Monday, August 2 2010

Kings Go Forth

So yeah, I used to be a graffiti writer. And when I say “used to” that actually means that I always will be, even if I don’t actually lend my talent to writing on walls anymore. But it’s just one of those things that, once you have been “there” it never really leaves you. You write your name in the steam on the wall while you shower, you break your neck checking out new work while you ride the train, you see a wall and there’s a little voice in you that might say “A can of Rusto with a Kitchen Magic cap would look SO GOOD on that…” It’s the little things really. Kind of like how an ex-skater can see a certain ledge and go “Damn that looks like it would be fun to ride” and then will continue walking by. I might start talking a little more about my graf history in the coming months. It’s always good for stories, and I’ve got plenty… But I digress!

Here’s a really sick photo gallery of old school California / Mexican / Cholo graffiti taken in what has to be the 70s. Now Cholo graff is it’s own entity – completely unique and in it’s own world. I grew up in Philly and it’s widely recognized that Philly is one of the birthplaces of graffiti – specifically called “the birthplace of style” by my man Espo. Philly writers been doing their thing for a while. I remember my mom telling me about “Bobby Beck In 59” being up all over the place. There were all the writers from the late 60s and early 70s that got into the action like Cornbread, Cool Earl, Top Cat, Tity, Dr. Kool among others. Of course there also were the guys from the late 70s and early 80s that were the ones that inspired me to get my name “out there” – names like Clyde, Estro, Pez, E-Z, Mr. Blint, Deadhead, Credit, Jay-Cee, Razz, Japan, Kozmo and my local neighborhood kings, Pap & Brez. But that Cali Cholo shit is on another level, and it goes back all the way to the 1920s. Real ill behavior. Peep the joints below…

This lady has got so much flavor… she kinda looks like and reminds me of my moms. Okay, you can peep all the rest at Kid Deuce’s “Golden Age Of Gang Graffiti” Flickr. So yeah, I’m gonna start going through my old flicks, sketches, all that hot shit, start posting it up. Until then I’m gonna leave you with couple jawns from some dudes that really fucked my head up (in a proper way) back in the day… Kadism and Zephyr – 2 dudes from different cities. Kings in their own right, and 2 of the biggest influences on me as a writer.