Graff 101: Handstyles To Whole-Cars

Pregame preperations... 

     Nine years ago, the graffiti documentary "Infamy" dropped, and is debatably the most influential graffiti movie to occur since "Style Wars..." It's opening sequence has TKO's TLOK (TOOMER at the time) explaining how graffiti is simply making your mark... He references how Mt. Rushmore was created by people who wanted to do just that, how they disregarded that the property they left their mark on wasn't theirs to deface... For those who don't know, the land was occupied by Cheyenne and Sioux tribes until foreign settlers found gold in the Black Hills and encroached on their land, eventually engaging in battle over the land they felt they needed to possess... He then sums it up nicely, saying "They wanted to leave a mark, they said 'These people right here - They are our founding fathers!! So we're gonna put their big faces on this mountain, and fuck who don't like it!!'" In relation to graffiti, I feel that it's a great comparison, that some people are willing to take a piece of property, transform it into a piece of art and ignore the fact that somebody else might not appreciate the medium of the art or the "canvas" which it was created upon...

NIETS TAF ICR

     The guerrilla art form does have somewhat of a hierarchy though, not to say every writer respects the unwritten rules of the game, but they do exist... It all begins with a tag, a handstyle, the most primitive of markings, but a handstyle says quite a lot though... The trained eye can possibly detect the area from which the writer is from, as certain places have extremely distinct writing styles... It can also display the level of skill which the writer possesses... An inexperienced writer often has less than appealing letter forms, as well as drips of excess paint, which indicate they lack can control... To further dissect the paint, certain tips or caps exert different sized sprays, the larger caps giving writers with more experience and can control the option to "flare" their letters... Spraypaint isn't the only tool for a writer though, they can use solidified paint markers, ink or paint based markers, fire extinguishers, scribing tools or even acid...

OMENS MSK VILLY

     After someones tag has been established, the next typical stage is to develop a "throw-up," a way to paint their name quickly and stylishly, usually utilizing rounded letter forms... Throws are generally one of the more important elements of a writers repertoire, as they can be executed relatively quickly, which is important if a writer hopes to get away successfully without detection... They can be hollow or filled in, but they typically have a 3-D added to them to give them some depth, but that's not always the case... Most throws are legible and are rarely extremely complicated in letterform, but there are exceptions to that rule, and though this is the simplest form of the "piecing" hierarchy, it can stylistically be the most visually appealing...

SPÜK MDR

     After the throw-up comes the "simple," a typically standard, font based piece that contains a minimal amount of additives to the letters... Though straight block style letters do fall into this category, it encompasses more than that, as most simples do have a fair amount of funk and style to them... It's a very low percentage of simples that aren't filled in, and this is generally the style of piece where a writer develops their fill style and works out how different colors work with one another... This is also where a writer can further develop the direction in which their piecing skills are going to progress, as most writers can build a full blown piece off the same structure with which they make their simple pieces...

AHOLE TKO

     Finally, once a writer has successfully handled the lower stages of the totem, and often times well before then also, they move onto the pinnacle of graffiti - "burners..." Though quite a few of this new generation's writers seem to believe that any shitty tag in some whack handstyle is a burner, that's not the case... A burner is a piece that has a dope letter structure, a balanced color palate, a clean fill in, appropriate 3-D and it properly conveys the artist's individual style... It used to be, a writer would work their way up to creating burners, but nowadays, the younger writers jump straight into piecing without previously developing their lower tier skills... It's not necessarily a bad thing if the writer can produce dope pieces, but as far a credibility goes, they'll lack that, and their reputation amongst the writing community will most likely be tainted since a majority of writers won't appreciate their lack of development and dedication to the lower, less flashy elements of graffiti...

KOPS Freight Bums ALB TIO

     Though there's a hierarchy to graffiti, as far as the actual produced works are concerned, the placement and size of the pieces are of almost equal importance... A tag is easy to place in a highly visible spot with relative ease, as it only takes a matter of seconds to leave a stylish marking in a high traffic area without gaining much unwanted attention... If a writer were to try and paint a burner in a high traffic area, the attention they would receive would most likely lead to their being caught or chased out of that spot... That's why timing and placement are elements that dictate much of what a graffiti writer produces... A chill lay up may allow for a writer to create a "whole car" piece on the side of a freight train or hopper, while they may be limited to a few tags or a simple while cruising between the lines of a train yard... That's why it's equally as nice to see a roller of block letters on a wall you can see while cruising along a highway spot, as it is a hollow throw on an actual freeway wall... The same way it's just as nice to see a good tag handstyle on a busy street corner, as it is finding a burner in a secluded bridge wall...

KOZE TKO MDR

     The hierarchy also dictates the unwritten rules of going over, or "capping" another writer's work, to an extent... A throw goes over a tag, simple goes over a throw and burner goes over a simple... If it's done in any type of reverse order, it typically signifies one of two things: 1) The capping artist has beef with the other artists and is doing it as a sign of disrespect towards the other artists, or 2) The capping artist is a toy and has no idea what the hell's going on in the graffiti culture... It's generally accepted that a writer can go over another writer if their work is better than the previous writer's work, but that doesn't mean the initial owner won't be disgruntled and consider it beef regardless if it's better or not... Again, there are no rules to this guerrilla art, so a writer can consider any type of capping a symbol of disrespect... How beef is settled varies among writers, sometimes it can be a 1-on-1 fist fight, it could end up a battle of burners judged by a mediator or one writer may demand another gives them a large quantity of paint... Once again, it being a guerrilla art, there are no official rules to any aspect of the graff game...

Tools of the trade...

     Hopefully this has been insightful article to those outside of the scene, as well any novice writers whom are still learning the ropes of this exciting yet often dangerous lifestyle... There's quite a bit to be said about writers willing to risk their livelihood and safety to make a statement that a majority of the world will never see, and even fewer of those who do see it will fully understand... It's not any one race, gender or upbringing, and their reason for writing could vary drastically from the next writer, but the fact is they're out there painting to fulfill a desire within themselves... So next time you see graffiti of any size or form, hopefully you will have a better understanding and respect of the element it represents in the grand scheme of things...