NATION OF GRAFFITI ARTISTS (NOGA)

NOGA, or Nation of Graffiti Artists was an artist’s workshop located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and later on, in the Bronx. It was an utopian vision of Jack Pelsinger, who begged the city for a studio where kids of all talent levels could further their interests in the arts. The 1970s were a time in New York’s history where a request like this could be accommodated, the city leased the group a run-down storefront for $1 dollar a month in 1974. Like moths drawn to a light, the kids showed up, hundreds of them.

A ragtag bunch of teenagers helped him clear garbage from the space and build it out (while covering it in tags and pieces, of course). For some of them, it was the first time holding a brush or spray can. Some had painted a few trains before, and soon some of the biggest names of the era became regulars.

The hardbound book is written by Chris FREEDOM Pape, with images by photojournalist Michael Lawrence who documented the experiment from 1974 to 1979. Now, the expanded edition shows additional photos by Moses Ros aka. SAL161 and Gianfranco Gorgoni.

Featuring: CLIFF159, SCORPIO, BLOOD TEA, REE2, BAMA, ALI, STAN153, SAL161, DAZE, NOC167, BUTCH2, KADE198, CRANE, PAE, and ANGEL

176 pages, 21 x 28,5 cm, hardcover, second expanded edition
Author: Chris FREEDOM Pape
Language: English
Release date: 2023 (2021)
ISBN: 978-1-58423-779-2
Publisher: Gingko Press / Beyond The Streets