FARGO
DATE OF INTERVIEW:
NOVEMBER 26 2007
1- NAMES USED:
FARGO 1, JAM 1, SKYLAB 2, BASE 353 EXP, ROBERT 131
2- YEAR STARTED WRITING? YEAR RETIRED?
1973...STILL PAINTING
3- AGE WHEN YOU STARTED WRITING?
AGE 15
4- WHERE?
BROOKLYN, N.Y.
5- WHY DID YOU START WRITING?
I LOVED WHAT I WAS SEEING ON THE TRAINS, AND SINCE I WAS ALREADY INTO TRAINS IN A BIG WAY, THE PROGRESSION SEEMED NATURAL TO ME
6- WHO WERE YOUR WRITING PARTNERS (IF ANY)? STILL IN TOUCH WITH THEM TODAY?
A BROTHER NAMED PART 2 TOOK ME TO THE TRAINS FOR THE FIRST TIME....SAD TO SAY I`M NOT IN TOUCH WITH HIM
7- WRITING CREWS YOU FOUNDED OR CO-FOUNDED?
NONE
8- WRITING CREWS YOU BELONGED TO?
THE FIRST CREW I HOOKED UP WITH WAS GND...GRAFFITI NEVER DIES,
NEXT WAS BGA, BROOKLYN GRAFFITI ARTISTS
9- YOU WROTE YOUR FIRST TIME ON A WALL, BUS, TRAIN OR TRUCK?
IT WAS A WALL IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD...AND GOT CAUGHT!!!
10- YOUR FIRST TAG EVER - WHICH MEDIUM DID YOU USE, i.e. MARKER, SPRAYPAINT, PEN, ETC.?
SPRAY PAINT
11- WHERE DID YOUR WRITING NAME COME FROM?
IT CAME AN ARMORED TRUCK...........WELLS FARGO
12- WHICH WAS THE FIRST TRAIN LINE YOU TAGGED?(IF YOU TAGGED TRAINS)
THE 'M' LINE
12A- WHAT OTHER MAJOR LANDMARKS DID YOU TAG?
MYSELF, CHUCK 129 AND TEX 2 PLAYED HOOKEY FROM SCHOOL ONE DAY AND DESTROYED FLUSHING MEADOW PARK...WE TAGGED EVERYTHING IN THE PARK
14- WHAT YARDS & LAYUPS DID YOU WORK AT?
CONEY ISLAND YARD WAS MY MAIN STOMPING GROUND, BUT EVERYTHING FROM OCEAN PARKWAY TO KINGS HIGHWAY ON THE 'D' LINE WAS PRETTY MUCH GND TERRITORY...WHEN IT GOT COLD, WET AND WINDY OUTSIDE WE WENT TO THE 45TH ST LAYUPS ON 4th AVE IN BAY RIDGE...NICE WARM AND QUIET, LOVED IT THERE IN THE WINTER TIME
15- WHERE YOU 'KING' OF "SOMETHING"? (TRAIN LINES, WALLS, ETC.?)
NOT REALLY....DID A LOT OF DAMAGE THOUGH
16- WHO WAS YOUR MENTOR? (IF APPLICABLE) DID YOU MENTOR ANY OTHER WRITERS?
PART 2 SHOWED ME A LOT OF HIS STYLE AND I COPIED IT AS BEST I COULD UNTIL I DEVELOPED MY OWN STYLE...I DID BRING OUT ONE WRITER WORTH MENTIONING, A YOUNG BROTHER NAMED SNAP 2....HE DID MAINLY INSIDES ON THE 'B's AND 'N's AND HE GOT UP VERY QUICKLY AND STAYED UP FOR AS LONG AS HE WROTE, IT IS MY BELIEF, THAT IF HE HAD JUST KEPT ON WRITING HE WOULD HAVE EVENTUALLY BECAME A LEGEND, AND HE`D STILL BE ALIVE TODAY!!!
17- WHICH WRITERS DID YOU LOOK UP TO? WHY?
THERE ARE SO MANY....FLINT 707 COMES TO MIND FIRST AND FOREMOST, SUPER STRUT, 'A' TRAIN, VAMM, COMET, SPARKY 747, AGEE 170, JACE 2, BIG D, AMRL, STAY HIGH 149, FDT 56, CLYDE, PNUT 2 AND SO MANY MORE....THE AFOREMENTIONED NAMES ARE JUST A FEW OF THE GUYS WHO ALL BROUGHT SOMETHING TO TABLE, THEY INNOVATED AND TOOK GRAFFITI TO THE NEXT LEVEL IN SOME SHAPE OR FORM....FLINT 707 IS THE ONE GUY WHO MADE ME REALLY WANT TO GO OFF, PLUS I LOVED THAT 'F' HE USED....THE SAME ONE HE TAGGED WITH, HE PIECED WITH...THAT WAS REALLY REALLY SOMETHING TO SEE ON A TOP TO BOTTOM WITH A NASTY UPWARDS 3-D AND A CANDY CANE CLOUD!!!!
18- DID YOU INTRODUCE ANYTHING NEW TO THE WRITING MOVEMENT?
IF 'YES,' WHAT WAS IT? WHAT YEAR?
NO...NOT REALLY
19- HOW LONG WOULD YOU GUESSTIMATE THAT EACH GENERATION OF WRITERS LASTED?
I WOULD SAY ANYWHERE FROM 3 TO 5 YEARS...TOPS, THEN AGAIN, SOME WRITERS SUCH AS BLADE AND COMET SPANNED SEVERAL GENERATIONS OF WRITERS, AND WERE STILL BETTER THAN SOME OF THE NEW GUYS COMING OUT....THEY LAYED DOWN THE BLUEPRINT
20- WHICH WERE YOUR FAVORITE COLORS TO WORK WITH?
SCHOOL BUS YELLOW, FEDERAL SAFETY GREEN, PRIMER RED
21- WHICH BRAND OF SPRAY PAINT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TO WORK WITH RUSTOLEUM, RED DEVIL, WET LOOK
22- WHICH MARKER WAS YOUR FAVORITE?
MINI-WIDES...HANDS DOWN
23- WHICH WAS YOUR FAVORITE SPOT TO TAG YOUR NAME IN THE TRAIN SYSTEM? (IF APPLICABLE)
THE FRONT DOOR.
24- DO YOU HAVE IN MEMORY A "FAVORITE" MASTERPIECE THAT YOU DID? IF 'YES,' WHICH ONE? WHEN? WHERE? WHY?
MY FAVORITE PIECE WOULD HAVE TO BE A TOP TO BOTTOM WHOLE CAR I DID WITH CHUCK 129, HE DID A UNI 2 NO COMP PIECE AND I DID A FARGOMATIC PIECE... WE DID AT THE CANAL STREET LAYUP, THEY USED TO LAYUP 'RR' TRAINS AFTER THE RUSH HOUR DURING THE WEEK...TEX 2 WAS WITH US THAT DAY AS WAS TJ 159....TEX DID A TEX 2 TOP TO BOTTOM WHOLE CAR BY HIMSELF WITH A KEEP ON TRUCKING CHARACTER...I JUST LIKED THAT PIECE BECAUSE I KNEW THAT WHEN EVERYONE SAW IT, THEY WOULD STAND UP AND TAKE NOTICE....FOUR TOP TO BOTTOMS IN A ROW WOULD GET YOUR ATTENTION LIKE THAT BACK IN THE DAY!!! THAT WAS BACK IN 1974...
25- WERE YOU EVER ARRESTED FOR WRITING? IF 'YES,' WHEN? WHERE? WITH WHOM? BY WHOM?
I GOT BUSTED ONCE, COMING OUT OF THE GRANT AVE LAYUP, IN 1974 I WAS WITH PRIEST 310...THE COP`S NAME WAS ARTIE
26- WHICH WAS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO GET PAINT FROM?
MY ALL TIME FAVORITE PLACE WAS PATHMARK!!!
27- WHICH IS THE CORRECT NAME FOR THIS ART FORM:
GRAFFITI ART? AEROSOL ART? WRITING? GRAFFITI? WHY?
IT`S ALWAYS BEEN WRITING TO ME, YOU`D SEE A GUY ON THE TRAIN WITH INK AND PAINT STAINS ON HIS SNEAKERS AND YOUR FIRST QUESTION WAS.....WHAT YOU WRITE???
28- ARE YOU STILL WRITING / PAINTING TODAY? IF YOU USE CANVAS, YOUR FEELINGS ON PUBLIC SURFACE -VS- CANVAS?
I`M STILL WRITING TODAY AFTER A VERY LONG HIATUS...I LOVE DOING WALLS, TWO AND THREE MAN PRODUCTIONS...I LIKE DOING CANVASSES, YOU CAN TAKE YOUR TIME, DAYS OF WEEKS IF YOU WANT TO...
29- WHY DO YOU THINK IT IS THAT AFTER ALL THE EVOLUTION THAT WRITING HAS EXPERIENCED SINCE ITS BEGINNINGS IN ' 69-' 70, EVOLUTION THAT INCLUDES ACCEPTANCE AND ADAPTATION BY YOUTH WORLDWIDE, EVEN ACCEPTANCE BY SOME GOVERNMENTS OUTSIDE THE U.S., THE POWERS THAT BE IN THE U.S. STILL CONSIDER THIS CULTURE AS ONLY AN EYESORE? IS RACISM TO BLAME? CLASSISM? OR BOTH?
I THINK THAT THE UNITED STATES STILL HAS A LOT OF GROWING UP TO DO IN A LOT OF WAYS, RACISM IS PARTLY TO BLAME TO A LARGE DEGREE...LET`S NOT FORGET THAT WHEN WE DID IT, IT WAS AN OUT AND OUT CRIME BECAUSE WE ONLY DID IT ON THE TRAINS, BUSES AND PUBLIC WALLS...WE WERE OUT OF CONTROL AS WAS ALL OF NEW YORK BACK THEN...WE WERE PRODUCTS OF OUR ENVIRONMENT....CLASSISM??? GRAFFITI CUT ACROSS CLASSES OF PEOPLE AS FAR AS WHO WAS DOING IT, WHITES, BLACKS, PUERTO RICANS, DOMINICANS...KIDS WHO CAME FROM FAMILIES WITH MONEY, NO MONEY, WE PAINTED WITH EVERYBODY AND ANYBODY...DIDN`T MATTER WHERE YOU CAME FROM OR WHAT YOU HAD, IF YOU COULD PAINT AND YOU HAD PAINT.....LET`S GO TO A LAYUP!!!!
I THINK THE REASON THAT THE POWERS THAT BE CONSIDER GRAFFTITI AN EYESORE, IS BECAUSE THEY ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS THING THAT WAS DONE BY ONLY THE POOR AND DISENFRANCHISED...AND THAT WAS OKAY AS FAR AS THEIR THINKING WAS CONCERNED.
BUT WHEN THEY FOUND OUT THAT KIDS FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WERE DOING IT AND IN PHENOMENAL NUMBERS, INSTEAD IT WAS LIKE..."OH SHIT WE GOT A PROBLEM" NOT ONLY DO WE A PROBLEM, BUT THE WHOLE WORLD CAN SEE IT RIGHT ON THE SIDES OF OUR SUBWAY CARS.
THIS THING OF OURS EXPLODED NOT ONLY OUT THE GHETTOES, BUT OUT OF THE NICER NEIGHBORHOODS ALSO, AS LONG AS THERE WAS SOME DEGREE OF FAME TO BE HAD BY SIMPLY PUTTING YOUR NAME ON THE SIDE OR ON THE INSIDE OF A NEW YORK CITY SUBWAY CAR, IT WAS ON....
CURRENTLY WE HAVE POLITICIANS SUCH AS PETER VALLONE WHO CONSTANTLY CRITICIZE PEOPLE WHO WRITE GRAFFITI, WHO EVENTUALLY GO ON TO OTHER FORMS OF CRIME, GANG ACTIVITY AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE....THE SIMPLE TRUTH IS, THEY JUST DON`T GET IT, AND THEY NEVER WILL...REMEMBER THEY SAID THE SAME THING ABOUT ROCK AND ROLL OVER 50 YEARS AGO, THE DEVIL'S MUSIC THEY CALLED IT, NOW, HOWEVER, THEY HAVE A ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME....AND WE HAVE A GRAFFITI HALL OF FAME, SO YES IT IS AN ARTFORM, AND IN SOME CASES A VERY LUCRATIVE ONE, JUST LOOK AT MADISON AVE, THEY`RE ON IT AND ON IT HARD.
IN MY HUMBLE OPINION, THOSE WHO THINK GRAFFTITI IS "JUST AN EYESORE".....YOU`RE BLIND!!!!
30- DO YOU CONSIDER WRITING AN "ART FORM"?
YES I DO!!!
31- WHAT DO YOU THINK OF SCRACHITI?
NOT REALLY CRAZY ABOUT IT, BUT IT IS A FORM OF EXPRESSION
32- WHAT DO YOU DO PROFESSIONALLY TODAY?
...I`M A MOTORMAN FOR THE N.Y.C. TRANSIT AUTHORITY
33- ANY ADVICE TO YOUNG WRITERS WORLDWIDE TODAY?
KNOW YOUR HISTORY AND PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE
34- ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO ADD?
IT`S GOOD TO BE A PART OF THIS THING CALLED WRITING, I`LL KEEP PAINTING TIL MY ARM FALLS OFF...TO ME GRAFFITI IS LIFE AND IN A LOT WAYS,,,,IT SAVED MY LIFE, IF YOU NEVER DID IT, YOU WOULDN`T UNDERSTAND IT...THANK YOU TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO I`VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF WRITING WITH PAST AND PRESENT...EVERYTIME I`VE EVER PAINTED WITH ANYONE, I`VE ALWAYS LEARNED SOMETHING NEW AND THEY`VE ALWAYS MADE ME A BETTER WRITER BECAUSE OF IT !!!!
35- YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION?
RNINE@MSN.COM
Send E-Mail to: micoaslatinpride@gmail.comCopyright © 2009 MICO ~as~ LATIN PRIDE!. All Rights Reserved