Graffiti and Street Art: About

In this blockbuster word-of-mouth, underground classic, William "Upski" Wimsatt attacks the whole idea of the suburb as "an unfortunate state-of-mind... founded on fear, conformity, shallowness of character, and dullness of imagination."

What is behind the tidal wave of street art that is sweeping through the cultural scene today? What are its artistic features, its codes, and its language? How has its production, which was originally exclusively centered in the urban space, invaded galleries, and its artists become so popular? Written by Magda Danysz, a gallery owner and recognized expert on street art. - The Publisher

Wall Writers explores graffiti's eruption into mainstream society in the period of social turmoil in the late 1960s and early '70s, and takes a closer look not only at early graffiti's place on the wall but its place in the culture of the time. It explores early graffiti writing and the writers creating it, the culture that motivated them to write and the new technology of spray paint that made it possible.

Long ignored and belittled for its proximity to comic culture and vandalism, graffiti has steadfastly remained in the public view and become a fundamental aspect of the modern city, influencing public perception and borrowed by fashion, packaging, graphic designers and architects alike. An offspring of graffiti, born out of tags and throw-ups, "writing" is modern urban calligraphy. Originating in typography, writing has left its mark on virtually all visual disciplines, especially in illustration, logo design, motion graphics and architecture. Writing: Urban Calligraphy and Beyond surveys this appropriation of public space and examines the detailed fusion of analogue writing and digital design, integrating the unique spatial properties of graffiti writing, its shapes, forms and angles, into three-dimensional objects or buildings.

Signal is an ongoing book series dedicated to documenting and sharing compelling graphics, art projects, and cultural movements of international resistance and liberation struggles.

The first large-scale American museum exhibition to survey the colorful history of graffiti and street art movements internationally. Highlighting the connection between graffiti and street art and other vibrant subcultures, such as those that developed around Hip Hop in the Bronx and skateboarding in Southern California, Art in the Streets explores parallel movements in dance and music. The exhibition is curated by MoCA Director Jeffrey Deitch, working with a curatorial advisory committee that includes Roger Gastman and Aaron Rose.

Getting Up for the People tells the story of the Assembly of Revolutionary Artists of Oaxaca (ASARO) mixing their images and words with curatorial descriptions. Part of a long tradition of socially-conscious Mexican art, ASARO gives respect to Mexican national icons, although their themes are global, addressing contemporary debates on corporate greed, genetically modified organisms, violence against women and abuses of natural resources. In 2006 ASARO formed as part of a broader social movement, and now they enjoy international recognition.