In Rome, this influencer declares war on graffiti with his pressure washer

At 28, Valerio Tuveri has made it his mission to rid Rome of its countless graffiti. Known on Instagram and TikTok as "Mr Tuvs," this professional cleaner dedicates part of his free time to restoring the walls of the Italian capital on a voluntary basis, with the permission of the municipality.

Equipped with a protective suit, a mask, and a high-pressure sandblaster, he recently worked on the renovated grounds of Villa Sciarra, near the Trastevere tourist district. For the second time in two weeks, a slogan had been written on the same wall, illustrating the difficulty of a battle where every cleaning effort can quickly be undone.

Valerio Tuveri, an employee of a company specializing in the restoration of monuments, statues, and fountains, began sharing his work in the summer of 2024. During the Catholic Jubilee, he claims to have cleaned eight kilometers of walls along the Tiber River. His videos now have nearly 80,000 followers on Instagram and 70,000 on TikTok.

A digital success that raises questions about municipal action

The influencer wants to change how residents view graffiti that has become so commonplace that, in his opinion, it goes unnoticed. He distinguishes between artistic work and vandalism and believes that graffiti detracts from a city whose architecture is already an open-air work of art. His initiative has even inspired similar campaigns in other Italian cities.

Faced with the scale of the problem, Mr. Tuvs is calling for increased CCTV surveillance, higher fines, and harsher penalties. Between January and the beginning of July, more than fifty people were reported to the authorities for vandalism committed in the capital. This figure, however, reflects the activity of the authorities more than the actual extent of the graffiti visible on walls, shops, and public transport.

The city council commends the young man's commitment while acknowledging its own financial and operational limitations. It nevertheless points out that volunteering cannot sustainably replace the work of public services. Mr. Tuvs's success thus illustrates a very contemporary contradiction: social media allows a citizen to mobilize a community around urban cleanliness, but it also highlights the inability of institutions to maintain a heritage as vast as Rome's on their own.