Main Street Magazine Spring '23

1986, and me
Before my initial enlistment in the Army, I attended a
fascinating trade school for commercial underwater diving
in City Island, NY. City Island is just a short distance by
bridge from the Bronx, walking tours of which showed me
many kinds of graffiti. The bus ride to the Port Authority in
Manhattan would roll past a building mural of (then) New
York Mets ace pitcher Dwight Gooden. As a lifelong sports
fan, this generated excitement in me. Years later, I read of
Tampa shipping magnate George Steinbrenner, and how he
dealt with graffiti defacing Yankee Stadium after he became
the teams’ owner in the early 1970’s. Like or hate the late
Steinbrenner, and his penchant for hiring and firing his
beleaguered manager Billy Martin, I was entertained
that he used his wealth to simply buy more paint and
cover up graffiti on his stadium.
I would take the subway into Manhattan on weekends
during trade school to see the Knicks play at Madison
Square Garden, or play pickup soccer at Central Park,
or simply to walk around the city. ​The subways were ripe
with graffiti of all types, at the kiosks and in and on the
subway cars themselves. Some of it was indecipherable,
some beautiful, and some had a ​threatening vibe. The
more ominous of the subliminal threat graffiti featured
predatory birds and/or human skulls which seemed to be
animated. Adding to the dark aura of some of Manhattan’s
1980s graffiti was the odor of the subterranean subway
tunnels where it was displayed. It was a dirty, nervous urban
smell that reeked of dust and electricity, and potential
danger.
The 1980s darkness was often mitigated by sports
references. As a lifelong fan of sports in general and the
New York Mets in particular, I would be delighted when I
took a bus to the Port Authority Bus Terminal at 625 8th
Avenue, since just before entering, your bus would pass
the building mural in nearby Times Square that featured
talented and troubled ace pitcher Dwight Gooden.
why use graffiti?
Graffiti is a form of artistic expression, often known for its “underground” vibe, and overall
rebelliousness against authority. The origins of graffiti featured public displays of outward artistic
expression, often as a response to limited access to institutions such as museums and other art
platforms. Also, graffiti seems to run parallel to themes of continuous strife, discrimination of various
types, and the overall grind of living in an urban area.
Types of graffiti include, and are not limited to, tag; throw up (or bomb); letters; bubbles; and piece
(or character). What is now known as calligraffiti combines calligraphy, typography, and graffiti. This
includes work with stencils, stickers and the more current memes and GIFs.
When categorized as vandalism, graffiti in most instances is ​illegal, a willful defacing of private
or public or government property. What makes graffiti timeless, and makes it transcend
generations, is that it is a low-cost form of artistic expression​, empowering a person or group
to voice opinions which were previously not acknowledged. It can be a platform from which
people can express their political opinions, and proudly present their indigenous heritage as
well as cultural and religious ancestry. Graffiti can also provide alternative views to dominant
portrayals of life in the barrios and neighborhoods. Graffiti has evolved to become another tool of
resistance, reclamation, and empowerment, and gives the artist their own stage for expression.
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