TRENTON — It might be called Jersey Fresh, but it came out of a can — a spray can. Graffiti artists from around the country flocked to Trenton Saturday for the ninth annual Jersey Fresh Jam, a festival highlighting graffiti, street art, music and community held at the Terracycle headquarters on New York Ave. “This is a celebration of hip-hop, of art and graffiti and music,” said local graffiti writer Leon Rainbow — like most of the artists there, he goes by a pseudonym — a co-organizer of the event. “We want to bring the community an understanding, get them to know what we do and start a dialogue.” That conversation includes the discussion on the importance of graffiti as both art and a cultural movement, Rainbow said. To illustrate his point — literally — he invited around 50 artists from across the country to transform the dull warehouse into a functioning canvass of steel, brick and wood. As a faint smell of aerosol filled the air, gray walls filled up with colors. Industrial barrels behind the warehouse “watched” with painted purple eyes as Marilyn Monroe and a smattering of skulls, aliens or imagined cartoon characters slowly took shape along the company’s outside walls. In other areas, elaborate artist tags — stylized graffiti signatures — created a patchwork mural in a kaleidoscope of colors. “Everything we’re doing here is with the permission of Terracycle — it can’t be questioned, so it’s an opportunity to let the art shine,” Rainbow said. “We want to broaden what people’s ideas of graffiti are, and what it can do to a place. And we not only have a lot of artists here, but the best artists from around the country.” One of the visiting painters was a New Yorker who goes by the name Part. He’s been tagging walls since 1974 and is well-known in the graffiti community as one of the original artists from the city. “The beauty of graffiti is the creativity — it’s endless,” he said. “For me, it’s like therapy; a way to channel my anger, frustration and rage. Some people read. Some people yoga. I graffiti.” But despite how much he personally gets out of the activity, Part said he never imagined graffiti would acquire the following and seemingly secure place it has earned in the art world today. In fact, according to another visiting artist, Skeme — who also grew up in New York in the ’70s and who named Part as an early influence — the growth of the medium had little to do with the art scene. “It was about art, but mainly about two things: leaving your mark, and impressing the girls,” he said, laughing. “And to be the most impressive, you had to outdo your predecessor and outdo your neighbor.” The contests eventually led to bigger, fancier, more colorful and creative work, he explained, eventually spawning the large, highly stylized tags and murals often seen today. The available tools have also adapted over time, adding new possibilities to the ways artists can hone the craft, he said. While Skeme grew up with enamel and lead-based paints and highly pressurized cans that would leave a trail of drip marks unless used in quick, scribbling spurts, today’s graffiti enthusiasts can choose from countless colors of acrylic-based paints and numerous different tops to the cans to allow for more finesse while painting. It’s a development Skeme said he welcomed. “I don’t agree with standing in the way of progress,” he said. “If you never get to experience anything new, you never get to grow.” Mirroring the growth of the graffiti movement is the growth of the Jersey Fresh Jam, which began including other aspects of the art community over the years. On Saturday, an open mic was available for musicians, many of whom performed hip-hop songs, while vendors sold food and art along the street. “Years ago, this was just for graffiti writers, by graffiti writers,” said Will “Kasso” Condry of Trenton, another artist and co-organizer of the event. “Then we added the music, and now it’s a real community-builder. It’s about bringing the community together. “We want to bring in artists — for music and graffiti — to give them a chance to be seen,” he said. “This is the time to check your ego at the door and for everyone to come in and enjoy what the community has to offer.”