Graffiti vs. Aerosol Art

I was watching television the other day when I heard the term "aerosol art" used. Is what was formerly called graffiti now known as aerosol art?

Graffiti in Brazil

It turns out that there is a difference between graffiti and aerosol art, and I suppose that the show I was watching was trying to highlight the legality of aerosol art (versus the illegality of graffiti).

Perrier aerosol art by Steffi Bow and Sya One

The Minnesota Daily makes a concise distinction between the two. Graffiti is the tagging or illegal marking on private or public property. It's word origins are from the Greek graphein, which means "to write." Aerosol Art, however, is legal spray painting that is done in public spaces, canvases or other surfaces.

The first graffiti shop in Russia. 

So, it seems the distinction is a matter of semantics. One is legal, the other is not. One has been accepted in the realms of the museum and the gallery. The other is still seem as a demarcator of crime that brings down property values. And so this brings us back to the old debate: what is art? As seen here, it is a matter of words that can distinguish between what can be regaled as art and what can be dismissed as trash. Isn't that quite a thin line?

Stencil graffiti by Banksy in Bristol.