Man Made Lake

Lexington and Marcy

Nothing Is Forever

Bushwick | Sunset Park | Belmont | Borough Park | East Harlem

     Unlike their more respectful Brazilian counterparts, American taggers are a highly competitive and confrontational bunch.  Big beautiful pieces often last only a few hours before some kid scribbles his name over it, hoping to milk some of the attention that the original work earned.  I have, however, noticed a strong exception when it comes to memorials.  Here you can actually see the paint start to chip.  One explanation could be the presence of a profound respect for the dead and their families.  Or perhaps taggers are afraid of being hunted down by the deceased's comrades.  Regardless, these things always creep me out.  People die everywhere, all the time, for an array of reasons.  But when walking through a rough patch it's a little unsettling to see shrine after shrine to dead who just happen to always be young Latino or African-American men.

IRT White Plains Road Line

In the late 70s, when subway graffiti was at its peak, the 2 & 5 line was widely considered the most prestigious canvas in the system, in part because it showcased writers from some of the toughest neighborhoods in the Bronx and Brooklyn. By the early 90s the subways were essentially clean, and since then most traditional tagging with spray paint has been reduced to commissioned works on warehouses and delivery trucks.

I don't deny that the majority of graffiti was and is tasteless scribbling, and period shots of subway car interiors completely covered in felt tip markings make me gag. But I do get the impression that watching elevated trains was a much more exciting endeavor thirty years ago.

There's some amazing work documented in Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant's classic 1984 book Subway Art. To get an idea of what you missed, check out a digitized copy here.

La Casa de la Esquina

    The "House on the Corner" of Zacatecas and Monterrey in Roma Sur is one of those catch-all punk lifestyle centers. Squatters haven, performance space for bands, and, most attractive to me, a hub of local street art. Néstor and Pablo were kind enough to invite me inside.

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