LA Graffiti Black Book

Graffiti artists use sketchbooks, known as "black books," to collect signatures and drawings from crew members and other artists they admire. The Getty Research Institute invited artists to create a citywide graffiti black book, inspired by a seventeenth-century autograph book. 150 Los Angeles artists decorated 143 pages, bound together into the Getty Graffiti Black Book. This publication showcases the story of an unprecedented collaboration across the artistic landscape of Los Angeles.

Format: Hardback
Length: 176 pages
Publication date: 27 April 2021
Publisher: Getty Trust Publications

Graffiti artists often carry sketchbooks, known as "black books," which they request crew members and other artists they admire to inscribe with lettering or drawings. A few years ago, the Getty Research Institute invited a group of artists, including Angst, Axis, Big Sleeps, Chaz, Cre8, Defer, EyeOne, Fishe, Heaven, Hyde, Look, ManOne, and Prime, to explore the concept of a citywide graffiti black book. During their visits to the Getty Center, the artists examined rare books related to calligraphy and letterforms, such as works by Albrecht Durer and Leonardo da Vinci. They were particularly intrigued by a liber amicorum, a type of autograph book popular in the 17th century. These books were passed from hand to hand and filled with signatures, poetry, and coats of arms, reminiscent of ancient black books. Inspired by this meeting of minds across centuries, the artists became both creators and curators, crafting their own pages and inviting others to contribute. Eventually, 150 Los Angeles artists decorated 143 individual pages. These pages were bound together to create an exquisite artist's book known as the Getty Graffiti Black Book. This publication reproduces each page from the original artist's book and recounts the story of an unprecedented collaboration across the diverse artistic landscape of Los Angeles.

Weight: 954g
Dimension: 262 x 215 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781606066980