Graffiti Soho area

Mix of NYC

Graffiti NYC II

Village Graffitt II

Village Graffiti

Graffiti NYC-Brooklyn

Photo: Chuck Kuhn   Area-Brooklyn

New York City decline

Just as the culture was spreading outside New York and overseas, the cultural aspect of graffiti in New York was said to be deteriorating almost to the point of extinction. The rapid decline in writing was due to several factors. The streets became more dangerous due to the burgeoning crack epidemic, legislation was underway to make penalties for graffiti artists more severe, and restrictions on paint sale and display made racking (stealing) materials difficult. Above all, the MTA greatly increased their anti-graffiti budget. Many favoured painting sites became heavily guarded, yards were patrolled, newer and better fences were erected, and buffing of pieces was strong, heavy, and consistent. As a result of subways being harder to paint, more writers went into the streets, which is now, along with commuter trains and box cars, the most prevalent form of writing.
Ed Note: I will post many amazing Graffiti Photos, very soon.  NYC has many websites featuring Graffiti and I will follow up with more detail on the History of Graffiti in NYC