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Black-Books
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~ Hand Style 9 ~ What is in a name? Everything! How a name is written however, is even more important. Hand writing is the first step in becoming a Graffiti writer. Writers put in much time and pride into there tags. Writers developed there tag, to stand out from others due to the competition. In time, a writers tag became a label of who they were, and who they are today.
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JESTER, a Manhattan and Queens writer from the 1970's. He started writing in 1970, in Harlem, New York with CLIFF 159, at the ripe age of 11 years old. During the mid 1970's, he moved to Jamaica, Queens where he formed the group, THE CREW (TC) with UNCLE JOHN 178, TEAR 2 and EX~1. Together they took over the E and F train lines. Along with STAY HIGH 149, JESTER has one of the best hand writing styles in history. He inspired many Brooklyn and Queens writers to take there hand styles even further. JESTER is a true ALL CITY King who is truly over looked in the writing history, and who inspired writers throughout the city, most notably ZEPHYR. |
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FUTURA 2000, a very respected Broadway writer from the early 1970's helped form the writing group SOUL ARTISTS with ALI 105. As seen on page 2, with the tag that was taken from a wall on the Broadway #1 train line (from 1973), FUTURA was ahead of his time with his style of writing. He quit writing in mid/late 1974, and made a come back in 1980, along with the new generation of writers. Throughout the years, FUTURA's style of handwriting had changed. The above photo was taken by Brooklyn writer, EPIC 1, in the early 1980's. |
TRACY 168 -
"I started writing in 1970, unlike all the fakes and frauds out
there. I can remember seeing my man FJC 4 tagging up the neighborhood and
asked, "What the fuck are you doing?" He replied, "Graffiti".
That was when I started
tagging every thing in site (street walls, the insides of trains, buses and trucks).
There were no
other writers in the Bronx, at that time, besides us. Yes, there were a few writers
who started before us by a month or maybe a year, such as TAKI 183, GERMAN 1, LEE 163, TAN 144, ROSS 1, PIPER 1
and JOE 182."
BOM 005 - "You had so many writers in the Bronx in the 1970's that were truly over looked, some like those you see above. P NUT 2 had great hand style, as well as overall style. He wrote all over the city with SONNY 107, who was an original member of the group WANTED, and who truly bombed! CRAZY GIRL 177 was another writer who was everywhere. These writers, like myself, were truly over looked in books."
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COLA - FACE 188
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SONIC * KOOL 171 |
MR. ICE - "I started writing in 1972, in Brooklyn, New York. It was the tagging era, then the biggest names in my area were guys like POCO 1 and SONIC - KOOL 171."
