By MELISSA PROULX, Staff Writer

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Graffiti art is more commonly reserved for the sides of buildings or train cars, but has made it’s way to the University of New Hampshire campus in a unique way.

“Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing. And even if you don’t come up with a picture to cure world poverty you can make someone smile while they’re having a piss,” Banksy, the famous English graffiti artist, wrote in his 2003 book “Banging Your Head Against a Brick Wall”.

Though somewhat hidden behind the mountains of snow, pictures of famous figures, like Martin Luther King Jr., George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Stephen Colbert can be found around UNH.

Little flowers with thought bubbles sit atop a bottom floor window of HamSmith, while another greets you as your walk through the front door.

“Those ones seem to be making a statement; they’re more meaningful,” Meghan Thornton, a senior forestry major, said.

While it might not be common knowledge for students where this art comes from, they are providing some of their own to go along with it.

Covering many of the desks in HamSmith’s room 127 are the artwork of students sitting in class. While many of them are just Greek letters for their specific fraternity or sorority, some take it to the next level. The more intricate drawings depict Buddha, Guy Fawkes and even an octopus.

Others are not necessarily the most family friendly.

“Some of the doodles are pretty artsy, but sometimes I just get a cheap laugh,” Dave Agan, a junior civil engineering, said.

Though it’s not known whether if the artists themselves were distracted in the process, both Agan and Thornton both said that they do not take away from their learning or distract them while they’re in class.

“If it’s tasteful, I don’t care,” Thornton said.