Broadly speaking, I’ve noticed 2 “styles” of tag graffiti: Serif-y line signature-like tags and big bubble writing. This is broadly speaking, there are of course subtleties, but as an outsider, graffiti can look very similar and does feel like they mostly fall into these 2 groups, whether it’s in North America, Europe, etc. You don’t usually hear “that is European style tagging”, I just see bubbly text no matter the location, and they not noticeable different to an outsider the way, say, American food looks different than Chinese food.
Was tagging a thing everywhere and they happened to look similar? Did styles in different places converge? Was there a cult of bubble taggers and the leader told them to spread the gospel around the world? Am I wrong with a biased dataset (noting of course there can be lesser seen visual styles)? ELI5.
Flairing as “other” as this is sort of a sociology topic, probably.
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Graffiti-art as we know it evolved in New York and Philadelphia in the late 1960’s. By the late 1970’s graffiti-art had formed its own stylistic traits as an element of hip-hop along with dj-ing, breakdancing and mc-ing.
The two types you’re referring to are basically just the simplest two iterations of graffiti:
Tags: often single line, single coloured.
Throw ups/bubble letters/flops: Simple rounded lettering usually with two colours and minimal stylistic additions.
New York style was originally practised around the world, spread through a few books and documentaries. Eventually it did evolve into Euro-style, and has evolved further. Styles were very specific to countries and even regions before the mass adoption of the internet. Now people seek references and inspiration from all around the world.
It might help to google ‘Philly wicked handstyle’ a style of tagging associated with Philadelphia and although it fits in with the remit of standard graffiti, it’s easily recognisable as its own style.
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