Books^The Grifters Moses & Taps – Graffiti Avantgarde Book

It’s been nine years since the legendary INTERNATIONAL TOPSPRAYER book was published, which is now long out of print. Now MOSES & TAPS has finally published a new book. Twice as thick, GRAFFITI AVANTGARDE provides a deep insight into the wide-ranging work of the two graffiti artists MOSES & TAPS on 544 pages with over 2000 photos in ten chapters and exciting texts.

The monograph begins with an interview of MOSES & TAPS by criminologist Ike, who explores the question of what actually constitutes the graffiti avant-garde, who they are, what their goals are and what drives them. The TOPSPRAYER chapter, in which MOSES & TAPS takes us from Russia to the USA via various stopovers on trains, is followed by the SPLASH chapter, in which we learn about the places and non-places where writers can leave colorful traces with spray cans without having to use a fatcap and letters.

The sceptre is then handed over to ALIAS, whose alleged 1001 moves in 999 days over 176 pages are rounded off by his stories and Edward Nightingale’s action photos. In SCRATCHITI, MOSES shows why he only paints glass panes to clean them, how he takes them from the yard to the museum and back again, and why he hates Mickey Mouse. In the CORPORATE IDENTITY chapter, Robert Kaltenhäuser then deciphers how MOSES & TAPS CI codes can be used to connect all the chapters, why yellow-blue works better than Banksy and why he hates Mickey Mouse 

In the CORPORATE IDENTITY chapter, Robert Kaltenhäuser then deciphers how MOSES & TAPS CI codes can be used to connect all chapters, why yellow-blue works better than Banksy and what is behind it.

With IMAGE OF GRAFFITI, TAPS makes it clear why graffiti has to be illegal and how you can still create an image of it on canvases. While the chapter CREATIVE DESTRUCTION deals with the complexity of MOSES & TAPS’ works, which are expressed in collage-like images and installations, the section CONCEPT VANDALISM is dedicated to their unique conceptual works on trains – and sometimes the walls within them. Finally, MOSES & TAPS explain and illustrate their very personal view of the development of their styles in two separate chapters.

Hardcover – portrait format – German English – 544 pages – Dimensions (HxWxD): 28 5 x 24 7 x 4 5 cm – Year of publication: 2020