An Oral History of Early Graffiti in New York City

Oral history with ROCKY 184, an early graffiti writer involved in the Writer's Corner in Washington Heights in the late 1960s. TAKI 183 and other early New York City graff writers were also involved in this scene.

Oral history with STAFF 161, founder of The Ebony Dukes, the first graffiti crew in The Bronx, made up of writers from Hewitt Place who got their start in the late 1960s/early 1970s.

Oral history with TOPAZ 1, member of The Ebony Dukes, the first graffiti crew in The Bronx, made up of writers from Hewitt Place who got their start in the late 1960s/early 1970s.

Oral history with RIFF 170, legendary member of INDS, one of the first graffiti crews in The Bronx and very influential in developing lettering style. The crew was most prolific during the early and mid 1970s.

Oral history with BUTCH 2, member of The Fantastic Partners and one of the most influential and revered pioneers of style from The Bronx. BUTCH 2 got his start in the early 1970s and is active again today.

Oral history with the TERRIBLE TKID, infamous and globally famous graffiti writer from The Bronx. TKID started writing in 1974 and quickly became a master of style. He is also known as the only writer to challenge CAP MPC to a fight, at the famous Fashion Moda in The Bronx.

Oral history with SLAVE of The Fabulous 5ive, the first graffiti crew to paint an entire ten-car subway train, with DOC, LEE, MONO, and SLAVE playing a part in this monumental event.

Oral history with REE 2, a member of Mad Transit Artists, a graffiti crew that formed in the Tremont section of The Bronx and was most active from 1976 to 1980. REE's top-to-bottom subway pieces rivaled those of LEE and other top-notch writers of his day.

Oral history with BOM5, founder of the Mad Writers a.k.a. the Most Wanted Crew, which started around 1978.

Oral history with NAK143/NAC143, a member of Crazy Young Artists and active from around 1978 until 1982. NAK went on to become an innovator in custom baseball hat design and was involved in a precedent-setting lawsuit against NYC protecting graffiti as a form of free speech.

Oral history with BG183, member of the globally famous Tats Cru, which formed in the early 1980s in The Bronx. Its members, including BG183, went on to become pioneers of street art murals and are still worldwide leaders in this field today.