In September 2012 I was walking around downtown Rapid City, South Dakota, wandering around really, trying to get a feel for this western town when I came across an alley that was covered, end to end, in paintings, artwork, graffiti, whatever you wish to call it. I took a stroll down the alley, took a few photos, curious... What made it interesting, from a photography stand point, was that even the utility poles and dumpsters were covered with paintings, giving a photo a sense of depth...
Eventually I came across a teenager, a skateboarder, and casually said "what's up?" as I walked past. He replied "just waitin' for paint" and that's when I wondered if what exactly this was...
Every now and then I've thought about this alley, when I see graffiti, and I finally got around to doing a bit of research. Apparently this place is referred to as "Art Alley." From what I can figure out with the information available, Rapid City has adopted a "live and let live" attitude regarding this alley, letting "kids" do their thing in the hopes that "doing their thing" will stay in this area. Art Alley is well enough known that websites like Yelp and Trip Advisor have multiple reviews of it listed and recommendations as a place to see when visiting Rapid City...
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Nikon D7000, Nikkor 18-55 DX
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