ABBY , an alumni of Art & Design High School (NYC ), started her writing career around 1982, motion bombing on bus lines and walls of her native Queens New York neighborhood. It was at Art & Design H.S. where she discovered early female writer 'Heart' AKA Lady Heart, thus giving her the confidence that graffiti was not a "Boys Only" craft. Taking the subway everyday, ABBY became further inspired and
influenced early on by and aware of a bevy of the females rockin’ the Number and Letter Train Lines such as Chick, SS and Pink.
Artists she saw "Up" in her home turf of Jamaica Queens include Cey City and Cer TPA crew who first took her to bomb the E and F trains. Eventually mentors like Mare139, Seen TC5, Web and Doc nurtured and critiqued her work, as she independently developed her piecing style during her high school years.
ABBY was "Up" most often on the A, CC, E, F and sometimes on N, GG, 2 and 5 lines. Her art was prolific in the 80’s Black Book Culture Scene as well as 90’s Wall Art Culture.
In the New Millenium, ABBY performed live painting at the "Meeting of the Styles" event in Chicago and at the "B-Boy Barbeque" in Philadelphia (both in 2005). That year also signified her return to street painting. In 2009 ABBY's work was shown at the "Queenz Arrive" Show at McCaig Welles Gallery in Williamsburg (Brooklyn). In February 2010, her work will be featured in the "TC5 Black History Month Collective" on DirtyPilot.com
In Her Own Words:
Artist's Statement
.."This medium allows me a different place in which to dwell and express my freedom and imagination. As my style has evolved, I’m much less focused on the size and structure of the letter, while taking a more experimental approach to what I do with it..a bit less remains planned ( Traditional Black Book Style) and more about the mood of the
moment...I just began using my old paint colors (that were in storage in NY for 20 years) and that old smell of Krylon is still intoxicating to me in addition to still being great to paint with. Very concentrated. With the new paints I utilize, it’s all about pressure and distance. I can do anything with them yet use less of it to achieve the same intensity in pigment. My style remains based in traditional graff letter structure. I tend not to close my paths and let other paths join in and influence or give emphasis to a line. I’m the free-bird, the butterfly of the crew."
Website: www.tcfive.com
Artwork by Abby will be on display during "Revolutions" on view from March 6th through March 28th, 2010 at Crewest.
