Graffiti: The Good, the bad, and the ugly

Graffiti was mainly used by political activists to make statements and by street gangs to mark territory.
In Los Angeles during the 1930s, shoeshine boys began tagging their street corners with their names to keep others away from their spot.

Cholo writing in L.A.

It wasn't until the late 1960s when graffiti's true identity began to form. The history of graffiti most commonly began in Philadelphia.

Cornbread is credited for graffiti's first explosion. He wrote his name all over the city.

Cornbread's most famous feats of tagging the elephant at the Philadelphia zoo.

Shortly after Cornbread made his debut, graffiti began to spread to New York in the Washington Heights section.

Taki 183 was one of the most influential graffiti writers in its history. His nickname was the alias for his name, Demetrius. He frequently tagged the subways of New York with his art. Taki's simple signature captured the attention of a reporter and an article appeared in the New York Times. He was the first New Yorker to become famous for writing graffiti. The appearance of his name sparked the public's interest and was published in a New York Times article.

His tag is short for Demetaki, a Greek alternative for his birth-name Demetrius.

The numbers in the nicknames identify the number of the street each artists lives in.

Writing started moving from the streets to the subways and became competitive. The subway system was a line of communication and a unifying element for all the separate movements. At this point, writing consisted of mostly tags and the goal was to have as many as possible.

After a while, graffiti became so popular that everyone was doing it. Writers found many unique ways to tag. They enhanced their tags with stars, flourishes, and other designs. Crowns were used by writers who proclaimed themselves as king.

The most famous tag in the culture's history was Stay High 149. He used a smoking joint as the cross bar for his "H" and a stick figure from the television series, The Saint.
Writers started to present their tags in larger scale. Larger tags drew more attention.Writers began to increase the thickness of the letters and would outline them with an additional color. This led to the development of the masterpiece.

Super Kool 23 is credited for the masterpiece. The thicker letters enhanced the name. Writers decorated the interior of the letter with designs. First with simple polka dots, later with crosshatches, stars, checkerboards.

                                                                                               Super Kool 23 was one of the first great taggers in the Bronx.

The competitive atmosphere led to the development of actual styles. Broadway style was introduced by Philadelphia's Topcat 126. These letters evolved in to block letters, leaning letters, and block busters. Phase 2 later developed Softie letters, more commonly referred to as Bubble letters. Broadway style and Bubble letters were the earliest forms of actual pieces and the foundation of many styles.

Hugo Martinez founded the group, United Graffiti Artists. It selected top subway artists from all around the city and presented their work in the formal context of an art gallery. UGA provided opportunities for exposure. The Razor Gallery was a successful effort to the artists Martinez represented.

Females began to gain attention during the early 1970s. Manhattan's Barbara 62 and Eva 62 where the most prolific. They were just as conquerable as the male writers. As with many male-dominated fields, women weren't respected as writers and were rumored to sleep around.

Barbara 62 & Eva 62 remain the most recognized of their era to date.

A new wave of creativity bloomed in the late 70s with crews like TDS, Shy 147, Rasta and more. Style wars were peaking again. It was also the last wave of bombing before the Transit Authority made the elimination of tagging a priority.

In 1980, writers started to consider other creative options. Numerous of writers flocked to art galleries to broaden their horizons.

During the mid 1980s, the writing culture changed dramatically. Due to the drug trade, firearms where available and the climate on the street was tightened. Laws restricted the sale of paint to minors and required merchants to place spray paint in locked cages. Legislation was in the process to make penalties for graffiti more severe.

After the increase in the Metropolitan Transit Authority's anti-graffiti budget. The budget paid for a total of 80,000 hours to remove graffiti. Yards and layups were ore closely guarded and new sophisticated fences where build and quickly repaired when damaged. This caused for writers to quit.

Many other writers weren't so easily discouraged. Physical strength and unity became a major part of the writing experience.

Metropolitan Transit Association spent millions on campaigns to get rid of graffiti.

On May 12, 1989, the MTA declared victory over graffiti. The MTA set a policy to remove all marked subway cars from service.

Graffiti holds a significant place in the elements of hip-hop. Graffiti represents the visual of hip-hop. Writers were as prominent like b-boys, emcees, and DJs at the party.

Graffiti still exists as a major part of the urban environment.

Rasko, graffiti writer from Russia