Wall Writers (2016)

Here's some screenshots from the great Wall Writers documentary. If you're a fan of real old school graffiti culture then this will be right up your street.
Bear in mind the film's title because we're going back, way back to the early 1970s and even the late 60s to when writers started out of street surfaces. This is to say way before trains and even before the various styles took hold. We're talking rudimentary actions here when all you had was a marker of some sort.

Narrated by John Waters (the legendary transgressive film director) this is an interesting journey back in time.
The writers are now well into their 50s and 60s now and some have wonderful recollections of their teenage years (as well as one writer with a truly harrowing experience) where they fumbled around before hooking up with others who also got down with the ink.

Personally I've always admired TAKI 183 who seemed to just do his thing for a short while then just disappeared back to live the life of an average schnook. He wasn't the first but he certainly influenced many who came after him. He's a very unassuming guy who seems almost bemused by what he helped create and it's nice to see him on screen still plodding away.

In case you can't find a copy of the doc, here's one for you to borrow. But please return it as others will want it after you.
(ABU HOLDS NO RESPONSIBILITY TO THE DAMAGE THAT MAY OCCUR TO YOUR PC IF YOU STEAL SHIT OFF THE INTERNET - PROCEED WITH CAUTION!)
And lastly here's some tasty links to whet your appetite.

Wall Writers " Graffiti In Its Innocence" Q&A - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mON1lh5XTZ8 

Throwback Thursday: The Aerosol Autographers 1971 - 12ozProphet
http://www.12ozprophet.com/news/throwback1972-the-aerosol-autographers/

Graffiti in Its Own Words:
http://nymag.com/guides/summer/17406/index1.html

Martha Cooper's quintessential photos of NYC:
https://i-d.vice.com/en_us/article/documenting-the-70s-golden-age-of-nyc-graffiti-culture

History:
http://www.at149st.com/hpart1.html

Getting Up: Subway Graffiti in New York by Craig Castleman (1982)
http://bit.ly/2q6sbim
 
Honouring the Bench at 149th St. & Grand Concourse:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/erikburke/sets/72157615891116334/with/3409829358/


(SHOUT TO IRISH CRAIG)