Graffiti holds special significance as one of the elements of Hip Hop culture. Graffiti as an urban art form has existed since at least the 1950s, but began developing in the late 1960s, and flourished during the 1970s. Graffiti is considered one of the four elements of hip hop (along with MC, DJing, and B-Boying). These were the four major forms of creative expression that came from the Bronx, NY and spread to the rest of the world. Graffiti represented the visual, emceeing and DJ produced the music, and B-Boying was the dance. In the early days of Hip Hop, all of these elements were deeply intertwined. Graf artists were very often B-boys and emcees and DJs as well. At the hottest parties, you might see a writer doing his thing on a wall while the DJ spins and scratches, the emcee revs up the crowd, and the B-boy battling each other on the dance floor.
Graffiti in hip hop began as a way of "tagging" for one's crew/gang, and developed during the 1970s on the subways of New York, and later expanded to the city walls themselves. This movement from trains to walls was encouraged by the efforts of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority to eradicate graffiti on their property (the M.T.A. officially declared the transit graffiti-free in 1989).
The first forms of subway graffiti were quick spray-painted or marker signatures ("tags"), which quickly evolved into large elaborate calligraphy, complete with color effects, shading, and more. As time went by, graffiti artistically developed and began to greatly define the aesthetic of urban areas. Many hip hop crews have made a name for themselves through their graffiti such as Afrika Bambaataa's Black Spades. By 1976, graffiti artists like Lee Quinones began painting entire murals using advanced techniques.
In 1979, graffiti artist Lee Quinones and Fab 5 Freddy were given a gallery opening in Rome by art dealer Claudio Bruni. For many outside of New York, it was their first encounter with their art form. Fab 5 Freddy’s friendship with Debbie Harry influenced Blondie’s single “Rapture”, the video of which featured Jean-Michel Basquiat, and offered their first glimpse of a depiction of elements of graffiti in hip hop culture. Charlie Ahearn’s independently released fiction film Wild Style, the early PBS documentary Style Wars (1983), hit songs such as “The Message” and “Planet Rock” and their accompanying music videos contributed to a growing interest outside of New York in all aspects of Hip Hop.
Another important event was the New York City rap tour, which in 1982, brought to London and Paris some of the most prominent rap musicians, breakdancers and graffiti writers together in a show that was for many Europeans the first contact with these cultures. According to Phase II, one of the participants: “We went to France and London. That influenced people in a major way, because it was the first time that all the so-called elements of hip hop were seen under one umbrella.” Additionally, many of the music videos that exported rap music included scenes of graffiti. The most significant of these was Buffalo Gals, produced by Malcolm McLaren in 1983, which gave the world the chance to see for the first time the live creation of a graffiti piece, by legendary writer Dondi.
Style Wars depicted not only famous graffiti artists such as Skeme, Dondi, MinOne, and ZEPHYR, but also reinforced graffiti’s role within New York’s emerging hip hop culture by incorporating famous early breakdancing groups such as Rock Steady Crew into the film and featuring rap in the soundtrack. Style Wars is still recognized as the most prolific film representation of what was going on within the young hip hop culture of the early 1980s.
Graffiti has long been villainized by those in authority and allegedly associated with gangs, violence, drug culture and street crime. In most jurisdictions, creating graffiti art on public property without permission is a criminal offense punishable by fines and incarceration.
Graffiti was done by writers of all ethnicities. They tended to be young (mostly teenagers) but some of the hardcore writers from the 70s are still going strong today. It was based on skill, not the color of your skin, your religion, or anything else that didn't translate to the pieces you made. Graffiti is multicultural, representing the ethnic diversity of New York, the city that spawned it. Hip hop has changed, and has moved far beyond the Bronx, but many of Hip Hop's founding fathers hope that it can remain a powerful multicultural force in spite of all the commercialism and marketing that surrounds it now.
Graffiti is a powerful and beautiful art form.
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