Customer Reviews

Subway Art

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The epitome of classic NYC graffiti, Subway Art has become the veritable Bible for this particular subculture that has exploded around the United States, and also the world ( just to name a few: Germany, Iceland, Denmark, Amsterdam, France, and Japan ). Contained herein are the masterpeices by the Kings of the Line, Dondi ( R.I.P. ), Blade, Lee, Kase, Seen, Lady Pink and a host of others. The pictures are large and there are some fold-outs, capturing the SIZE and LENGTH of what are basically moving steel masterpeices. There is a brief line or two about tags and throw-ups, but the book concentrates more on top-to-bottoms, window-to-bottoms, and whole cars. What is important about this book is its documentation of an up and coming subculture that basically gave a big EFF YOU to an environment that was comparable to some 3rd world countries by creating an art that was not only dangerous ( in its execution ), but creative, and beautiful. The message that "we are here, and WE SHALL BOMB", in SPITE of Transit Authoriy and the indifferent system which placed them there is characteristic of adversity which spawns creativity ( the same adversity that created Hip-Hop ) . An important peice of work, and a must for art afficiandos and graf & hip-hop heads alike.

this book along with spraycan art,getting up,stylewars,wild style,beat street,countless video clips & so on started the world wide graffiti and hip hop culture. when i first got this book seven years ago ive spent a good 20 hours studying it. this book is well known as the most stolen book in the u.k from the set of two " graff bibles " spraycan art being the other one if you don't have this book and you like old school ny trains from where it all started you really need to get this book MUST BUY.

Meet the real writers who started it all! On location footage and tons of old school graffiti flavor makes this book just about as real as it gets. Check out the old school writers and their early masterpieces. Dondi, Skeme,Futura,Lady Pink and Zephyr are just a few of the kings of the New York Metro System you'll get to meet in this bible for studying the styles and the people who made graffiti what it is today. Wanna do your graffiti homework? You'll be a graduate in old school style New York Graffiti after having read this one!

This classic book, along with "Broken Windows: Graffiti NYC" is all you need to know about NYC graff. Anyone up needs both of these books. Knowledge is king!

the book is the best! i used it for a book report and i got an A. It has various artist and some hard to find pieces of famouse artist work.I am from the San Francisco bay area and i have seen lots of Trains with pieces on it but this has it all.

This book is the BE-ALL End-ALL source for anyone even remotely interested in graffiti art! Regardless of whether or not you actually indulge in the creation itself spawned by these original new york train masters, this piece is a must-read.

Subway Art. What can I say? This, Style Wars, Beat Street, Break Dance... they all had their influence on me (& a whole generation) back in the day.

Hip Hop isn't what it used to be, though. Most of what we hear these days is mixed up with R'n'B, commercialised, repackaged and shipped for your dissatisfaction. If you ask me... when it comes to Hip Hop, stick with the old school.

I was brought up in Melbourne, Australia, and did quite a bit of graffiti there during the 1980s. Melbourne had plenty of weird & wonderful characters who were into graff back then. The vast majority have gone their separate ways. But there's always the rare psycho who's still bombing (I'm not referring to the younger generation - but to old school dudes who are still around). There's also those who got into graphic art and made a career for themselves out of graff.

I recommend checking out some of the original Vaughn Bode cartoons for yourself through a simple Google search.

Additional to this, I recommend Getting Up: Subway Graffitti in New York" by Craig Castleman. It has some pictures of trains and so on, but it is more for the reader. A copy was stolen from a local library near me - go figure.

And if you're ever in NYC... Check out the Hall of Fame. It's located on the corner of 106th Street and Park Avenue.

This book is THE book for graffiti writers. If you haven't heard of this book or haven't read it, what is wrong with you. This book manages to cover all aspects of graffiti in little over 100 pages. The book is chock full of the best pictures of the Kings of old school graffiti. This book is a must for toys as well as experieced writers. If you are into graffiti you will be into this book in a major way, but you don't have to take my word for it.

Not the first NYC subway graffiti book (that was Norman Mailer's 1974 "Faith of Graffiti"), nor the first to contain an article about it (that appears to be Kochman's 1971 "Rappin' And Stylin' Out"), but this is the best of the early books.

It is genre defining.

Great photos, decent explanation of styles and techniques.

The visual companion to the "Style Wars" film.

I grew up on the south side of Chicago during the 80s and had many friends who were "taggers" and got up every chance they got. They had spray-cans, hollowed-out deodorant sticks somehow replaced with ink, fat markers, Griffin, and who knows what else. Though I myself wasnt a graffiti artist or writer or tagger, this book is a great ride down memory lane for those of us who grew up on the streets. For those of us of a certain age, this book, "Subway Art", along with movies like Breakin' I AND II, Beat Street, original hip-hop and old school house music were all of a specific time and place. This book will make you want to break out the Pumas with the fat laces, bring out the tile and start back-spinnin', but it is also one of the the earliest, most definitive and detailed books on graffiti ever.