened with large scale technicolour graffiti.

A few blocks away from the area's main neon-lit hub of chain stores and food vendors, a network of all…