Priz One - Graffiti Artist Interview

March 2009

Interview with Priz-One, an old school New York graffiti writer who started hitting public spaces in the late 1970's. Priz-One went on to write with some of the most legendary graffiti crews such as TS5 Crew, TMT Crew, TDS Crew and MTA Crew to name but a few.

How old are you?

I'm presently in my mid forty's.

Where are you based?

New York City.

When did you begin writing graffiti and for how long did you continue?

I started street tagging on the walls along the Upper West Side and the Freedom Tunnels underneath Riverside Park in 1978. I progressed by tagging on the interiors of the IRT Broadway Local No.1 line by the summer of 1979. I graduated to exterior panel train pieces (window downs) in 1982.

I laid down my cans in 1989 and then re-emerged in 1992.

Do you still practice graffiti writing today and if not do you ever feel the need to?

Absolutely. I continue to refine and develop my lettering skills and designs with a consistent bombardment of multi-colour illustrations on various surfaces.

How did you get into graffiti writing and what made you begin painting?

Below ground, I rode the subways to and from school. After school, I'd bench with cohorts and classmates at the 96th street station where the 1, 2 and 3 lines all converged. Plenty piles of styles from Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx rolled through there.

Above ground, school yards and handball courts were colorful canvases as well as eye candy to me. I met veteran subway painters, street writers and crews through mutual friends, black book exchanges and school detention rap sessions.

Where did you paint your first piece?

In the 1 tunnels. I was in the middle of two sets of subway cars under Broadway on the Uptown Side.

How would you describe your style?

My style is "old school" with heavy influences on letter flow movement, arrow connections, extensions that harmonize with a constant succession of interchangeable styles.

A reflection and multi-mixed combination of 60's, 70's and 80's design and letter forms that takes the competition by surprise. (STYLE-MONSTA)

How did you choose the name Priz?

The name PRIZ chose me. My eyes fell on a teacher's Letterset Typography book and as I was browsing through it I came across a page of letter fonts called "PRISMA-PRIZMA".

At this time, I was "hitting up" my neighborhood with tags, throw ups and crews: MR/RM, T.L.D. (The Latin Dandies or Trains Lodging Destruction) and then SWAN-ONE T.U.A. (Trains Under Attack).

PRISMA-PRIZMA had a good contrast of letter schemes and sound but despite that, I risked detection and apprehension writing a six letter tag during hit and run street missions. I further simplified the tags from PRISM and PRIZM to an abbreviated stealth mode of PRIS and PRIZ. By 1981, my racking buddies stopped calling me SWAN and dubbed me PRIZ or PRIZZY-PRIZ.

Which graffiti crews have you been involved with over the years?

When I rekindled my romance with graffiti writing in 1992, I got down, represented and advertised a substantial amount of prominent IRT / IND / BMT subway writing crews going as far back as my early high school days:

• TSF/TS5 (The Spanish 5ive)
• BYB (Bad Yard Boys)
• CAC (Cool Art Creators)
• UA (United Artists)
• TMT (The Magnificent Team)
• TDS (The Death Squad)
• OTB (Out To Bomb)
• MTA (Mad Transit Artists)
• 6YB (6 Yard Boys)
• TPA (The Public Animals)
• CIA (Crazy Inside Artists)
• TOP (The Odd Partners)
• CYA (Crazy Young Artists)
• WS (Wild Style)
• 3YB (3 Yard Boys)
• BAD Inc. (Boys Are Down)
• MAGIC (Mad Artists Grooving In Creativity)

Which other writers have you painted alongside in your time?

The several writers that I've had the pleasure of painting alongside as well as individually with are:

• STAN-ONE
• DE-DONE
• DINO-NOD (RIP)
• JOE-61
• SONIC
• NACE (RIP)
• FDT-56
• WASP-1
• REE-2
• IZ THE WIZ
• CHAIN-3
• SYE
• PART
• INK-76
• KET
• CLYDE
• STEM YNN
• BLADE
• CHI-CHI-133
• WOLF
• ROGER
• TEAM
• SNAKE 1
• TRACY-168
• WANE
• RUN-ONE (RIP)
• SNATCH
• SETUP
• 2IL

…etc, etc…

Unfortunately, a lot of the other writers I fell in with are retired, relocated, drug addicted, deceased or incarcerated.

Priz-One

Do you still keep in touch with any of the people you used to write with back in the day?

STAN-ONE and DONE-101 are the only two writers from my past subway exploits that I still keep in touch with. Unfortunately, a lot of the other writers I fell in with are retired, relocated, drug addicted, deceased or incarcerated.

What do you see as being the start of the graffiti scene? Did it all start with the likes of TAKI 183 and Julio 204?

It definitely was elders like JULIO-204 and TAKI-183 that planted the seed and inspired many generations of unique hand styles to flourish in quality and quantity like KROME 100, CAY 161, FDT-56, OZ-109, SNAKE 1, CLYDE and BARBARA and EVA-62.

In the late 70's, when I would travel uptown to visit my sister, I could see a dozen types of hand styles and subway masterpieces from her apartment window which was adjacent to the 207th street rail yard aka The Ghost Yard.

Who did you see as being the pioneers of writing when you started?

• ZEPHYR
• REVOLT
• JEAN-13
• BIL ROCK
• RASTA
• LEE
• DAZE
• DOZE
• SHY-147 (RIP)
• 2MAD

What is the biggest risk you have ever taken for your art?

In general, as graffiti artists, we took great risks just standing on a live 600 volt third rail. However, I do remember trying to climb into a secluded warehouse to paint. I was slowly tip toeing on a rocky narrow ledge while grabbing on to a poorly constructed barb wire fence above the deep, murky waters of the Hudson River.

I read on Wikipedia that you used to be a golden glove boxer, what's the story behind that?

In the early 1960's, my family arrived in the United States from Cuba . We lived in a predominately Hispanic neighborhood. There were clicks, crews, rivals and territorial street gangs every three blocks. In those days, you had to have hand skills not just with markers, spray paint and racking. I made the acquaintance of an older cat who was a boxer as well as a good street fighter. We became fast friends. Sometimes we would "slap box" till some ones face turned red or their eyes became watery and glazed over.

My uncle had been a boxer in Cuba before the Castro era, he had no sons. We never missed a Sugar Ray Leonard fight when it was broadcasted on ABC sports on channel 7. He would always reflect on his glory days.

One day he decided to teach me how to throw a left jab and then an effective right uppercut. Before I knew it, there would be a dirty canvas floor beneath my feet, eight ounce boxing gloves covering my hands, a mouth piece, the echoing "ding" of a ringside bell, and an opponent in an offensive stance in the opposite corner… lol.

I don't want to be compared to the graffiti artists that jive talk and brag about their accomplishments. I've always had a respect for the silent, modest writers whose reputation always preceded them.

Priz-One

The idea behind graffiti artists "getting up" and putting their mark everywhere, becoming well known, and going out for fame is an interesting one. I wanted to ask you if infamy within the scene was a frustrating thing sometimes because of the need to keep your identity secret due to the illegal aspect? At what point did you feel it was safe to stand up and say "I did that"?

I never really had an "infamy complex". I've always been very low-key writer even amongst my peers. I prefer to let my work speak for itself and also speak volumes for me. I embraced anonymity. I'm sure if I had gone main stream, more commercial graff opportunities and profits would have manifested from it.

I don't want to be compared to the graffiti artists that jive talk and brag about their accomplishments. I've always had a respect for the silent, modest writers whose reputation always preceded them. Sometimes admissions like "I did that" can guarantee you quite a few headaches!

When writing graffiti do you try to keep your identity anonymous where ever possible?

Absolutely. It makes it easier for me to gain unimpeded access to where I need to go.

Did you ever have a run in with the law because of your graffiti writing?

Yes, it's one of those unavoidable things. It comes with the territory.

When you were busy hitting the train lines did you ever have any idea how much the artwork you and your fellow writers were creating would catch on and how much of an impact it would have generations to come?

No, I would never have imagined it. I know that within our community of graffiti writers, we influenced and were influenced by the generation of writers and crews before us. I am content knowing that whatever small Graffiti contribution my work or words made were a positive affect on the next man coming up.

Do you have any good stories to tell from your days of bombing New York's transportation system?

A few individuals will admit to the constant games of cat and mouse with the police and Vandal squad. However very few will ever admit getting raided, vicked, beat down or vamped in yards or layups by rival writers or crews. Back in the days, it was all very real and it was an occasional thing, a hell of a wake up call and a mean mortality check which came with being a writer.

I remember being on a bombing mission at an IND letter line stick out which turned out to be a solo mission because a friend from the neighborhood decided not to show up. I had an IND/BMT subway car letter key, two flooded mops accompanied by two cans each of Flo master and Purple Marsh ink. "I was hell-bent on leaving a head dent on the MTA's set of RR Ridgy trains."

After several uptown/downtown local trains pulled in and out of the station, I climbed down off the station and headed for the middle express track where a single set of sleeping iron horses were snoring. I climbed into the cars then glanced through the interiors. The opposite side of the train was situated against a dimly lit, tagged up tunnel wall. I then proceeded to walk into the eight car deep tunnel with the echoing sounds of crunching gravel beneath me.

From the look of the subway cars exterior, these cars had been recently buffed. I could still smell the chemical scrub and see the multicolor residue paint acid streaks along with that dull scrubbed look. I'd hit the jackpot but with very little supplies in order to get up and get down on everything in sight. If it had been a set of CC flats, I would of went home and come back with a stash of paper label Krylon with Fat caps to produce something of substantial size and color.

I opened the rear door with my skeleton key and proceeded to walk through the cars scoping out the shadows while hitting the interiors. The combination of toxic fumes from the Flo master and Marsh grade ink made me light headed as I got half way through the set of subway cars.

Priz-One

I opened the rear door with my skeleton key and proceeded to walk through the cars scoping out the shadows while hitting the interiors. The combination of toxic fumes from the Flo master and Marsh grade ink made me light headed as I got half way through the set of subway cars.

I heard a subway horn from a distance and dismissed it as a passing local train on the opposite side of the concrete wall. I was in the second to last car when I saw another set of cars being pulled into the front of the car that I had recently entered, I heard the "chaaa!!" sound of the train's breaks. From between the train's glass doors I also saw some movement. Then I saw a motorman walking in my direction. I was concerned that the odor of the freshly tagged panels would give me away. I ducked and crouched in one of the booths of the subway car. He walked right by me. I could hear the crackling sounds of his walkie talkie from a distance.

After several minutes, I looked out for the Motorman who was no where in sight. I then quickly finished off the last tin of Marsh ink and saturated the last panels that hadn't been buffed or scrubbed by the turpentine smelling chemical the MTA was using to buff interiors. I wasn't going to ruin two perfectly good pin tipped mops on those panels! I opened a passenger seat and dumped the empties cans into it. I exited through the opposite direction the Motorman had left through.

As I slid the door open and cautiously climbed down the front of the RR trains and headed for the station, I saw three shadows heading in my direction… "Not again!" and so before I got spotted I ducked under a train. As they came closer, I heard them whispering and then I heard a familiar voice.

My tardy friend who was now three hours late was amongst them. I let him and the other two cats pass and then jumped out from behind them shouting "HAY JU WHACHUWAN!". They prepared to take flight but because of the limited space between the train's and the concrete wall they would have smacked right into one another. When they saw me, my face and clothes were covered in black soot. Mr. Loli Late recognized me and shouted "Wha da hel ju doin man?!?" and I could see the other two cats were sizing me up to see if there was going to be any trouble. I replied "Yo, ya gots ta get up early ta get da clean spots bro". His response was "sorie I layt bu I heer. U ga mi cans a Fo masher ink?" and I said "Yeah bro! You'll find two cans inside the fourth car inside the seats. Later bro!". I then proceeded to walk my filthy, tired body out of the layup, through the turnstiles out into the dark fall night…

For a moment, I could imagine the reaction on my tardy Spanglish friend's face when he pulled up the passenger seat and looked inside. I smiled all the way home… LOL!

What do you think of some of the early films made about the scene, such as Tony Silver and Henry Chalfant's "Style Wars" in 1982 or Charlie Ahearn's "Wild Style" in 1983?

I visually enjoyed "Dreams Don't Die", "Wild Style" and "Beat Street" even though the dialog's and plots were a "kidney blow" to most writer's intellect. I must admit, they were all far better then Lorenzo Lamas' lame Graffiti/Hip-Hop motion picture "Body Rock".

"Style Wars" was and is the best graffiti documentary by far.

What are your feelings about the graffiti scene at present and the transitions in styles you must have seen since you began writing?

There is a lot of old school piecing styles, letter forms and designs still being recycled and reused today by many up and coming graffiti artists.

The stationary wall will never surpass the roaring iron horse. When I started, the piecing styles were fresh, gritty, wicked and dangerous. Not everyone could go down unto those tracks. Outsiders considered it taboo.

Today, there is also a wide abundance of spray paint color brands.

The only thing you really have to worry about these days is getting bagged by The Vandal Squad and doing jail time along with convicted drug dealers, killers, gang members and rapists.

What are your thoughts on graffiti being commonly found in both galleries and on the streets these days?

If you have unique skills, prefer to do legal's, want go mainstream and avoid incarceration then this is the best venue that you could seek out as a "graffiti artist".

Graffiti has been around since man picked up a stone to carve crude drawings onto cave walls. I don't consider all graffiti an art, and I don't consider all art graffiti but that's my opinion.

Priz-One

There still appears to be a very fine line between those who see graffiti as art and those who see it as vandalism, what are your views on this?

Everyone has an opinion in regard to "graffiti" and we are all entitled to this, that's why we have "freedom of speech". Graffiti has been around since man picked up a stone to carve crude drawings onto cave walls. I don't consider all graffiti an art, and I don't consider all art graffiti but that's my opinion.

Recently there has been a sudden surge of interest in graffiti and street art, why do you think this is?

What's old is new and what's new is old… history has a tendency to repeat itself. Presently, graff has found a new renaissance in young people internationally.

Have you ever done any collaborations with artists overseas or ever travelled abroad for your art and if so then where is the most exciting or interesting place you have painted?

No, but I plan to in the near future.

Where is the most obscure place you have ever left a tag or piece?

During the filming of Video Graff #1, the producers invited a group of us to New Jersey to paint on dead Am-track trains. The trains were located on two abandoned sets of tracks across from two empty middle tracks. While Am-track trains shot by us, we pieced all night into the next day with no interruptions, just a lot of noisy crickets.

Do you see yourself as an artist or a graffiti writer?

Both. My surroundings and my creative impulses dictate which medium I should use. The permanent marker or the spray can? I could write or piece my name on a larger scale but the written tag and the masterpiece also demand the same creative action.

What is your preferred medium for making marks with now and what was it back when you started writing?

Today, when "tagging", I prefer the homemade, converted mop Pilot with the pinned tip school eraser and the purple carbon paper staining ink for those untouched, open space subway car interiors. When "painting" exteriors today, I use Belton Molotov Premium Spray Paint and Montana Gold.

Back in the days, I preferred to "tag" with the Broad Chiseled Tip Pentel Pilot, the original Mini-Uni Wide Markers (for calligraphy wild styles) and the flooded Pilot accompanied by Black Opaque Flo-Master, Purple Marsh and Super Market Ink.

When "painting" then, I used a combination of Krylon Paper Label (Original Borden Brand), Rustoleum (Stops-Rust) Scottie Brand, Red-Devil Spray Enamel (Supreme Quality), and Wet Look (Super High Gloss) spray paints.

All executed pieces should be bigger, badder and brighter than their predecessors.

Priz-One

Do you have a favorite piece of all time?

No, when I paint, my goal is to execute as many different letter style burners as possible. All executed pieces should be bigger, badder and brighter than their predecessors.

Which other artists work do you admire?

All the respected pioneers, trailblazers and style masters that came before me. I admire their consistency, creativity, sacrifices and commitment because they broke ground under hazardous and pressurized conditions in and out of the yards and lay-ups. Without them, there would be no me.

Which other artists would you most like to work with if given the chance?

Any cool brother who wants to get down…

What do you see as your greatest achievement to date?

When STAN and I were given the opportunity in 2006 to paint a complete window down "SPANISH 5IVE" crew whole car with a character, crown and a scroll listing all the 1st and 2nd Generation TSF/TS5 members from the mid 1970's to the early 1980's.

Can you tell us one thing about you which most people wouldn't know?

At times, my silence is a sign of intelligence not arrogance. LOL!

What kind of music are you into?

I have an ecliptic taste in music which ranges from everything from the 1950's classic to mid 90's.

What is the last album you bought?

The last album I downloaded was "The Best of Blue Oyster Cult".

What are you working on currently and what plans do you have for the future?

STAN and I are working on some canvases for an upcoming showing. We plan to continue to paint as much as humanly possible.

Anything else you would like to add?

Thanks Canned Goods, for giving me the opportunity to discuss the universal language known as Graffiti and the elements that contribute to making us "writers" as well as "artists".

For further information about Priz One please visit:

Priz One Profile

Priz One Flickr Photostream

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