i think graffiti can only really be appreciated and understood by those who partake in it. Its deeper than most realize its a world within itself, either way its always nice to hear people say who they are moved by alot of these pieces and murals, but those comments are usually only directed to permission walls. I believe graff belongs illegal, on the streets and trains, where it originated. The essence of graffiti is vandalism, the concept of saying forget the world im out to make my mark on society instead of in it, the drive the illegal artist gets tryin to reach infamy and mastering the craft. Theres nothing like walking around a lonely city looking for spots and haveing the night swallow you as you walk in areas of the city where only bums, crackheads, and writers go and always having to be aware of your surroundings trying to see if any cops or loyal citizens are around. Graffiti for the Graffiti artist becomes an obsession, and addiction, a habit that is so hard to break, it becomes life. I respect all those permision graffers but there's nothing like cold hard illegal art.

It's great to see these guys doing it. Working it out and staying true to the work. That's it...do what needs to be done to get the work out. OK, I get the public space issue and that's fair too. But skirting this into the public space and object based medium is about moving through the obstacle. Interesting bringing in the economy elements...you should be paid.
Great to see people staying true and doing the work.

I have mixed feelings about graffiti. I see the talent it takes and appreciate it, but, at the same time, I can see the frustration of the shop owners and city officials who have to deal with it on their buildings. I used to skate and tagged some building and things myself (w/stickers though b/c i can't draw) but now that I'm older, I can see the other side of it. I just know that, if it were my store or something that kept getting tagged, without my permission, it would get old pretty quick. I just think there is a lot of potential to it that could go hand in hand with city related things though. I just think graffiti artists would be completely against working with the government. It's like they have to do the opposite of what the city wants because that's what they're supposed to do as "legit" artists. This is a very difficult art form and these guys are amazing at what they do. The only other thing I have a problem with is how they act about art as a source of income. They do not want to get a regular job, but, on the other hand, if you try to make a living with your art and try to make money then you are a "sellout" and you are a disgrace to the graffiti artist community. I would love to have their talent and if I had it, I would do everything I could to make a living off of something I love! The only reason they look down on "sellouts" is either because they want to do it themselves and don't want to have competition or they just can't make it and want to make them feel stupid even though they suck. I understand not overdoing it and making it annoying and taking the fun out, but I would love make a career out of something have a passion for.

It was great to learn more about Kofie and Azis, whose work I'm familiar with living in LA and hear about their struggles first-hand....just like so many of other artists' struggles who aren't doing this style of art. I have friends who are graff writers, and I know how much they struggle to find legal walls to paint as well as find commissioned jobs. It's also costly to be able to afford the materials to create pieces for shows to develop a name for yourself.LA has a dope graff scene with lots of galleries devoted to showcasing the talents of
graff artists. I was disappointed that this movie only covered these four writers...
there are so many dope artists in LA - it would have been nice to see more writers get some exposure.I love the watching the work that goes into creating beautiful pieces, and it was nice to see some of that depicted here. For a graffiti artist to develop a name for himself, there is a history of enormous risk attached to this - multiple arrests, attorney costs, incarceration....I would have liked to see some of this covered as well.