Graffiti News

South Florida’s graffiti spray painters are an agile community of adrenaline junkies, addicted to the rush of leaving their mark.

To local police, public-works departments and private-property owners, they are a menace whose self-indulgent scribblings result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in cleanup costs.

For years, they slipped through the shadows by night, faceless and unseen. Then, on Feb. 20, a 28-year-old man known as MERK lost his footing while attempting to tag a traffic sign overhanging the Palmetto Expressway near Bird Road.

MERK, whose real name was Enrique Vincente Olivera, plunged 24 feet to the pavement, where he died as early-morning motorists whizzed by.

His death cast a spotlight on a thriving subculture. In their world, spray-paint vandals are ”writers,” and marking property is known as ”bombing.” Cemeteries, churches and personal vehicles are off-limits. Status is earned by performing dangerous acts while demonstrating artistic ability.

‘I pray for graffiti writers’ salvation all the time,” said Joel Stigale, a tattooed Christian missionary. “They live a dangerous lifestyle and find themselves in bad places at the wrong times.”

Most get involved during their early teens. It is, the writers say, an opportunity to belong to a group where artistic talent is valued.

”In school, I was never anything that stood out. I wasn’t going to excel in English or football, so I found graffiti,” said Daniel Fila, 28, a former writer and now a professional artist. “I knew I could make something of myself with that, so I did.”

ON A MISSION

During the day, writers — some teenagers in school, others adults — will sketch out prototype designs with a marker in a black book. At night, they arm themselves with spray paint, stencils and sometimes stickers before heading out on a mission: to spread artistic interpretations of their name with stylized typography.

”I used to go out bombing six nights a week,” said Skott Johnson, a former writer, now a graphic designer and professional artist. “I would steal my mother’s company car.”

There are many solo writers, but in graffiti’s competitive environment, writers join what is known as a crew, krew or cru. They can have anywhere from five to 100 members.

”The leader is the only one who can put people in the crew,” said former writer Seth Schere, who runs PATH, a cultural program. “Older writers help you get a name and teach you the rules.”

There are usually no initiations, but the graffiti community must notice a writer’s quality and quantity of work.

A small portion of the graffiti found in South Florida is gang-related, and police associate it with violent crime.

”Graffiti crews and gangs are two different worlds,” said Miami Gang Unit Detective Andres Valdes.

Gangs use crude symbols, including Roman numerals, to mark turf and threaten intruders from rival gangs.

Writers not affiliated with gangs use a variety of colors, and their style is inspired by hip-hop culture.

”Miami graffiti has a wild style,” Fila said. “It has a Latin influence with the rhythm in the fills, and the flow of the letters.”

Graffiti that take seconds or minutes include ”tags,” which look like signatures; ”throw-ups,” which are simple, bubble-shaped letters; and ”get-ups” — 3-D letters with a shadow.

Graffiti that take hours, days or months include ”blockbusters,” which are simple but occupy a wall; ”pieces,” which are multicolored and include characters; and ”productions” or ”burners,” which are done by several writers, occupy a wall, contain characters and have a general theme.

Via:www.miamiherald.com