graffiti artists

Among the first well-known female graffiti artists in the world, Lady Pink started her career in the late ‘70s when her boyfriend was arrested. She saturated New York City graffiti-style with his name. She made it a point to climb fences and put her mark on train tunnels. Lady Pink, also known as Sandra Fabara, had one of the first ever graffiti art shows. She now gives back to the community with breathtaking murals and hosts mural workshops for kids.

Lady pink

Banksy

An international figure in street art, Banksy thrives on crafting controversial graffiti. He reaches beyond his British background to shed light on topics linked to social responsibility and politics around the world. Banksy keeps his true identity a secret, but also paints and directs films when he’s not expressing himself through street art.

Sever

With roots in Los Angeles and Atlanta, Sever is well-known throughout the world as an extraordinary creator of street art. His graffiti is colorful and distinct. His most famous work of art is “Death of Street Art,” a mural on a Detroit building that created a fair amount of controversy regarding street art and its acceptance as mainstream.

Dondi White

Donald White is known as just plain “Dondi” in the art world. One of his most famous works was called “Children of the Grave.” The native New Yorker’s train graffiti took street art to another level. He later displayed his artwork in Europe and was a pioneer in driving street art closer to mainstream art. Dondi formed his own graffiti artist group, Crazy Inside Artists, in 1978. He passed away in 1998.

espoWith a long rap sheet compliments of the New York City transit police vandal squad, Steve “ESPO” Powers got an early start as a graffiti artist, leaving his mark on grated storefronts. His talent was later rewarded with a Fulbright grant, which he used to connect with artistically creative kids in Ireland.

Keith Haring

Another New York street artist of the ‘80s, Keith Haring is the name behind “The Radiant Baby” symbol. A Pennsylvania native born in 1958, he was a commercial artist before taking the street culture graffiti scene by storm. Haring later became known as a peace-loving social activist. He died in 1990.

ket

Alain Mariduena’s claim to fame was once decorating New York City subway trains with graffiti – and not the stenciled kind. In the ‘80s, he was better known as Ket. Now a big name in fashion and publishing, he still dabbles in mural art.

retna

As the creator of his own alphabet script, Marquis “Retna” Lewis is a Los Angeles street artist. He has made the leap from street art to fashion artwork and commissioned pieces, although he still creates murals on storefronts upon request.

david choeMurals and graffiti gave David Choe an early start in art. The California resident is also known as a graphic designer and artist for films and musical album covers. Born in 1976, he began painting street art in Los Angeles in his teens. In more recent years, he has been commissioned to create murals and portraits.

Shepard Fairey

Born in 1970, this native of South Carolina is well known for his graffiti, stencils, poster pieces and graphic art, as well as his works with fellow street artist Banksy. Fairey’s works can be seen in New York’s Museum of Modern Art and at The Smithsonian Institute.

NYC Artwork

“Crack is Wack!” was created by world-renown graffiti artist Keith Haring in 1986. This double-sided mural was painted on a Harlem handball court wall in New York. It still exists today.

Located on Harlem’s Park Avenue at 106th Street, this venue for new graffiti with classic lineage pays tribute to early street art with a modern urban twist. It was created in 1980 to showcase the work of local and international graffiti artists.

The Graffiti Hall of Fame

Welling Court in the Astoria district of Queens, New York, is the location of a crowd-funded annual street art extravaganza. This urban art venue is the perfect setting for works by Lady Pink, Swoon and other cutting-edge mural and graffiti artists.

Welling Court Mural Project

Best Cities

Melbourne

“The Whole of Everything” is among the works that make Melbourne a standout among the best cities for street art. The subculture in this capital of Victoria was originally inspired by New York City subway graffiti, but now holds its own as the place to be for stencil artists.

Mexico City

Made famous by its graffiti painting contest in 2010, Mexico City has long been a favorite venue for street artists to show off their talents and make their social statements. Murals in Mexico’s safe zones are becoming larger and more common.

Australia

mexico

Cape Town

Street artists have taken vehicle art, murals and streetscapes to a whole new level in Cape Town. Among the most famous is the 2013 mural of international political icon Nelson Mandela, created by Mak1One.

BristolFrom bright and bold colors to black-and-white paste-ups, street art is growing in popularity in Bristol. While the authorities aren’t wild about it, graffiti tags are showing up on buildings throughout the area. Closely associated with street artist Banksy, Bristol’s other claim to fame is one of the largest works of street art ever to be assembled. “See No Evil” stretches across several buildings and has enjoyed contributions from a multitude of graffiti artists from all over the world.

South Africa

United Kingdom

Moscow

Traditionally known as a home for illegal street art, Moscow has graduated to one of the most famous cities in the world that allows graffiti art, but only in specific places. Among the most famous Russian street artists was Pasha P183, a man who passed away in April of 2013.

Santiago

Graffiti art is becoming an accepted part of this South American city as locals cover building walls with murals. Some pieces are even listed as things for tourists to see and visit while they’re in town.

russia

chile

chalk art

The introduction of chalk art into street culture has blossomed. Artists use pre-sketched images and favorite paintings to turn these works of art into larger pieces made of chalk. A good rain will wash it away, but for a while, it lasts.

chalk art

Chalk art dates back to the 16th century, when Italian artists sat in the street and paid homage to the Madonna with pastels and chalk drawings on the ground. The practice of chalk drawings on the street flourished until the 1940s. It was revived in the early 1970s with street chalk art festivals, expanding from pavement to buildings and walls. Some cities that revel in chalk art festivals today include Curtatone, Italy; Monterrey, Mexico; Okeechobee and Lake Worth, Fla.; Santa Barbara, Calif.; Denver, Colo.; Perry, New York; and Willhemshaven and Gelberg, Germany

chalk art

Once a genre that was saved for gangs and urban letters in the ‘70s and ‘80s, street art has become accepted by many as an edgy means self-expression. It slowly became a forum for commissioned pieces in and on office buildings throughout the world in the ‘90s and ‘00s. Street art has now made its way into museums. The Museum of the City of New York, for example, has exhibited works of Lady Pink and Keith Haring. The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and The Street Museum of Art in Brooklyn have also committed vast open spaces to showcase modern street art by an assortment of graffiti artists.

street art in museums

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