BOGOTA, Colombia - This tough city of 7.6 million doesn't get much respect. It often ranks near the bottom in surveys of good cities to live in. People call it one of the ugliest capitals in the Americas.

But, it has become a home for graffiti artists. Weak laws and blank walls have let them tag, or spray paint, all over the city. "Tagging" a building usually means spray painting a signature.

Everything from high-art to quick tags cover overpasses, shops and sidewalks. The splash of color is earning the city praise in the art world. Yet, some here wonder if it's art or vandalism.

Last year, the mayor rolled out a law to regulate it. Now, graffiti is allowed everywhere except landmarks, government buildings and structures like bridges. Artists need permission before tagging their names on private property. Punishments do exist. But some people say the new rules have made it seem like any graffiti is acceptable.

Sidewalk Art Tours

"I can walk out onto the freeway right now and start painting and the police will just drive by and not say a thing," said El Pez, 37. He's an artist from Barcelona, Spain.

El Pez moved to Bogota six years ago. The anything-goes lifestyle attracted him to the city. His work has been dubbed "happy style." It features wide-eyed, grinning animals. It's won him a global following. He shows his work all over the world.

"Five years ago, there wasn't a lot going on here," he said. "Now, there's a lot of talent and a lot of freedom to communicate."

In Bogota, graffiti artists can work in daylight. This allows them the time to create large mural paintings in great detail, said Christian Petersen. He's an Australian artist. He offers tours of the city's street art.

The situation here "encourages a lot of good-quality work," he said. In places where it's not allowed, you see "more tagging and bombing and stuff the general public dislikes," he says. Those are what people see as vandalism.

"These Colors And Beauty"

Mayor Gustavo Petro calls graffiti a way to get beyond the differences between poor and rich. He's even offered money to artists to paint.

"Art is also for the workers and the humble," he said. "It's a way to overcome our problems by looking at these colors and beauty."

But some worry that the city is getting too friendly with the graffiti artists.

When acts of street art are paid for by the government "they lose their character," said Maria Elvira Ardila. She works at Bogota's Museum of Modern Art.

The museum thought about having a show featuring street artists. But, Ardila said they would no longer be seen as outsiders if their work was shown in a gallery.

For others, the issue is more practical.

Milena Sandrea runs an auto repair shop. The building's high white walls make a tempting target. It's covered in graffiti tags and signatures.

"We used to paint every six months but the next day - or two at the most - it would be covered in graffiti again," she said. "We've given up."

Sandrea said the city may be to blame.

A Turning Point

In 2011 police gunned down Felipe Diego Becerra. The 16-year-old graffiti artist was painting on a bridge. The officer said he thought Becerra's spray-paint can was a gun. Witnesses say the teenager was shot in the back. The case isn't over. It's considered a turning point because after that, police have given graffiti artists more freedom.

Some people like street art, like murals. But they call tagging vandalism. They just don't understand it, said Stinkfish, 33. He's one of Colombia's best-known street artists.

"The streets should be a space for free communication," he said. But, for a long time they have belonged to "people with money," Stinkfish said. "For it to be free, you have to paint what you want where you want - whether that's your name, a mural or a face."