Style Writers
Mucciaccia Gallery London is pleased to announce: 鈥淪tyle Writers鈥� featuring Aaron Noble, A-One, Crash, Futura 2000, Kenny Scharf, Quik and Zephyr.
The first exhibition of graffiti in a gallery鈥斺�淕raffiti Art Success for America鈥濃�攚as organized by the writer Crash at a gallery called Fashion Moda in South Bronx, New York in 1980. This was the moment when graffiti was recognized as a form of self-expression instead of an act of vandalism. In the Bronx, at the same time, hip hop came to be appreciated as a form of music, DJs made their first scratches, and break dancing came indoors, from the street to the studio. The distance between these now discreet art forms is an illusion of distance because, when they emerged, they came into existence as intersecting forms of street culture. This was not Pop Art, with its ironic distance and sly commentary on American media-fascination and conformism. This was popular culture and it was nurtured by young people of diverse backgrounds coming together on and off the street. Grandmaster Flash, Fab 5 Freddy, Rock Steady Crew, the Beastie Boys, Futura2000, Afrika Bambaattaa, Lady Pink, D.ST, Muhamad, Lee Quinones, The Magnificent Force, Mr. Magic, Ray 鈥淟il Lep鈥� Ramos, Run DMC, DJ Jazzy J, Zephyr, Beat Street, the list goes on.
These artists, musicians and performers generated these interlocking art forms against the background of a crumbling post-industrial New York City. Though the city was the center of finance, and housed the most significant banking sector in the world, it had gone broke in 1975 and the national government refused federal assistance. If New York over-blossomed with capital in the 1950s and 1960s, by the late 70s, it had gone to seed. No matter, other forms of value were being discovered in the neglected boroughs. The shared destiny of the out-of-work-ing class allowed them to explore their collective capacity. From the marginal spaces of the South Bronx, and the other buroughs鈥攁bandoned movie theaters, community centers and, most of all, the 鈥測ards鈥� where subway cars were parked鈥攏ew forms of art came to life. These informal, and sometimes illegal, cultural practices spilled out into the streets in a series of radical experiments, a breathless lunge at glory. In this world, the only valuables in sight were those generated by your exceptional style, your capacity to outperform everyone else in the room, or in the yards. The results could not be quantified, at least not yet, but the burst of creativity that emerged in this twilight of the greatest city of the 20th century overflowed its bounds, transforming global culture and providing a whole new set of standards by which to judge the creative capacity of the artist. Style was the term they used to describe the ineffable excellence they strived for鈥攕tyle defined the way they made a contribution to their world when hardly anyone besides themselves was paying attention at first.
鈥淲riters鈥� is the moniker they used for the kids who made graffiti because they did not think of themselves as making pictures but bringing words to life, most importantly on the sides of subway trains. A great writer could use a whole car to write his 鈥渢ag鈥� with a unique style, many of which are being copied to this day. Artists like Zephyr, Crash and Futura2000 made and remade their tags on trains, in cars, on buildings, any space that could be claimed in the burned-out city of their youth. This changed with the exhibition organized by Crash at Fashion Moda. The idea was to get writers to cover recycled plywood panels and display those throughout the gallery. The walls of Fashion Moda were already covered with graffiti, but these new wood pieces could be carried away, which means they could be sold and, just like that, writers became artists, and they found a new means of supporting their work.
Recommended for you
Mucciaccia Gallery London is pleased to announce: 鈥淪tyle Writers鈥� featuring Aaron Noble, A-One, Crash, Futura 2000, Kenny Scharf, Quik and Zephyr.
The first exhibition of graffiti in a gallery鈥斺�淕raffiti Art Success for America鈥濃�攚as organized by the writer Crash at a gallery called Fashion Moda in South Bronx, New York in 1980. This was the moment when graffiti was recognized as a form of self-expression instead of an act of vandalism. In the Bronx, at the same time, hip hop came to be appreciated as a form of music, DJs made their first scratches, and break dancing came indoors, from the street to the studio. The distance between these now discreet art forms is an illusion of distance because, when they emerged, they came into existence as intersecting forms of street culture. This was not Pop Art, with its ironic distance and sly commentary on American media-fascination and conformism. This was popular culture and it was nurtured by young people of diverse backgrounds coming together on and off the street. Grandmaster Flash, Fab 5 Freddy, Rock Steady Crew, the Beastie Boys, Futura2000, Afrika Bambaattaa, Lady Pink, D.ST, Muhamad, Lee Quinones, The Magnificent Force, Mr. Magic, Ray 鈥淟il Lep鈥� Ramos, Run DMC, DJ Jazzy J, Zephyr, Beat Street, the list goes on.
These artists, musicians and performers generated these interlocking art forms against the background of a crumbling post-industrial New York City. Though the city was the center of finance, and housed the most significant banking sector in the world, it had gone broke in 1975 and the national government refused federal assistance. If New York over-blossomed with capital in the 1950s and 1960s, by the late 70s, it had gone to seed. No matter, other forms of value were being discovered in the neglected boroughs. The shared destiny of the out-of-work-ing class allowed them to explore their collective capacity. From the marginal spaces of the South Bronx, and the other buroughs鈥攁bandoned movie theaters, community centers and, most of all, the 鈥測ards鈥� where subway cars were parked鈥攏ew forms of art came to life. These informal, and sometimes illegal, cultural practices spilled out into the streets in a series of radical experiments, a breathless lunge at glory. In this world, the only valuables in sight were those generated by your exceptional style, your capacity to outperform everyone else in the room, or in the yards. The results could not be quantified, at least not yet, but the burst of creativity that emerged in this twilight of the greatest city of the 20th century overflowed its bounds, transforming global culture and providing a whole new set of standards by which to judge the creative capacity of the artist. Style was the term they used to describe the ineffable excellence they strived for鈥攕tyle defined the way they made a contribution to their world when hardly anyone besides themselves was paying attention at first.
鈥淲riters鈥� is the moniker they used for the kids who made graffiti because they did not think of themselves as making pictures but bringing words to life, most importantly on the sides of subway trains. A great writer could use a whole car to write his 鈥渢ag鈥� with a unique style, many of which are being copied to this day. Artists like Zephyr, Crash and Futura2000 made and remade their tags on trains, in cars, on buildings, any space that could be claimed in the burned-out city of their youth. This changed with the exhibition organized by Crash at Fashion Moda. The idea was to get writers to cover recycled plywood panels and display those throughout the gallery. The walls of Fashion Moda were already covered with graffiti, but these new wood pieces could be carried away, which means they could be sold and, just like that, writers became artists, and they found a new means of supporting their work.
Artists on show
