Modern Urban Art: Part 1

Beverly rd, Bklyn, Canon EOS, 56mm lens, Kodak 400 film

Nostrand Ave, Bklyn-Topcon auto 100, 50mm len fuji film 200

Nostrand Ave, Bklyn, Topcon auto 100, 50mm lens fuji film 200

2nd Ave & 1st St, Manhattan

This month were taking a look at one of the most hated, loved and

debated art forms of the 20th & 21st century.

Urban art, from the Latin urbanus, itself from urbs (city) is a style of art that relates to cities and city life. It is often used to summarize all visual art forms arising in urban areas, being inspired by urban architecture or urban lifestyle. 

Is graffiti as an urban art form vandalism and destruction of private property? Yes, yes it is. Although I will admit that petty graffiti, lacking any real style, no talent, is just plain wrong. Of course most of us have seen the results of vandalism that defy reason. It makes you feel something you might not want to. Color, line work, texture, themes, and many things that often bespeaks the genius of 

a lovable modern, artistic, civil criminal. 

"Graffiti didn't start out as art, but it got artistic" (1). 

Since ancient times basic graffiti could be found in many places, 

in most cities. In ancient Egypt during her royal highness Hatshepsut's rule it was used to slander the queen, showing her being mounted by her royal architect. It was said they were lovers, him being a commoner who rose to distinction, and held her trust more than many who were born to wealth and position. Many of these early graffiti, pictographic in nature, would resemble artwork created by Basquiat, Haring, and Stay High 149 far into the future. Keep in mind most of the graffiti of the classical and ancient world had different connotations than  it carries in the modern world. 

The tools were different, as were the people and places. But the central themes would remain the same, expression of anger, political sentiment, or simple jest. People who did not have the public ability or right to voice their complaints. "Vandals; vandalism: behavior attributed originally to the ancient Vandals, by the Romans in respect of culture: Ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable" (3). Vandalism of public or private property for petty reasons, political, personal, art or all of the above was aided by two major inventions. In 1949 at his wife Bonnie's suggestion, Edward Seymour added paint to existing aerosol technology. 

Sidney Rosenthal, in 1952 invents the permanent marker.

 Its simple human nature that grasps hold of modern practicality for means of anti-social activities and self expression. Between 1950 and the late 70's, America, as with the rest of the world, would go through massive social, economic, and political changes. Through all the madness, turmoil, and seeming chaos of those times came some change, at great cost. With it came economic down-turn in some of Americas great cities. Supply and demand, need and production guided by practicality. This fusing with modern urban frustration, due to various social problems, gives rise to a systemic anomaly within the governing order. The urban artist and the vandal would become mirror opposites of one another, at times becoming one, trading places and walking side by side.

"The criminal fight against culture is only the reverse side of a criminal culture" (4). The late 60's early 70's saw N.Y.C broke, decaying and getting worse. A dark stage for the bohemians of a new era. Much of the money and middle class were fleeing to the suburbs. At the same time you had a huge number of young people from middle America moving to N.Y.C and other cities. Out of this would grow a new crop of young people, in Europe and great Britain as well, who were hungry for something other then,

"the California consciousness of the hippie" (5). 

Graffiti can be looked at as a common thread between the various emerging social groups in N.Y.C and elsewhere, Either in the act or admiration for its own sake, rising popular sentiment, or the underlying implications. A name here, there, angry slogans, political thought, a feeling expressed, out in the open but yet hidden. 

Crossing a line, taking a stand good or bad, at least your up and about, reinventing classic human behavior. Around the late 60's graffiti was used by political activists, in N.Y.C, France (May 1968, one of the greatest instances of swift civil unrest, mostly, towards a viable end) and Britain, as well as gangs. You could find slogans advocating music ("Clapton is god", 1967 London subway) 

in many areas in these cities. 

Tags of Philadelphia's graffiti writers Top Cat, Cool Earl, and Cornbread started to appear. In N.Y.C Taki 183, working as a foot messenger, would write his tag around the streets he frequented. Julio 204 (the #'s were the streets they lived on), some say started tagging first, but never did it outside his own neighborhood (quite civil I think). Permanent markers were already on the scene (Sidney Rosenthal, 1952). Change the tools and the way people absorb information, and you change the game, flip the script. As the system changes social anomalies arise. Across the five boroughs competitive vandalism was spurred by Taki 183, Julio 204 and others no doubt.

In 1971, The New York times run's and article about 183 on the front page of its inside section (Taki 183 spawns pen-pals.) In that same year a young man from Paris, Blek le Rat, would visit N.Y.C and be inspired and influenced by our "urban art". He is now and has been one of Europe's best political/social street-artist. He would in-turn inspire Bansky in Bristol England. 1974, Norman Mailer glorified the art of vandalism in Faith of graffiti, which likened tagging in N.Y.C to the work of Giotto and Rauschenberg. 

The Punk movement was under way and would use graffiti in various ways. Black Flag, Crass, Missing Foundation and others would  do their part to popularize the art form. In the late 80's an upside down martini glass, the symbol for Missing Foundation, was the most ubiquitous graffito in lower Manhattan, and copied by hard core punk fans throughout the U.S. and west Germany. During the mid-70's in N.Y.C the beginnings of a new art scene was happening downtown. A young runaway started tagging SAMO (same old shit) with a sort of poetry/commentary. Unlike the uptown graffiti writers Basquiat's aphoristic graffiti was less colorful and splashy, but would get similar results. 

1978, The Village Voice prints an article, SAMO graffiti: Boosh-wah or CIA? Word of mouth, mass media, and the movement/travel of people, taking with them what they had seen, had begun to spread the many sides of graffiti in various major cities. Powerful visuals and ideas not easily understood at times, but usually always visually arresting. In 1979 graffiti artist Lee Quinones and Fab 5 Freddy were given a gallery opening in Rome by art dealer Claudio Bruni. 

For many outside N.Y.C it was their first encounter with Hip-Hop and graffiti related to it. Fab 5 Freddy's friendship with Debbie Harry would influence Blondie's single Rapture, the video of which featured Basquiat and others of the downtown art scene. In the same year Sandra Fabara (Lady Pink) started writing graffiti while still a student at the H.S. of Art & Design. At the time she became one of the few young women who could compete with the males of the movement. She would go on to work with Jenny Holzer and come to know Keith Haring and others of his circle, 

who were not graffiti writers, but would use its techniques 

to make their work more visible. 

Many street-artists, themselves graffiti vandals in their own right, would also use and be influenced by graffiti writers. In the late 70's Hip-Hop was coming up via kats like DJ Clive Kool Herc Campbell,  Grand Wizard Theodore, Grandmaster Flash and 

Jazzy Jay. With many graffiti writers and artists fans of the emerging subculture, the two began to overlap. In 1981 Blek le Rat started using stencils in his street-art graffiti, for speed and practicality. 

By 1985 most if not all street-artist were using this technique. 

As artists influenced by graffiti began to get shows via the downtown art scene in N.Y.C, through Leo Casteli and Diego Cortez, so did their uptown counterparts. Fashion Moda in the Bronx and Now gallery in the east village were two of the first to start showing graffiti art in the early 80's. Despite clear attempts to curtail graffiti, street-art, etc. society was clearly becoming use to it on some levels, giving it some sense of normalcy. In a way this gradual acceptance would eventually begin to down grade it. By making it legal (in some ways) and allowing it to thrive via popular culture would begin to reduce some of the illegal side. 

This could be looked at like the Romans and Christianity, it would be legitimized and absorbed in society by those of influence, money, power, and politics. This of course would benefit society as much as cause various problems. In the next few month we will be viewing other aspects of Graffiti art, government ruling against it, corporations that embrace it, and public space given over to graffiti art for its beauty. 

Article and photos by K.K.W # (1) & (3):Wikipedia, (2) & (5):Glenn O'Brien, (4):Klossowski     

Williamsburg Bridge, Manhattan, Canon IXY digital

Canal and Wooster st, Canon IXY digital