New Edition Of The Graffiti Bible: Subway Art

It’s not just the first Hip-Hop bible of its kind but it’s the first book of its kind. When Subway Art was published in 1984, it opened up graffiti and street art to the world. With a new compact edition of ‘Subway Art’ just published, it remain the must-have book on Graffiti.

The foundations of Hip-Hop had been laid and Graffiti was one of the 4 pillars of the new movement which initially emerged as both controversial and subversive but eventually became recognised as an art form. The book ‘Subway Art’ became a legacy in publishing and the art world.

Celebrating almost 30 years since its initial launch, the book has moved into the realms of art history and is still highly sought after. Created by photographers Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant, this book documents the work of graffiti writers who illegally painted subway cars in New York City. The new edition of the book is a new, slightly reduced format.

In the late 1970s, New York City was bankrupt, dirty and dangerous. Born on these grimy streets, graffiti rapidly made its mark and subway art was born. Chalfant and Cooper took to the streets to document this movement. In the introductions, the authors recall how they gained entry to the New York graffiti community in the 1970s and 1980s and describe the techniques that they used to photograph it.

Longingly looking back to the book as a historical archive, it has celebrated anniversary editions and been reissued over 2 decades. Afterwords report on how the lives of the original subway artists have unfolded, and chronicle the end of the subway graffiti scene in the late 1980s and its unexpected rebirth as a global art movement.

This is the ultimate book for all fans of graffiti, stunning photography and 1980s-cool. It was the first book of its kind and continues to be popular amongst the street art community and those with an interest in urban art.