Graffiti artists is an ancient form of expression that can be seen in cities around the world. It involves painting text and images on walls, buildings and other surfaces.
Graffiti has been used for political and social activism throughout history, and can be a powerful tool in addressing a variety of issues. The term “graffiti” is often interpreted as either positive or negative, but that is a simplification of its complexity.
TAKI 183
Forty years ago this month, a New York Times article about graffiti tagger Taki 183 ignited the movement. It introduced the world to a new kind of modern art that was quickly embraced by kids everywhere.
TAKI 183 was a teenager from Washington Heights in northern Manhattan who started writing his name in 1969. TAKI was a short form for Dimitraki, his Greek birth-name, but to establish himself as a writer he simplified it and added 183 as his street number.
TAKI’s signature became known all over the city, and kids began to emulate his style and tag their names on trains that traveled all over the city. This was the beginning of a whole generation of New York writers who used their names to create street art. TAKI 183 was one of the most famous writers, and is considered a pioneer of the modern graffiti movement.
TAKI’S TAG
In 1971, TAKI’S TAG made a name for himself with an article published in The New York Times that unwittingly sparked a revolution in graffiti. At the time, graffiti in New York City was a public nuisance, but the attention The NY Times article brought to Taki’s tag spurred an outbreak of similar magic marker markings all over Manhattan.
TAKI 183 was a graffiti tagger who worked as a foot messenger in New York City. He left his magic marker tag all over the streets he frequented.
He also painted a series of sculptures called Signals, inspired by the energy and movement of radar transmitters. He was drawn to these antenna-like sculptures because he saw them as representing the unseen forces of the universe.
TAKI’S PAST
When Taki was born in Athens, Greece, his family could not afford a good education. As a young boy he taught himself by reading about science, poetry, philosophy, and the arts.
Seeing the sculptures of Pablo Picasso and Alberto Giacometti inspired him to become an artist, and he began experimenting with plaster in the early 1950s. He later moved to Paris and began forging, welding and casting metal works, influenced by the elongated forms of Ancient Greek Cycladic and Egyptian sculptures.
His earliest work, Signals, was an exploration of light and energy. The flashing lights at train stations inspired him to create antenna-like sculptures, and he was also greatly influenced by astronomy and space. This led to a major change in his work, and he created a series of “Signals” that represented the electromagnetic forces around him.
TAKI’S FUTURE
During his life, Takis has always had a passion for art. He studied subjects such as science, mythology, philosophy, religion and poetry. He also took inspiration from the work of famous artists such as Picasso and Giacometti.
As a result, he was able to build a career as an artist and create works of art that reflected these interests. He has continued to expand his oeuvre through the years and still remains active as an artist today.
At the end of Your Name, Taki and Mitsuha meet on a staircase, which is a logical place to meet. They are both shocked and regretful for not meeting sooner, but they realize that they have been searching for each other for the past few years.