A visual account of the birth of graffiti and street art, showcasing as-yet-unseen works collected by preeminent artist Martin Wong. Referred to by the New York Times as an artist "whose meticulous visionary realism is among the lasting legacies of New York's East Village art scene of the 1980s," Martin Wong (1946-1999) was firmly entrenched in the NYC street art world of the late '70s and '80s. City as Canvas chronicles the most important chapter in the street art movement and the artists involved. Showcasing Wong's enormous graffiti art collection, the book contains artwork, photographs, black books, letters, postcards, posters, and flyers made by Wong and his artist friends. The book contains previously unpublished art by famous street artists such as Futura 2000, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Christopher "Daze" Ellis, LA II, Lady Pink, and Keith Haring, to name only a few. City as Canvas traces the origins of urban self-expression and the era of "outlaw" street art in New York, which primed the floodgates for graffiti art to spread worldwide. Exhibition Schedule: Museum of the City of New York: Opens October 2013

This is the illustrated story of New York artist Chris Daze Ellis's successful transition from the subways to international studios and galleries. Follow his 30+ year career from his days as a teenage graffiti writer to his current life as a professional painter, mentor, and family man. This book, with more than 250 photographs, is a journey tracking the seminal moments in Daze's life that shaped his art. View his aesthetic evolution, from "Graffiti High" (New York's High School of Art and Design) and an "unsanctioned" street art phase to exhibitions with Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Train photos from the 1970s and '80s, a broad representation of Daze's studio and mural works, and personal photos guide the reader through an artistic portfolio spanning five decades. Contributions by graffiti writer Jay "J.SON" Edlin and essayist Claire Schwartz, and a foreword by graffiti historian and chronicler Sacha Jenkins, complete this volume.

Late 1970s New York City was bankrupt and its streets dirty and dangerous. But thecity had a wild, raw energy that made it the crucible for the birth of rap culture and graffiti. Graffiti writers worked in extremely tough conditions: uncollected garbage, darkness, cramped spaces, and the constant threat of police raids, assault by security staff and attacks by rival crews. It was not unlike practicing performance art in a war zone. Yet during the fertile years of the late 1970s and 1980s they evolved their art from stylized signatures to full-blown Technicolor dreamscapes. Henry Chalfant created panoramic images of painted trains by photographing overlapping shots along the train s length. It took time to earn the writers trust andrespect, but Chalfant became their revered confidant and with Tony Silver went on to produce the classic documentary film Style Wars (1983). Through a series of interviews conducted by Sacha Jenkins, we hear the voices of these characters of old New York. Quite a few of the original writers are no longer with us, but those who have survived have continued to push the envelope as artists and individuals in a new millennium.The stories they tell, included here alongside iconic, raw photographs of their work, will enthrall graffiti fans everywhere."

NYC graffiti art, heavy metal, comic books, and fantasy art intersect here in Louie "KR.ONE" Gasparro's visual autobiography. This legendary Queens artist-drummer weaves these powerful influences into a medium he calls "Graffantasy," creating tags, wall pieces, paintings and illustrations, model trains, jackets, and more. Gaze at this modern Renaissance man's work from 1977 to the present, and trace his evolution from his adolescent days watching bombed subway cars whirring by in a KOLORSTORM, to the underground period tagging trains and evading cops, to his legal works and whole-school buses. Starting with a scrapbook-like photo collection from Louie's youth and his other career as drummer of several heavy metal bands, the book moves on with elaborate sketches from the artist's blackbooks, and colorful concert posters and album covers. Through a stunning array of styles and techniques, witness KR.ONE's transformation from restless punk to major decorative artist and abstract painter.