An Encounter with Graffiti on Paris Walls

006 — A rare encounter in the Paris Metro in 1984: Harlem's humorous graffiti works, a star on American walls

007 — The encounter with the special exhibition of graffiti on the walls under the Paris Metro was an extraordinary experience in my artistic career

011 — In 1984, the walls of the Paris Metro were attacked by graffiti artists for a day and night exhibition

014 — Subculture chose to attack-style to occupy the walls of the Paris Metro

015 — This is an unforgettable and extraordinary encounter with graffiti on the walls of Paris in life experience

012 — Full of sensibility and imagination, free forms can only be felt in young graffiti

008 — Youthful graffiti on the walls is true social vitality

009 — Society wants order; graffiti wants freedom and vitality

010 — Young people showing off represents my existence

013 — Graffiti on the walls is a manifestation of youthful vitality

016 — Showing off is the nature of human existence

The 1980s saw the rise of graffiti on Paris walls, a subculture emerging from the suburbs and quickly spreading throughout the metropolis. Naturally, this subculture originated from New York City’s subway system and the East Village; its vitality and popularity soon spread from the U.S. West Coast to major metropolitan areas worldwide. The outskirts of Paris and the Metro quickly became exhibition spaces for this subculture. These young people adopted an aggressive approach to occupy public space, merely to express momentary pleasure and perception, leaving behind dazzling and humorously free-form graffiti images that perhaps represented an alternative, unique urban culture.

Having just arrived in Paris, I rarely had opportunities to visit marginal areas, so I did not immediately feel the vitality and signs of this subculture. Occasionally, in the hurried corners of the bustling city, I would have unexpected encounters with extraordinary graffiti, meeting them with curiosity and excitement, often struck by these remarkable images—an alternative and non-institutional aesthetic experience. This caught my attention and led me to search for it. Soon, at the 1984 Paris Biennale, I saw patterned graffiti paintings by the American artist Harlem and free-form graffiti paintings by Basquiat.

On the convenient public transport tool in Paris—the Paris Metro—I occasionally saw some aggressive graffiti works on large advertisements. It was only during the hurried comings and goings in the Metro that flashes of inspiration appeared, only to be restored quickly. One sunny day in 1984, right at the Dupleix Metro station (Line 6) where I lived, as I was preparing to go out and entered the station, I saw that all the large and small advertising boards inside were covered with extraordinary graffiti. Looking back, I also saw the famous American star graffiti artist Harlem’s humorous patterned works, along with a group of uniquely dressed young graffiti artists gathered in the station, attracting the curious gazes of passing travelers. I took out my camera to record this unique experience. It was truly a rare and unrepeatable complete wall graffiti exhibition in Paris (not organized by official bodies or the Metro authority). This graffiti attack was quite successful, lasting exactly one day and night. The next morning, when I boarded the platform, it seemed as if nothing had happened; everything was restored to normal. Many experiences in life occur under circumstances that are hard to come by, leaving unforgettable marks on life. Especially today, more than twenty years later, when reorganizing materials, the memory is still fresh as if it happened yesterday. Although humans are forgetful, such rare encounters are difficult to forget.