Subway Graffiti 1970-1989

The Bowery Boys: New York City History

Tom Meyers

Society & Culture, History, Documentary, Places & Travel

4.8 • 3.6K Ratings

🗓️ 3 September 2010

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

EPISODE 111 Art. Vandalism. Blight. Freedom. Crime. Creativity. Graffiti has divided New Yorkers since it first appeared on walls, signs and lampposts in the late 1960s. Its ascent paralleled the city's sunken financial fortunes, allowing simple markings to evolve into elaborate pieces of art. The only problem? The best examples were on the sides of subway cars which the city promptly attempted to eradicate, their attempts thwarted by clever, creative artists and a downtown culture that was slowly embracing graffiti as New York City's defining art form. This is a history of the battle between graffiti and City Hall. And a look at the aftermath which spawned today's tough city laws and a warehouse space in Queens called 5Pointz, where graffiti masterpieces thrive in abundance today. www.boweryboyspodcast.com Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/boweryboys

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	The Bowry Boys Episode 111, the era of Subway Graffiti.
0:04.4	Hey, it's the Bowry Boys!
0:06.0	Hey!
0:07.0	The Bowry Boys is brought to you by EuroChipo.com.
0:10.8	EuroChipo editors personally visit and review the best budget hotels in Europe,
0:15.6	now with hotels in New York City, on the web at EuroChipo.com.
0:20.2	Hello and welcome to the Bowry Boys, this is Greg Young,
0:23.3	with yet another solo podcast looking nostalgically upon a group of disaffected youth,
0:28.9	breaking the law.
0:30.0	But unlike the YOs and the Pirates of the East River and the other gangs that we've
0:34.5	discussed here on the show, instead of murder and evil, today's subject,
0:39.5	the Graffiti Riders of New York City during the 1970s and 1980s,
0:43.8	well one of their intents was simply fame through the creation of artwork.
0:48.1	Street Graffiti, evolving from magic marker scrolls to huge, elaborate and beautifully colored
0:55.0	pieces, these define the look of the city in the 1970s,
0:57.6	livening up a town that had grown a bit dull.
1:00.2	But of course, was this art or was it vandalism?
1:04.3	It's actually a little bit of both, and I don't think either side would deny that.
1:08.4	In one corner, you have an underground scene of graffiti artists or writers,
1:12.7	developing a new art form on the sides and surfaces of every conceivable public space in New York,
1:18.0	and eyeing the ultimate prize, a clean writing surface that moves.
1:22.3	A.K.A. The Subway Cars of New York City.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Tom Meyers, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Tom Meyers and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.