[madwakfreek]

ok.. first, i'd like to ask poeple who are new to graffiti to post thier drawings in the NEWBIE thread.. it just makes things a little easier.. if you dont post in the newbie thread, dont expect feedback.. the newbie thread was made for people who are starting out to get tips and help..

next, i ask you all to read the "newbies look here" post.. theres a lot of stuff on there worth reading.. it's not all rules, it's also graffiti etiquette.. READ IT!

now.. on to more pressing business..

i've noticed a lot of you guys are trying to do really complex peices. chances are it's not a good idea. keep it simple.. theres less chance of a peice to look bad if it's simple.

work on letter structure!! this iks the most important aspect! before flow, color, 3d.. letter structure is where style and flow come from..

another thing i cant stress enough is DONT PAINT untill you're good.. i dont mean when you're friends say youre good, i mean when other writers say youre good

[elektrikx]

Originally posted by madwakfreek
another thing i cant stress enough is DONT PAINT untill you're good.. i dont mean when you're friends say youre good, i mean when other writers say youre good

i dont agree with this i say start painting straight away... practicing down an abandoned allyway or underneath a tunnel or even on cardboard at home where no one can see you at first. And you should start painting in open public areas when you think you are good enougth not when other think your good because the earlier u start painting the better u will be in the long run. Who cares what others think u will show them up one day

[madwakfreek]

i dunno man.. i look back at all the ish i painted a couple years ago and want to buff it all..i dont like my older stuff at all.. i feel like painting over it and leaveing a small note about how sorry i am for haveing to subject the world to my lack of skill..

at least i know that i wont resent my newer ish tho.. and i've been at this for 2 years now..

[elektrikx]

painting and blackbooking are 2 different things, someone who can draw dope peices in a blackbook wont be able to do good peices when painting, although they probably will get the hang of it quicker. But i would rather see people who are new tothe game paint as soon as they can so they can get the feeling of painting.

[Chance301]

Originally posted by madwakfreek
another thing i cant stress enough is DONT PAINT untill you're good.. i dont mean when you're friends say youre good, i mean when other writers say youre good

i completly disagree with this, everyone has shit they dont like, especially as they get better, but im all for goin out, experimenting, gettin your name up and learnin for eperience and most of all just havin fun doin what you do

[aker88]

Originally posted by madwakfreek

another thing i cant stress enough is DONT PAINT untill you're good.. i dont mean when you're friends say youre good, i mean when other writers say youre good

i dont think them newbs will lesson to u , when i first started out graff i sooooo much wanted to paint i think all other newbs r like that.

[aker88]

OK heres somthing that i saw while i was screwing around on the net , and i think its kinda useful for experienced writers and newb writers.....i reda the whole thing and i liked it .... so i hope u like it too.......


ok first:
STYLE DEFINITION
It's not easy to discriminate and define all the writer's styles as graffiti continues to develop all over the world. The time when a given style was brought to life (or when it was dramatically transformed) as well as the shape and the degree of complexity of letters can serve as criteria for difference of styles. The aim of the hierarchy, which is developed in this way is not to evaluate the style but only to describe it and set the borders between its versions kinds. That is why you don't have to agree with it, on the contrary it can be a reason for discussing the development of graffiti and its aims.

[aker88]

Both the writer's signature and his handwriting, which he uses to sign his pieces and to mark his presence on the walls and in public places, are called TAG STYLE . It is the oldest form of graffiti and it was started by TAKI 183. It's function is to popularize the writer's name so it would be visible nearly everywhere. At the beginning tags were only mere signatures, which didn't differ very much except for the content. However, nowadays tags are sophisticated and full of invention and this means that we are able to identify the writer only by looking at his tag.

[aker88]

THROW-UP is created when the outlines are added to the letters. The meaning of a throw-up - leaving an immediately recognizable signature - is the same but the painted surface increased in size. Bombing is the most common way of using throw-ups. The process of painting a throw-up usually shouldn't take more than 2 minutes as it is automatized to a great extent (outlines are sometimes made with only one continuous movement). Letters in the throw-up are frequently given shapes of the clouds or bubbles and that's why such throw-ups are called Bubbles (Bubble Style), however it's worth noticing that not all the bubbles are throw-ups. The throw-up is usually done in a hurry, which lower its quality, while some people use the Bubble Style to create colorful and precise styles.

[aker88]

BLOCKBUSTER STYLE has been the next step in the development of writer's styles as treated in connection to the history of graffiti and the shape of the letters. This style is characterized by easily readable letters, which are painted in rectangular (or equilateral) area. This style doesn't offer many alternatives for modeling, so we can observe it in almost unchanged form until today. Nowadays it's most frequently used while painting near highways, painting the railway or painting the whole cars.

[aker88]

The aforementioned course of development concers the oldest writers, pioneers of graffiti. However today is rare case when somebody begins with a tag to switch to throw-up later. That is the reason why at that point we stop discussing the history and hierarchy of writer¹s styles to go on to talk about the level of complexity of a style and its letters. We must start with defining the SIMPLE STYLE , which is the first step for the beginner writers and serves as the ABC of graffiti. Simple Style is characterized by not complicated and basic shape of letters. The letters are modeled separately, but they should show features which would determinate the unity of the style. There are no additional elements and actually the extensions of the tails and the shapes of the holes in the letters are the only ornaments. All the above makes it difficult for writers to create their own unique style of the letters in Simple Style, and achieving it is a proof of good understudy of the alphabet. Simple Style is usually used for signing the crews or in cases of long texts.

[aker88]

WILD STYLE is the next one when we take complexity into consideration. What is more, its definition is so broad that we have to discriminate substyles of Wild Style, for instance SEMI WILD STYLE. This variation is complex, but it can be deciphered by any writer or even somebody who takes no interest in graffiti. Some letter's ornaments appear in connection to that style (e.g. bars, arrows...). The letters have become more dynamic than in Simple Style, and they begin to blend with each other in many different ways, depending on writer's imaginations. As well as in Simple Style it is vital that the letters are compact and, so to say, they stem from one other. Consequently, similar elements should be used while painting letters.
Semi Wild Style is a very popular style. It is due to fact that it isn't time-consuming and when the piece is well done it can be attractive and legible for receivers. The fact that Semi Wild Style is dynamic and readable makes it popular with hip-hop culture. When we think about classic version of Wild Style we want to say that the letters are even more dynamic, there are more ornaments, counterweights, arrows, the links are more sophisticated and all that makes the style less legible. Such a style is sometimes hard to decipher even for writers and an average person can perceive it as chaotic compilation of lines. However a well done Wild Style piece should be an example of well shaped letters.

[aker88]

COMPLEX STYLE is continuation of Wild Style. We can even say it broadens the term of the letter as it uses a maximum number of ornaments, such as arrows, links, glass effects, blending etc. This term isn't wildly used, but it marks the difference the Complex Style and the Wild Style which separate letters, through total freedom of letters to liberation from the rules of conserving alphabet. We can find letters of loose shapes or the letters can atomize into the pictures of fragments. Complex Style closes the hierarchy of styles. Stays, which followed it, can be described as less complex but are more difficult to achieve.

[aker88]

3D is a completely different style. There are no traditional outlines and the division between the planes are by shadows. Although almost every style can be illustrated in that way there are only a few writers who use 3D. This style is very controvential. Some say that it is the highest level of writer¹s development, while others claim that those who paint 3D are rather artists not writers. Generally, especially this style was developed in Europe in the 90's thanks to such names as DELTA, DAIM, LOOMIT and NECK.


Those who have managed to create their OWN STYLE ruin the traditional hierarchy of styles. We are talking about those writers who have broken the conventions that still limit the other. They weren't afraid to use new tricks, which were unknown until now. Although their works can sometimes be recognized as belonging to a certain style, they passes a kind of magic which allows to discriminate them from the other writers at the first glance. Of course we can also say that there are some COUNTRY STYLE (like Sweden), and CITY STYLE (like Prague or Berlin). But it is a theme for much longer discussion...

[aker88]

We have already discussed different characteristics of various styles in detail, taking into consideration the shape of outlines. However there are other elements which influence the style such as filling techniques, regional factors and writer's individual features.
As our presentations concern monochromatic field, we must mention the influence of color. Outline has created free space inside the letters, leaving them for the use of colorful excesses of spray techniques. Colorful elements of filling give life to the frame of outline and they have direct effect on the dynamics. Learning colors and their proper application to a certain style may be a process, which takes years, but it's worth waiting for the outcome - a unique, individual style, shown not only in letters but also in filling.
The number of letters is also influential. Writer's name usually consists of 3 to 6 letters. The words that are chosen usually do not contain the same letters (one after another or in different places in the word). Thanks to this we can achieve a better dynamics because the sight is most preoccupied with double or repeated letters. Styles are usually one- or two syllable words. Short words require only a short glance, while long words require a longer and closer examination or taking a second look.
Two letters are usually abbreviations crew or throw-ups, three letter combinations are treated in the same way, but they can also be short names. The words consisting of 3 or 5 letters facilitate a proper and fast comprehension. 6 or more letter names are used only by tagstylers. The number of letters establishes the rhythm of the style. The information, which is to be conveyed, is also decisive when it comes to the formation of the style. Writer's name should show his individuality.


A style is a sort of mirror, which reflects the image of our technical environment. It tries to fit into the architectonic surroundings. It is placed on the means of communication of enormous weight. The bigger the piece is the less important unevenness is. Columns, windows, or doors are not treated as obstacles and its dimensions are more important. The shape and the size of train have considerable influence on the style. Panel piece, a style placed on the train under its windows and between the doors of the carriage, has become a standard size of the style. The lower edge of the train is made of natural lines, which can be used for a phasing a sequence of writing.


The fact that the style has developed on the moving trains has influenced the style itself, which is also moving. The necessity of swift comprehension of an images, the same is true about commercials, propels the creation of stronger and stronger visual cues. The influence of media such as comics, TV or computers can be seen in the styles. Pieces become bigger, more elegant, faster, more plastic, more dynamic, more various, more individual and they still continue to develop. Graffiti aims at showing ideas on free urban surfaces such as bald external surfaces of trains and buildings.


The current style is plastic and rough. It has one offer feature - it is rhythmical. The shape of letter directs the movement of eyes, the rhythm of reading and understanding. What is more the style is fast and short living, just as times which it was created in. It has to be precise and comprehensible. The very first glance should encourage receivers to take the second, close look, end examine the piece carefully.
Balance, harmony, unity and a sort of tensions are the features of a good style. To control the balance of draft you can turn it up side down or examine it in a mirror.
Thanks to being in constant contact with the present form of the alphabet the style is a mental argument with the existing rules. The style is becoming a more abstract, emotion-changing instrument due to the individual manipulations of those forms.
The style doesn't have any ambitions to become a form of art. This is also inhibited by mass, identical copies of tags and throw-ups, however tags and throw-ups may be sources of most extreme aesthetical pleasures for writers. The style simply is and acts. The style is lofty, fantastic, diabolic, mystic, psychedelic and majestic. It flows and glides, it is massive and light, it pulls, tears and burstsŠ