The Graffiti Bridge in Pensacola

The Graffiti Bridge (photos taken today, 10/2/12)

The Graffiti Bridge, aka the 17th Avenue Railroad Trestle, is one of my favorite Pensacola landmarks. I always enjoy visiting the bridge to see the latest graffiti. This is a work of pop art that changes day to day, night to night.

There is a great deal of controversy over this bridge. Some locals are horrified over the concept of graffiti in general and even more so in having it grace a railroad bridge in their city.





Periodically they create an uproar over the graffiti and then go out as a group to cover all the graffiti under a fresh coat of  white paint.

No sooner is the bridge painted and the local and visiting "artists" repaint it with colorful graffiti. Then another group comes along and paints out all the graffiti with a coat of purple paint, or green paint, or as seen in today's photos, striped pink and yellow paint. Then the graffiti is started all over again.






I love the changing nature of the graffiti on this bridge. Sometimes there are small murals, other times profound statements, other times someone is declaring their love for someone else.


People come from far and wide, me included, to see and photograph Pensacola's Graffiti Bridge.

A search on the Internet will turn up link after link with photos taken through the years. The oldest photo I found online is one taken in 1935. You can see that photo in the link below.

The Graffiti Bridge - 1935 Photo

Other Internet images of the Graffiti Bridge:

Images for Pensacola Graffiti Bridge







For anyone wanting to see the Graffiti Bridge, it's located on 17th Avenue, along Bayou Texar, near Bayfront Parkway in SE Pensacola. You can pinpoint the location with Google Map.

When I first moved to Florida over thirty years ago, I fell in love with the Graffiti Bridge. I've taken quite a number of photos of it through the years. The photos in this post are all ones I took today.

I've always had a special fascination, interest, in graffiti. Maybe it goes back to growing up in southern California where graffiti art covers a wide range, from tagging to beautiful murals and everything in between.

Through the years I've taken photographs of graffiti in major cities across the country. I think my favorite cities for graffiti are Los Angeles, San Francisco and New Orleans. Yes, I'm one of those people who even admires graffiti on railroad boxcars.


I have to admit that I've never painted graffiti anywhere in my lifetime. However, it is one of the item's on my Bucket List. Maybe someday my "art" will appear on the Graffiti Bridge?

For those of you who know I love to put together lists of interesting books, please check below for some graffiti fiction and non-fiction. I haven't read any of these books, but if you have a fascination for graffiti you might find these books of interest. (Books listed in no particular order. All are available in eBook format.)

Graffiti Fiction:

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley
Graffiti Girl by Kelly Parra
The Graffiti Sculptor by Latham Shinder
Graffiti Grandma by Jo Barney
Hollywood Graffiti by Arelo Sederberg
Night Artist by Geoff Sutton
The Graffiti Genius by D. S. Carrell
The Walls by Jay Fox
Tagger by Mary A. Monroe (YA)
Graffiti Heaven by Marita A. Hansen (YA)
Tag by Michael Coleman (YA)

Graffiti Non-Fiction:

The Golden Age of Graffiti by Nigel Rees
Graffiti by Lou Savelli, Robert Cekada & Anthony Mottola
Street Scene - How to Draw Graffiti Style by John Lee
Graff2: Next Level Graffiti Techniques by Scape Martinez
The Mammoth Book of Street Art by JAKe
Graffiti Art Styles by Lisa Gottlieb
Seven Year With Bansky by Robert Clarke
Bansky: The Man Behind the Wall by Will Ellsworth-Jones

I have to add a disclaimer here. Although I have a fondness for graffiti, there is a time and a place where it can be admired. On the other hand, I don't agree with tagging people's houses, cars, walls, fences, signs, where it becomes an eyesore instead of art.

As always, please feel free to add comments below.