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What do you write?
I write BIO
Tell us a little about yourself... How long you’ve been painting and who you’re down with etc.
I'm from New York City, and I've been painting since 1980. I'm one of the founding members of Tats Cru, originally 'TAT' Cru, along with Brim and Mack. Old school members were Kenn, Cem 2, Raz, Shame 125, Maze, Vulcan, Base, Goldie, T kid 170 & Per. Today the crew is known as Tats Cru and current active members are Bio, Nicer, Bg183, How, Nosm, Totem 2 and Just 195. The rest of the guys like Brim, Mack, Kenn, Cem, Shame125, Raz and Crack, aka 'Fat Joe', don't paint anymore.
What brands of paint did you use most frequently in the early years?
Back in the days we mostly used Krylon, some Rust-Oleum and some floral paint that Raz would always show up with.
Are you a can collector?
We are not really can collectors, although we do have a few good ones in our office on display. We have the Dondi can by Molotow number 60 of 129. We have a very old Krylon can, (white with the orange top), that was given to us by Espo as a gift. We also have a bunch of old Krylon from the 80s; 'Jungle Green', 'Avocado', 'Hot Pink' and other colors from the 80s that Kenn had in his storage.
^Cans from the Tats Cru collection!
Does TATS mostly use specific brands or do you mix & match whatever you find?
Tats Cru doesn't use a specific brand, we pretty much use whatever we come across... we mix & match paint. We like to have a mixture of the different paint brands in our stock.
Can you still find old paint stock in your area?
There is a place near our office where we can still get some Krylons with the original nozzles other than that we don't know of any place where you can still find old paint at least in the bronx.
^Classic Piece Breakdown! (Rarely seen) 'Bio, Sponge & BG183' NY Subway, 1983. Fill: Krylon, 'Chrome Yellow' & 'Schoolbus Yellow'. Designs: Krylon, 'Banner Red'. Cloud: Krylon, 'Baby Blue & 'True Blue'. 1983 Fill: Krylon, 'Chippewa' with Krylon, 'Gloss Black' outline & 'Gloss White' highlights.
Any favorite old school color schemes?
We definitely liked Krylon, 'Baby Blue' with 'Aqua Turquoise' or 'Pastel Aqua' blends with 'Chrome Yellow and 'Schoolbus Yellow' 3d, and 'True Blue' or 'Glossy Black' outlines... Ha!! We really didn't have crazy color selections back then.
Did you ever have to mix much paint of your own?
We never really mixed any paint.. just used what was available.
^Classic Piece Breakdown! A wall from 1985. Fill: Krylon, 'Chrome Yellow', 'Schoolbus Yellow', 'Burnt Orange' or 'Popcicle Orange' & 'Plum'. Outline: 'Gloss Black'. Highlights: 'Gloss White'. 3D: Krylon, 'Baby Blue' & 'True Blue'. Background stones: Krylon, 'Dove Gray' or 'Smoke Gray'. Cloud: 'Avocado'
Any good racking stories?
We have some crazy racking stories. Probably too much to go into but our motto was no man gets left behind. Anyone got caught we were going back in the store to get you. AT one point we just started grabbing shit and walking out without hiding it. We were out of control. We had an incident in Queens once where we had to go in with a fishing spear and get one of us out of the store. That was before cameras of course.
Any favorite old paint stores?
Martin Paints definitely contributed to the New York graf movement.. ha!! They are no longer in business..!!
Best discontinued paint, and why?
I would say Krylon, 'Baby Blue'... always loved that color!!!
Worst paint ever award goes to?
The worst paint ever award goes to some paint we used in mexico can’t remember the name but it was horrible mad watery more watery than Krylon and we had to use a nozzle with an extension that wiggles when you where trying to spray. That was a while ago.
What are some of your best painting experiences?
After all these years it still has to be painting on trains! Always the best feeling!! It's hard to explain but it is just so satisfying. For those that have never painted a train you should really do it at least once in your life.
How do you feel about the brands of Euro paint and their impact on the scene?
As far as the impact of Euro paint on the scene... Love it! Can't believe how many colors are available and the coverage of the colors! Even colors like yellow and orange are amazing! I definitely believe it has made the movement so much better.
Any thoughts on CMC documenting knowledge of paint?
I think it is great that CMC is documenting and preserving this knowledge, otherwise all this knowledge which is vital to graffiti history would be lost forever. Even older guys like us can learn from this. It also gives the new writers a sense of respect for the old writers who made amazing works of art with limited supplies and what they call today, "shit paint". A better appreciation when you look back at old photos of early graf.
Even with all the new paint brands for us it's still cool to mix in some Krylon and Rust-Oleum Painters Touch just for different effects... Love having the variety available these days.
Any other comments?
Thanks and good luck!
Bio, Tats Cru!
^'There Will Be Blood', by Bio & Nicer - TATS CRU, 2009.