Pixação: São Paulo Signature

François Chastanet
Foreword by Steven Heller
XGpress

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Pixação : São Paulo Signature
L’épidémie pixação, avant-propos par Steven Heller 228
Ce qu’il y a à voir, le geste scriptural 231
La signature, le corps & l’architecture 237
Imaginaires typographiques 245
Notes sur les photographies 253
Légendes 255

XGpress
François Chastanet

Pixação: São Paulo Signature
The pixação epidemic, foreword by Steven Heller 229
What’s to be seen: scriptural gestures 231
Signature, body and architecture 237
Typographical fantasies 245
Notes on the photographs 253
Captions 255

*photographs p. 43, 191
the gestural signature, which is the conventional reference
of the tag universe. It is, however, to be noted that the case
of Los Angeles is specific, since it refers to gang names.
The visual control of symbolic space being here accompanied
by the active physical control of the territory concerned.
On the other hand, the New York or São Paulo taggers
constitute groups organized entirely on the basis of their
passion for wild illegal writing, having no connection with
conventional gang activities (i.e. centred around money),
even if they sometimes share the imagery (in the choice
of their di¤erent pseudonyms, pen names often favouring
an aggressive wording, referring to an organization based
on graded series of clans, etc.). They do not concentrate
their writings/signatures on a specific territory, to be controlled
by violence, but extend their invasion by means
of craftwork publicity throughout the town concerned
and beyond to the entire urban area to which they belong.
In both the above cases, it would appear improbable
that this type of image, not readily obtainable ¢ , could have
reached the streets of São Paulo, that a real visual connection
could have been achieved, since the country had been
under dictatorial control until the mid 1980s ∞ . Access to
information and pictures from abroad is all the more improbable
in that the vast majority of the population is at
that time poor and undereducated.
Let us now reconsider more precisely the local conditions
and context which gave birth to the phenomenon.
What was then the first visual substratum of this writing
phenomenon? At the end of the dictatorship, in the early
1980s, the various visual interventions in public places
in São Paulo become more intense (as also in all the main
urban areas throughout the country), their amplitude increases,
encompassing traditional pro-democratic political
demands mingled with poetic fragments based on coded
play on words or on nonsense. But this period, from the
formal standpoint, led to no revolutionary changes in letter
design. Readability constraints, related to the necessity
to transmit di¤erent messages, led to the adoption of Latin
Roman capitals, universal model simplified and narrowed
for this purpose. Simultaneously, the first modern pixadores
appear, departing from vernacular political or advertising
messages and imposing a sole content, i.e. the statement
of their own name or that of their group. juneca was
one of the first celebrities of this illegal writing movement,
the exploits of whom are even related in the local newspapers,
as was the case later on for the legendary tchentcho,
who was the first to open the way to the use of the tops of
architectural façades. They form with xuim, di *, chefe,
os metralhas [the beagle boys] and many others, the first
wave of a writing invasion, organized exclusively around
the signature in São Paulo. The snowball e¤ect has been set
in motion, a large number of young people, mainly (but not
exclusively) from the favelas will now throw themselves into
the name-image battle, giving rise to an endemic explosion
of this type of writing with its characteristic exponential
progression. The first signatures are stylistically of a basic
nature, much simpler than those to be subsequently
observed.
As we have seen, certain pixadores, with a view to
distinguishing themselves from their immediate visual
environment, at the same time enriching this narrow
alphabet, organized around a limited formal repertory
¢
Since both media and photographers
focused their attention in the 1980s
on the New York scene, the first
Philadelphia graªtis or those of the
Los Angeles gangs had not appeared
in the various publications and
fanzines circulating in the graªti
world until recently. These pictures
are still rare and diªcult to obtain,
despite the present-day assistance of
internet. However, note the probable
influence of an actual street gang
myth developped in movies such as
The Warriors directed by Walter Hill
(shot in 1979 in New York) or Colors
directed by Dennis Hopper (shot
in 1988 in Los Angeles). These two
full-length films, sometimes quoted
by some pixadores, nonetheless
don’t show in detail the lettering
of di¤erent graªtis observable
in the background of numerous
scenes, used here as a decorative
eªcient stereotype to represent
the atmosphere of urban ghettos
in this kind of production.
∞
The Brazilian dictatorship
(1964–1985) was less bloody than
those endured in Chili or Argentina.
Nevertheless, about 400 political
opponents, in all probability, perished
in the hands of the Brazilian
military police and many others
were victims of torture. Unlike
the other South American countries,
which chose to examine the exactions
perpetrated by the juntas
in power, Brazil had until recently
refused to lay bare these practices.
246

*diagrams 4 to 6, p. 279
*diagram 2, p. 278
*diagram 4, p. 279
of basic and monumental capitals, incorporate, apparently,
di¤erent plastic characteristics derived from Fraktur, Runic,
and Etruscan * scripts. How did this filiation come to exist,
what path was taken by these specific forms of writing?
These various aesthetic borrowings from ancient Latin
written forms (practically unused at present), torn from
their historical context, do not occur in a conscious, scholarly
fashion, but indirectly, since most of the pixadores
evoke and lay claim to the influence of the ‘heavy metal’
record sleeves, and more specifically, the logos of the various
groups, which they attempt to reproduce, using basic
monolinear strokes *. The record sleeve, worldwide image
vector, together with the related stereotyped visual marketing,
with its strictly conforming codes, intended to represent
this musical cosmos, would appear to have led to the
actualization and transplantation of various typographic
‘materials’, i.e. the alternative di¤usion of long lost writing
models. A graphic analysis of these record sleeves e¤ectively
evidences a recurrence in the typographic use of modernized
and simplified Runic or Etruscan-type scriptural
aesthetics, together with frequent recourse to Fraktur-type
blackletters. A historic comparison of the di¤erent capital
letter structures evidences formal similitudes with certain
fairly rare typographic experiments of monolinear Fraktur *.
In addition, it would appear pertinent to link this particular
type of calligraphy, the pixações, with the ‘interrupted
script’ § category, i.e. handwriting where the tracing of each
letter corresponds to an interrupted construction, an alphabet
which could, with a little exaggeration, be termed ‘ultra
light condensed monoline blackletter’, to use the jargon
currently employed at international level in the classification
of typefaces.
What is to be noted here is the originality of this
pixação phenomenon, which, liberating the Runic and
Fraktur scripts from their use as rigid typographic forms
for record packaging, brings about their return to manual
use, in a hybrid form. The process usually observed in type
design consists in ‘freezing’ manual writing practices (calligraphy
or lettering) in set typographic forms, duplicatable
ad infinitum, i.e., prefabricated letters at the disposition of
all. We are here confronted with an inverse phenomenon,
where the desire to reproduce mimetically these fixed typographical
shapes, using di¤erent tools from those initially
employed, and their adaptation to a di¤erent context, gives
birth again to a manual, gestural practice, in other words,
to movement. The back and forth between calligraphy and
type design is nonetheless particularly evident in the blackletter
fonts, like Fraktur, where the relation with the manual
origin of the design is maintained and remains visually
particularly evident . The reproduction and adaptation of
these typographic logos using everyday tools, like the ballpoint
or the felt-tip pen on paper and with a paint roller
or spray can on a wall (‘poor’ drawing tools from the classic
calligraphy viewpoint), appear mainly as monolinear lines.
Our assumption is that this reappropriation facilitated
the emergence of an e¤ective urban environment alphabet.
This hybrid system is organized round a graphic notion
of economy of means, developing a maximum visual e¤ect,
based solely on the structure and skeleton of each letter.
‘One thing leads to another’ • : creation of a new universe,
this time in the lettering field, using existing shapes, actualized
by the hazard of identificatory fashions. It all happens
§
See the article establishing the
reflections of Gerrit Noordzij,
‘Broken Scripts and The Classification
of Typefaces’, Journal
of Typographic Research (Visible
Language), vol. iv, no. 3, 1970,
pp. 213–240. The author, in his
theory of writing, proposes a binary
classification system, discerning two
main categories of layout in the history
of writing: the drawn construction
of each sign being either continuous
(‘running hand’ or cursive),
or interrupted, i.e. performed with
several distinct strokes, with the
hand raised at linkage between the
di¤erent vertical stems composing
a glyph, thus ‘interrupting’ contact
of the pen with the writing medium.
He moreover makes no separation
between the study of calligraphic
shapes and that of typographic
shapes, practices apprehended
simultaneously as having the
overall shape of the letter as object:
‘A history of writing is a history of
shapes and not a history of meaning’
(take a look at ‘Upsetting The Table.
A Dialogue Between Nicolette Gray
and Gerrit Noordzij’ in LetterLetter.
An inconsistent collection of tentative
theories that do not claim any
other authority than that of common
sense, Hartley & Marks Publishers,
Vancouver, 2000, p. 48). By the
same author, read The Stroke of
The Pen: Fundamental Aspects
of Western Writing, Koninklijke
Academie van Beeldende Kunsten,
The Hague, 1982 and The Stroke:
Theory of Writing (English translation
by Peter Enneson), Hyphen
Press, 2005.
See Paul Shaw, ‘The Calligraphic
Tradition in Blackletter Type’,
Scripsit, no. 1 & 2, volume 22,
summer 1999.
•
See Bruno Munari, Da cosa nasce
cosa, Biblioteca di cultura moderna
849, Rome and Bari, Laterza, 1981,
5 th edition, 1992.
247

with a roller, o.g.t.s, m (moby), below,
the grifes círculo vicioso and
o+f (os mais fortes), then os+cr
(os mais caretas) [the cleanest
ones], 2000, and under the window,
neca p. 107, on top, traced in black
with a roller, the grife to em cima
[reach the top], prag (pragas)
[plague], rvtd (revotados) [the
rebellious], lower, to the center,
escadão, below, to the left ld7
(loucos da sete) [madmen from 7]
and volume 3, at last poca and
imagen [image] in the lower part
of the façade p. 109, at the top of
the façade, in blue, escadão by pqn
and ngs, 01 (2001), underneath,
in black, ritimos [rhythms],
note, in white on a red background
under the balcony, the emblem of
the group s.s (skate sujera) [dirty
skate] p. 111, at the top, on the concrete
extension, grife drawn in blue
paint ar (adolescência rebelde)
meaning also arruaceiros [the
ones who chill in the street],
then in blue on a green background
h2o by brasa, tribus and mamaue,
in the middle of the façade in black,
farus [smell, clue, evidence] and
os grafes [the graffs] p. 113,
in white with a roller above the
window, escadão, note the white
vertical aerosol inscription to the left
of the double portal, lin ii p. 117,
in the centre of the façade, lin, den,
hbt 97, down below, 8 (8 batalhão)
[the 8 th battalion] and t44 (turma
44) [gang 44] 95, lower down, to the
right, baroes [the barons], den, hbt
p. 119, at the top of the façade, in
black, ebolas [the ebola virus]
by rg and xaradas [literally the
charades, xarada being in fact a
character, one of the ‘villains’ in the
Batman universe named enigma]
by vn, on the ground floor level
canab2’s, with, to the right, the grife
os rgs, represented by the symbol
with the bat contours of Batman,
followed by the expression ‘de dia’
signifing that the inscription was
made in full day light. Note at the
top, to the right, the following
sentence placed side by side with the
inscription of names: sem perceber
larguei a escola e fui pra rua
aprender, andar de skate, pixar
e corri pra ver o mar [without
learning much, i left school and
went to the street to learn how
to skate, do tags and run to see
the ocean] p. 123, at the top of the
façade, in black, tribunal, vadios
[the lazy buggers, the vagrants]
and túmulos, center above, grife os
m (os melhores), to the left grife ar
(adolescência rebelde) meaning
also arruaceiros [the ones who
chill in the street] 2002, above
in yellow spmanos [the guys of
são paulo], over the metal shutter
cagic’s and canab2’s [cannabis],
then in black, túmulos, primos
[the cousins], jamaica, vudus
[the voodoos] 02! (2002), below,
in black, over a white inscription,
hotcity, written in salmon pink the
grife turma de mão and ebolas, in
white on the lower part of the metal
shutter, escadão, reais, and prds
(os procurados) [wanted], etc.
p. 125, at the top of the façade, in
orange, with a roller, os+imun (os
mais imundos), 2000, this inscription
intentionally covering the adverse
grife os rgs, here represented
by the groups a’firma and os rvs
(os rivais) [the opponents];
lower down, in black with a spray
can, c.tropa, psicose and ajatos
p. 127, at the top of the façade with
a black spray can, pda (pixadores
da altura) [high-level pixadores,
of excellence, also signifying
on the peak, able to reach the
summits of buildings], note also the
inscription mfs (os mafiosos) where
the letters are drawn separately on
the red metal shutters p. 129,
at the top of the façade, in black,
apaches with the grife união bola
de gude and rapa [raid, dragnet]
z.n (zona norte), 01 (2001), below,
separated by the windows, gms
p. 131, above the window, in black
on a red background, novinhas
[young girls], fk, 2003 p. 133, at
the top of the façade, the inscription
begins with the paint roller symbol
and then continues with the name
pesadelos [nightmares] where the
‘o’ is both a letter and a human face
with horns and a halo; on the metal
shutter in black, rdu (roedores de
unha) [the nail biters] p. 135,
black inscription, over the window
on a blue background, collos by
clo, the center window ajatos, at
the same level on the right, enigma
by mnh, note below, to the right,
over the balcony, the inscription
s.s (skate sujera) by ot comprising
in the center the grife união bola
de gude p. 137, at the top of the
façade: gênios by cb and os dbs by
dg, further down, with a black spray
can, netiboys and aboa, lower down,
to the left, arrotos then apoca
(apocalipse), pav (pavor) and in
two colors, black and blue, cripta
p. 139, at the top of the edifice,
painted in grey with a roller, cns
(canais) [televison channels]
and px9, then in the middle of
the façade, over the center window,
cripta [crypt], then to the right
novinhas; to the left, set back,
os gs (os garutos sujos) [the dirty
boys] comprising in the middle
of the inscription, the grife união
bola de gude (a circle cut with a
vertical stroke between two sets of
quotation marks), and below, hot
city by r p. 141, at the top of the
façade, in black, written with a paint
roller, the grife os inquebraveis (see
diagram no. 21, p. 264), c c [carol
& caroline] by n, kpg (kapangas)
[the henchmen, the bodyguards]
by e, again the grife os inquebraveis
at the end of the inscription p. 143,
at the top of the façade, in dark blue,
os maldosos [the wicked, the bad
guys] p. 145, in the upper central
part of the façade, in black with a
spray can, c.tropa and homens.
pizza (the second part of the name
here is obliterated), the letter ‘o’ here
being a symbol for pizza, underneath,
in the center, vgn (vagner),
os bv (os bicho vivo), tms, and
just above the balcony, note lemão
[lemon] and santuario [sanctuary]
p. 147, in the central part of
the façade, vudus [the voodoos],
c.tropa [troop c], then, in yellow,
am (a máfia) [the mafia], lower
down, on the grey garage door, in
white, note tiras [cops] and ativos
[the active ones] p. 149, at the
top of the façade, in blue, maionese,
mutants, profecia, 95 (1995),
below, at the top of the metal shutter,
top left, rivais [the opponents] ,
and in the center, with a black spray
can, over the door, collos [phonetic
transcription into Portuguese of the
movie title Colors, which is also the
title of the famous song that Ice-T
made for the original soundtrack
of the same movie] p. 151, at the
top of the façade, agster and alma,
in the middle, above the windows,
in thin strokes with a black spray
can, escadão and a’firma [the
gang], 98 (1998), with the figure
eight transformed into a small
animal ; on the projecting edge of the
balcony, skate sujera with the grife
união bola de gude, then collos
p. 153, upper part of the façade,
black lines on a white background,
a grife in the shape of a human
figure followed by rtms (ritimos)
[rhythms], ocdt + adi p. 155, at
the top with a roller, partly erased, a
grife then the inscription 8 batalhão
[the 8 th battalion] by killer,
1995, zl (zona leste), on the white
metal shutter, beginning at the top,
primos [the cousins], psycoboys,
réplicas, t44 (turma 44) [gang
44] p. 159, in grey at the top, on
the left, n!s (nada somos), then
enemy’s, maloca 03, below in white,
axs by rf, 2003 p. 160, in black
with a roller, profecia by guto
p. 161, in blue with a roller, the
grife i (os infernais) then espião,
2004; note on this photo and the
previous one, the single letter,
drawn perfectly centred at the top
of this fragment of façade, letters
belonging to a name developing
all-over this industrial building of
which we have only reproduced here
two modules p. 163, a church in
Taipas, district of the West zone:
in blue with a roller, pgm (pinguim)
[the penguins] and pdm (pixadores
do morro) [pixadores from
the hill, from the shantytown].
Above, is inscribed a phrase from
a song of the racionais mc’s,
a São Paulo rap group: so sei que
deus é mais eu tó vivo pela fé [all
i know is that god is the greatest,
i live by my faith] p. 165,
a wall in Consolação neighbourhood,
central zone of São Paulo
p. 167, a façade in the surroundings
of the train station Lapa,
in white with a roller, with widely
spaced letters prds (os procurados)
[wanted], underneath, in grey,
plenos [full, lots], then lower
down, still in white with a roller,
os grafes, raros and os mds (os
maldosos); note in the upper right
part of the photo, in black, with
a spray can on grey concrete, the
name hiv in extremely complex
lettering p. 171, on the wagon
to the left, os+imun (os mais imundos)
followed by the grife dk (dead
256

kennedys) and lower down, teoria;
on the wagon to the right, ma (os
melhores amigos) [the best
friends] next ousadia [audacious]
p. 173, inscription by the group
spcrimes [the são paulo crimes]
over the painted publicity for a local
politician, seen in Capão Redondo
neighbourhood p. 173, criminais
[the criminals] by pnd p. 177,
lixo/man/ia! by zé, urban motor
way through the center of São Paulo,
closed on Sunday, when its access
is stricly reserved for pedestrians,
for walking or jogging p. 181, in
the center of Capão Redondo shantytown,
back façade of a building
which, by its strategic location in
the urban landscape, is used as a
monument-support for local names:
in black, on the right spcrimes,
in white, malas [the damned
nuisances] p. 183, the blind façade
(in the center of the photo) o¤ers an
exceptional inscription surface in
terms of visibility in the surroundings,
it constitutes an authentic
‘signature-monument’ of the Taipas
neighbourhood, West zone area.
To the foreground, pgm (pinguim)
[the penguins] and pdm (pixadores
do morro) [pixadores from
the hill, from the shantytown]
p. 185, detail of the mural inscription
of the previous photo: one of
the rare examples comprising a
contour, here cdp (caras de pau)
[literally faces of wood, Portuguese
expression that can be translated
by the hypocritical ones] in yellow
and black, at the top in blue fdr
(os federais) [the federate ones],
in black in the lower part pinguim
[the penguins] p. 187, to the left
in red, ruins, on the right in green,
novinhas and jamaica, fk, adr,
02 (2002) p. 189, trilhos [the
rails], inscription made with a roller
from the roof of this low building
p. 191, in grey at the top, kidão,
kiko and di, at the bottom di, kidão
and kiko again; note on the upper
part of the wall, to the right, a human
silhouette whose limbs end in
arrows, composing the grife pixar é
humano, 91 (1991); di, deceased in
1996, is one of the greatest legends
of the pixadores world p. 193, three
grifes (monograms): não me siga,
os+im (os mais imundos), os+a
(os mais antigos) p. 195, lixomania!
by z (zé); note how each of the
di¤erent signatures clings to the
rough patches of the architecture,
whatever the scale p. 197, z/o
(zona oeste) jamaica by fnd (fernando),
note the particularly complex
grife (apparently a monogram
composed of the letters fqp) in
the upper part of this inscription in
white done with a roller; to the right,
with a spray can in beige os crs
p. 199, the names bebados [the
drunkards], absolutas and chits
[the shits] drawn with a roller;
note the right-left justifying aimed
at occupying the entire width of the
wall (see also diagrams no. 11 and 12,
p. 277) p. 201, at the top kito, then
on the third line down from the top,
partly obliterated, the inscription os
d(e) sempre [those of always], then
below, rbo, 2001, z.o (zona oeste) ;
note the triangular grife (monogram)
at (atropelos) at the beginning of
the second line p. 203, note, in the
upper part of the metal shutter, various
grifes followed by the emblem
am (a máfia), where the hyphen also
represents a mouth with a joint (the
eyes are sketched in above), then
klts (kaloteiros) [the bad payers];
it is extremely rare to observe utilization
of the notion of shadowed surface
as here, where the stroke in fact
marks the shadow of an invisible
letter; another a máfia inscription
is observable p. 147, drawn in yellow
with a spray can, on the right-hand
side of the photograph p. 205,
first line, os bichovivo [the living
animals] by n, second line vitimas
[the victims] by c, z.s (zona sul),
third line the grife humilidad faz
a diferença, 2003; produced with
a spray can in black, this inscription
is of remarkable calligraphic rigour,
spacing requirements and the constant
width of each sign are exceptionally
well mastered p. 207,
lixo/ma, abreviated form of lixomania
[the dustbin madmen] by z (zé)
p. 208, lixoma (lixomania) at the
bottom, on the ground; higher the
grife tm (turma da mão) [the hand
gang] followed by primos [the
cousins] p. 209, letter ‘c’ comprising
an arrow, then os f.d.l ®
(os foras de lei) [the outlaws]
p. 211, at the top, to the right,
spreading around the center point,
which is the window, escadão
[stairs] by ngs and japão [japan],
03 (2003), below, blecaut [phonetic
transcription into Portuguese of the
English expression black-out] by
jlc and viseras [the visors (of baseball
caps)], 02 (2002) p. 213, fatos
[the facts] inscribed with a black
spray can p. 215, olo (olodum)
[musical rhythm, type of music
from the area of Bahia], drawn with
a black spray can p. 216, detail
of the grife os+a (os mais antigos)
[the elders] p. 217, group symbol,
probably the figure ‘2’ p. 219,
grife (monogram) mts (mestres)
[the masters] p. 221, cabeças e..,
the inscription cabeças [the heads]
is a group name, which was traced
by one of its members, whose name
or personal surname begins with an
‘e’, here end p. 223, detail of a ‘p’:
photography here clearly evidences
the constraints attached to use of a
roller as writing instrument, in that
one is obliged to use wide radius
curves.
Inscriptions in detail p. 265 # ¡ lnx
by d, dig ®, nbs by davi, inscription
traced with a roller: lnx signifies
the union of three names comprising
the original group members
(lino+neto+xand) but also loucos
no xadrez [the madmen from
prison], this part of the inscription
is carried out by danis, of whom
only the first letter appears bracketted
in smaller letters to the group
name; dig is the name of a person;
nbs is a group called night boys,
the inscription is made by davi, the
drawing presented here reproduces
more accurately the inscription observable
p. 25 at the top of the edifice
# * (marijuana) zo (zona oeste)
tensão [tension] v3, inscription
traced with a roller. The star symbol
is in fact an extremely stylized cannabis
leaf, frequently encountered in
the di¤erent inscriptions-signatures.
This symbol often replaces a zero
in indicating the year or an ‘o’ in
a name. The group or the person
nicknamed tension comes from the
West zone of the town, as indicated
by the sign ‘zo’; note the presence
of an emblem or grife seemingly v3,
sign of a membership of a larger
group of the same name # £ sonambulos
[the sleepwalkers], inscription
traced with a roller, is the name
of a group belonging to a larger
group called união bola de gude
[the pinball union], as shown by
the presence of the circular barred
grife in the internal space of the ‘m’,
see also the photo p. 169 # ¢ escadão
[stairs], inscription traced with a
paint roller, is the name of a particularly
active pixadores group, see
notably the following photographs
p. 85, 109, 113, 123, 151, 155, 211
# ∞ tribunal, inscription inscribed
with a spray can, is a group name,
see also the photo p. 123 # § apaches,
inscription traced with spray can, is
the name of a group, which belongs,
like case no. 3, to a larger group
called união bola de gude [the
pinball union], as indicated by the
barred round grife (monogram) between
the lower parts of the ‘e’ and
the ‘s’, see also the photographs
p. 84, 129 p. 266 # os mds,
inscription inscribed with a roller,
is a group name composed of three
letters, a contraction of os maldosos,
see also the photographs
p. 143, 167 # • perdidos [the lost
ones], inscription traced with a
roller, group name # ª peraltas,
inscription traced with a roller
# ¡º reprise, inscription traced
with a roller, group name, see the
photographs p. 47, 71 # ¡¡ túmulos,
inscription traced with a spray can,
is a group name, where the ‘o’ is
replaced by the symbol of a coªn,
marked with a Christian cross, wich
is the specific grife (monogram) of
this group, see also the photograph
p. 123 # ¡ fdt, inscription traced
with a spray can, is a group name,
‘s’ was responsible for this signature,
as shown by the presence
of his initial between the ‘d’ and
the ‘t’ p. 267 # ¡£ trombadas
[pick-pockets], inscription traced
with a roller, is a group name, pt
257

•
ª
¡º
¡¡
¡
266

¡£
¡¢
¡∞
¡§
¡
¡•
267

‘Pixadores have have coined coined a a gestural written written language
Despite Despite laws, laws, ‘pixações’ have have invaded São São Paulo. Paulo. all their all their own, own, using using the the buildings of São of São Paulo Paulo as as
A true A true calligraphic shock, shock, that that has has caused caused a deep a deep
veritable signboards for for their their messages. The The astute astute
aesthetic transformation of the of the city. city. Through more more
analysis which which is is expanded upon upon in this in this volume,
than than 125 125 photos photos taken taken at the at the core core of the of the Brazilian
opened my myopic myopic eyes eyes to a to system a system of writing of writing and and
megalopolis as well as well as a as a detailed analysis of the of the ethic ethic of of creation that that rises rises above above even even the the most most
phenomenon, ‘São ‘São Paulo Paulo Signature’ deciphers for for
high-spirited and and emblematic American graffiti. graffiti.
the the very very first first time time an an unparalleled graphic graphic universe, For For residents of São of São Paulo Paulo it may it may contribute to to
strictly strictly reserved to to initiates before before today. today. blight, blight, but but in its in its massiveness it is it an is urban urban wonder’.
Fr
Ch
Pi
Sã
Si
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ISBN ISBN 978-2-9528097-1-9 | 280 | 280 pages pages
Steven Steven Heller Heller | author, | author, critic, critic, New New York York Times Times
senior senior art art director