Amor Interview

Posted By The Monkee on July 3rd, 2009

What Do you write?

Amor

What crew(s) are you in?

nm, fym

How did you first get into graffiti and what year?

First saw graff when subway art came out quickly followed by seeing style wars on c4.
back in around 84. did a few attempts at pieces then and in following few years,
always wrote on things with a variety of names. 1988 was when I started to take it seriously though

What do you think of the graffiti scene from then until now?

Graff then was raw man, nobody knew anything other than fucking shit up, stealing everything.
style wise graff around Europe which our little island is part of was very similar, all dondi/bando influenced. writers then took no shit off other writers, u went over stuff u got beaten or robbed. and u defiantly got crossed out for it, unlike now were kids don’t seem to have that attitude towards it.
it seems to be all cool etc to be into writing and going over shit seems accepted. the late 90s and the
introduction of writer designed paint had a massive influence on graff. kids could now buy quality paint and caps and start to do nice la di dah pieces and not worry about cans freezing, limited colour ranges or getting arrested for racking it.

it spawned a whole new generation of writers who saw graff as cool and fashionable.
ive seen it myself were people wont paint unless they got the right brand of paint to do it with, yet same
people complain they cant do enough cause they aint got the money to get cans.

how do they think the old school did so much? we didn’t buy paint………….

as for security and attitudes, they defiantly changed, after councils etc labelled graff as a passing
fad and it got out of control. the measures now employed by police are out of hand. fair enough if your
painting illegally u know the risk. but to be busting people who never painted an illegal thing in there
life at a legal spot is stupid.

security wise in yards, fences and cctv I think lend themselves to a false sense of security to the train
companies who install it. yes it going to deter some, but the determined will and do find ways around this.

What changes have you noticed regards to legal and illegal graffiti?

I think in some places were there’s no illegal graff just legal sites, that the fun element has gone,
the spawn tribes of writers who paint the same shit on the same spot repeatedly.

but those cities with a big scene it can live together side by side with illegal graff, yes the legal heads
will say illegal graff causes them problems cause everyone complains about the tagging, that age old argument of well the colourful stuff is nice but we don’t like the scrawling. tough shit, its all part of the same culture, isn’t the whole idea to get your name up?

that said some of the legal stuff going on is very good techniqually, there is a lot of writers out there who do some amazing artwork, its all a matter of taste. its not all about how many arrows and connections u can put into it. some people who do this type of work, uber wildstyles cant do real nice simple styles. some are using internet image hosting sites to get there egos stroked, self same people that haven’t paint illegal in however long. im not saying its all of them cause theres a lot out there who earned the rights to paint in chilled spots years ago.

Who influences your work? if any…

my influences would have to be nyc…………….. a lot of German writers,
bates mist one kast and my crew. I like nice clean proportioned styles, but that doesn’t say I cant
appreciated stuff that some would label as Europe style, such as Scandinavian styles the obvious wufc,
dirtee, hook was fresh as fuck, ikarus. they forget we are part of Europe. ive seen nice stuff in a lot of
places around Europe, Prague street styles are so good. Budapest there’s a lot of very fresh writers. I saw tracksides in Germany that are better than hall of fame pieces in this country.

What up and coming writers do you rate at the moment? whose hitting hard from your point of view

I don’t take that much notice now of who is doing what in this country, even in my own city I don’t
take much notice. I here snippets of stuff here and there but that’s about it.

What does graffiti mean to you?

graffiti has been a huge part of my life for well, 20 plus years, I wouldn’t be who I am if it wasn’t for graff. maybe id be a better person, who could function in the normal world.

Are you a fan of the ‘Art-fag’ generation?

fuck it……… don’t like it, I can see the idea behind it, but too many seem to jump on the bandwagon
with a few little stencils and labelled themselves as ex writers, yet in all reality no writers have heard of
them. hang the cunts or tie them to a railway line. fuckin toys…..

What towns and cities are you really feeling at the moment for the graff scene?

I always liked Sheffield, London and Brighton…… Europe wise, stylistically Paris rocks, Amsterdam always has fresh shit going on, even if some of it is by tourists. Copenhagen… I think most big cities in Europe that have a scene have quality graff

You’ve painted abroad quite abit, tell us what countries you have hit and which country do you really rate for graffiti?

Ive done a few tours. Germany, Austria, Czech republic, Holland, Belgium, Italy, Spain. France im sick of France been there a few times to do stuff and never had success….. Germany is so hardcore, well Bavaria is………. Italy chilled as fuck…. Czech is just a mission in itself, run sprint run sprint paint run some more, those who have been will know what I mean…. nice place and people though.. Belgium I love Belgium, met some nice people and made some good friends there

Tell us about one of your worst experiences while writing?

worst experience whilst writing, I find this difficult to answer, ive had the usual experiences any active
writer has had, injuries sustained on missions, being arrested, stitch up court cases, excessive sentencing, long sleepless nights after being chased. but I accept all that is part and parcel of what I do. too many new school fools complain they don’t want arrested or there houses turned over by plod, but they want all the fame and glory that comes with writing. I say fuck them if your not prepared to take chances and put yourself on the line you deserve nothing. all respect to those out there risking it all.

Is there a favourite mission you’ve been on that really sticks in your mind? tell us about it…

They were all good in there own ways, each one was different depending on the country. from ten minute panels to whole cars in 15 minutes… to chill times in Italy, staying in yard for 3 to 4 hours.
seeing Budapest’s commuters fully trashed, lazy stoned days in Amsterdam central spotting or at amstel.

What effect has graffiti had on your life?

Made me paranoid every time theres a knock on the door. that could have been the weed aswell though.
ive met some good friends in other countries, opportunities most people don’t get when they go abroad.
it defiantly made me who I am today.

Where do you see the graffiti scene heading in the future?

God knows, hopefully the fashion heads will fuck off. it looks like the courts are going to keep giving extreme sentences to writers. security will get tighter but there will always be a way round it. who knows. I never thought 20 years ago I would still be painting now….

Anything else you’d like to say while you’re here?

Props go to all those ive met through graff, mistone bout time he started painting again, my crews, some of which need to get in touch with again, the German guys I know thanks for many nights of fun, the guys in Munich for the mad missions, marienplatz for the free clothes, ( shoplifters paradise) those who know will understand those who don’t are missing out. the Belgians, zach, teras, vero, 7up and asem…………….

Belgium rules good scene, shit runs for long time and locals always make u welcome………..
kron and mashone for keeping me supplied with paint during hard times…
every shop ive robbed paint form cheers for allowing me to walk out without stopping me…………
petr and zlo in Prague………….
many fun times there aswell. Milan for being Milan……………………………
figs crew, vp crew, the Dutch guys up in north Holland, more rest in peace. skire, ebzke, sune and the tpn crew, aroe and any one I forgot, sorry it wasn’t on purpose.

and a big fuck off to bero the clown……………….. one day I will get you alone and batter you, fuckin grass.