Graffiti has been around for centuries in many different forms. Cavemen placed some graffiti
on large stones and in caves on the walls. Political activists used graffiti to make statements.
Gangs use graffiti as a way to mark their territory and communicate.
Several authors providing a history of graffiti all seem to agree that the modern artwork
known as graffiti originated in Philadelphia during the mid – 1960s. Later in that same decade,
writers began to be recognized individually as writing became more prevalent.
Naturally, graffiti art migrated to other cities, especially New York City. Some of the first
artists to be acknowledged were Cornbread and Cool Earl, both of whom wrote all over the city.
Once Cornbread emerged in New York City, other writers followed in the Washington Heights
area of New York City. TAKI 183 became one of the pioneers of writings on the subway. TAKI,
whose real name is Demetrius and who lived on 183rd
Street, was a messenger who used the
subway frequently. Because of his accessibility to the subway, he began his career by doing
“motion tags.” The New York Times did an article about TAKI and his work because of his
unusual tags, name and number. Although he wasn’t the first writer, he was the first to be
identified as part of this new subculture.
Friendly Freddie kicked off the writing trend as the graffiti movement migrated to Brooklyn.
This is significant because it started an inter-borough competition.- everybody could see
everybody else’s work on moving trains. The writers tried to outdo each other.
Writing began to consist of “tags” and the goal was to have as many as possible traveling
around the city. These writers would ride the trains attempting to tag as many cars as possible.
Conversely, tagging trains in train yards and railroad lay-up yards is referred to as “Bombing.” It
is a faster place to work with less chance of being caught. It became important for each writer
to make his / her tags unique.
In the mid – 1970s when New York City was broke, the transit system was poorly
maintained. The heaviest bombing occurred during this period in history. Entire cars began to
be designed. The “throw up,” as it was called, was a style that was introduced as a way to
make letters quickly. The letters were outlined and barely filled in. The “wars” between writers
were peaking at this time, too.
One of the last big waves of bombing occurred in the late 70s. Then financial times got
better for major cities, including New York. The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) started to
enforce the elimination of writing all over New York City.
By the 1980s, many writers ceased writing to begin real life careers. These artists and
others flocked to art galleries that introduced graffiti art overseas. This was also a time when
the culture of writing was diminishing in many ways and for many reasons. The streets were
becoming very tense and very unsafe because of drugs, guns, and violence. Laws were
enacted restricting the sale of paint to minors. Many stores were locking up paint, which
virtually eliminated shoplifting. Train yards and lay-up yards were more closely guarded as
were other “ideal” painting areas. Graffiti removal programs were in full effect. All of this made
many artists quit. For others, it made them more motivated. Because areas to write were so
scarce, violence became more prevalent in protecting and defending these “territories.”
The Metropolitan Transit Authority declared victory over graffiti in May 1989. In what has
become known as the Clean Train Movement, the MTA effectively removed all marked cars
from running.
Many writers believed that tagging on trains meant you were a “real writer.” If you tagged
walls, freight, and scraps, you were labeled as “a fake.” Throughout the years, writers have
kept fighting the MTA.
In more recent times, writers have been gaining recognition and have been featured in
various media. Magazines have been created graffiti and writers and a series of movies were
produced in the late 1980s in New York City. These movies were the first organized videos that
documented writing by writers.
In 1994, web sites emerged that focused on documenting writing as an art form. Media
exposure significantly increased a few years later. This further pushed graffiti as an art form in
a manner that took it off the streets and into galleries and museums.
