( CNN ) -- At first glance , it seems the graffiti revolution that descended on the Middle East in the wake of the Arab Spring has largely bypassed Dubai . The city 's public transport -- usually an irresistible canvas for taggers -- remains remarkably glistening . The walls of the city 's myriad new builds are unmarred by aerosol sketches . Head indoors , however , and you 're likely to find a different story . Club nights often feature live graffiti demos by local artists ; restaurants tap writers to mark up their walls ; brands commission the city 's street artists to emblazon their brand on a variety of spaces . `` Dubai is bonkers for it at the minute , '' says Sya One , a local street artist who , along with his wife Steffi Bow , has become the go-to writer for many local and global corporations . This summer , Adidas recruited the pair to collaborate in their Unite All Originals campaign . `` We get contacted to do projects all the time , though we 've not once advertised , '' says Bow , who reasons that the trend is born out of Dubai 's MTV-loving youth culture . The duo , who operate as The Graffiti Lovers , grew up tagging around London . They argue that the corporate slant of their work is necessitated both by their compulsion to do graffiti and Dubai 's inhospitable street art environment . Dubai 's Waste Management Department says the penalty is a fine , which doubles every time a perpetrator is caught . If a enough of a writer 's tags are identified around the city , that could add up to a hefty sum . `` Dubai is so clean . When I first got here , graffiti was the first thing I wanted to do , '' admits One . `` But it 's not worth doing anything illegal in Dubai , because it 's not worth the hassle . You 'd get away with it in the UK , but here , it 's such a small scene , [ the police ] would soon find out who it was . '' Though One says the restrictions of painting corporate murals `` does my head in , '' Bow thinks it has a positive side . `` It gives us a platform to show Dubai what graffiti is all about ; it 's not just vandalism , '' she says . Read more : The dangers Arab cartoonists face . In their free time , One and Bow work towards championing the city 's legitimized graffiti scene . Bow offers workshops to school children , and the pair has set up a wall in their back yard , where local and visiting street artists are invited to scrawl whatever they like . Dubai 's galleries have also started courting the world 's street artists in hopes of lending Dubai a little extra color . Taksheel , a local arts organization , recently invited Barcelona graffiti writer Ruben Sanchez over as part of a one-year residency . Sanchez also says he 'd rather work within Dubai 's legal framework than incur the wrath of the authorities . `` Of course , I 've had the temptation , '' he says . `` You need that rush . '' Sanchez 's Cubist-meets-Arabia murals have cropped up around the city , though he says he 's sought approval from both the local government and individual property owners . `` The first time I asked for permission it felt weird , '' he admits . `` I never used to ask permission . I would just paint and maybe say sorry afterward . '' While Sanchez does n't object to the Graffiti Lovers ' corporate approach , he maintains it 's not for him . `` I understand why they do it -- artists have to pay the bills . I respect it , but personally , I just do n't feel comfortable doing that kind of thing . '' The handful of the city 's unsanctioned street artists feel even more conflicted about corporate sponsorship of graffiti . `` I wish people would stop relying on brands and companies to sponsor their intentions , and just get out there and do their own thing independently , without any interference , '' says 8 , aka Queen Sheba , an anonymous stencil artist whose work has started appearing in one of the city 's residential neighborhoods . Sheba is one of a small handful of writers who make up Dubai 's landscape without seeking permission first . Perhaps the city 's most notable unsanctioned street artist , however , is Arcadia Blank , whose style is to drop socially pointed text on Dubai 's temporary architecture . Read more : Sex , lies and lithographs : An Iranian epic for the masses . `` The price of Arab oil should never be dearer than the price of Arab blood , '' reads one of Blank 's posters , while his scrawl on a piece of scaffolding in the midst of the city beseeches onlookers to , `` please colonize me gently . '' Though Blank declined to comment , one can assume the use of temporary space is to avoid possibly messy legal repercussions . For the most part , his work has drawn positive feedback from many of the city 's other artists . `` I really like his stuff , '' concedes Sanchez . `` He 's been writing his pretty intense codes all over the city for years . '' `` He is the street artist who has inspired me most , '' says Sheba . `` I have great respect for his work , which is very interesting to say the least . ''
In Dubai , no product launch or 'it ' opening is complete without a live graffiti demo . Corporations are also clamoring to hire local street artists to give their brand 'edge ' . Comment: Many street artists operate either legally , or quasi-legally .