Revs (Graffiti Artist)
Encyclopedia
Revs is the tag name of a New York graffiti
artist whose wheat paste stickers, roller pieces, murals, sculptures, and spray-painted diary entries have earned him over the course of two decades the reputation of an artist provocateur. Revs, whose real name remains a mystery, is perhaps most widely known for his collaborating in the 90's with another graffiti writer, Adam Cost
, of Queens
.
In a 1993 New York Times interview, Revs, who was formerly known as "Revlon," said he shortened the tag name to "Revs" during an epiphany that occurred after he contemplated suicide on the Manhattan Bridge
.
Although Revs began tagging in the 80's, his graffiti byline gained serious notoriety only after he began working with Cost in 1993. The two covered Manhattan
with wheat paste stickers, which they posted on the back of hundreds of Walk/Don't Walk street crossing signals.
On these stickers, which were essentially 8 ½ by 11 white pieces of paper, adhered with wheat paste, the two printed cryptic messages in bold, black letters: "Lousy Kid Revs," "Cost Fucked Madonna," "Zookeeper Revs."
The two were notorious for painting their tags in sprawling block letters on the broadsides of buildings or any other surface deemed optimal. The scope of these works was remarkable: a finished COST REVS tag, done in white or yellow paint, often stretched an average of 15 feet in length and 6 in height. The act required a paint roller, the kind usually used for painting houses, and one full bucket of paint.
Revs and Cost did these paint roller tags in the most conspicuous places — a billboard at a cross section in Manhattan was fair game, as was a wall on a roof facing a busy thoroughfare — places where the two could have easily been caught or hurt.
"We think art should be dangerous," Revs told a freelancer for ArtForum magazine in a 1994 interview. "Everybody's into safe art," he continued, "doing safe things in their studio. We're bringing danger back into it. It's got to be on the edge, where it's not allowed."
Revs refuses to sell his work. He told a Times reporter, "once money changes hands for art, it becomes a fraudulent activity."
Revs also released a vinyl record album in 1993, entitled, "REVS - JUST STAY AWAY".
Following a brief hiatus in 1995 — which probably resulted from Cost's getting arrested a few months earlier — Revs ventured into the tunnels armed with spray paint, and scrawled diary entries, personal histories and ruminations on the walls deep, if not hidden, within the underground tunnels. He said this was a "personal mission" and "didn't care if anyone ever saw it."
In 2000 Revs was arrested after being set up by an informant that goes by the tag Ader, for much of the work bearing his name in the subways. He did no more work between 2000-2004. In 2004, steel sculptures began to pop up around Brooklyn
and Lower Manhattan
, which were created with construction-grade steel and spelled out the name Revs. Contacted for comment, again by the New York Times, Revs told reporter Randy Kennedy he had, for the most part, received property owners' permission to weld and bolt these sculptures to the outsides of buildings.
"A car can back up into [the sculpture]," he said. "Somebody can get their head cracked open on it. A dog can go on it. Somebody can paint it if they want. It rusts. It's more interesting that way, you know?"
The story of Revs' diaries and his arrest were featured in the Public Radio International
show This American Life
which can be heard here ("Cat and Mouse" first aired 2/24/06, episode 309).
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
artist whose wheat paste stickers, roller pieces, murals, sculptures, and spray-painted diary entries have earned him over the course of two decades the reputation of an artist provocateur. Revs, whose real name remains a mystery, is perhaps most widely known for his collaborating in the 90's with another graffiti writer, Adam Cost
Adam Cost
Cost is the tag name of a graffiti artist who, from the early 1980s to the mid-1990s, blanketed New York City and the surrounding metropolitan area with his wheatpaste stickers, spray paint tags and paint-roller pieces...
, of Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
.
In a 1993 New York Times interview, Revs, who was formerly known as "Revlon," said he shortened the tag name to "Revs" during an epiphany that occurred after he contemplated suicide on the Manhattan Bridge
Manhattan Bridge
The Manhattan Bridge is a suspension bridge that crosses the East River in New York City, connecting Lower Manhattan with Brooklyn . It was the last of the three suspension bridges built across the lower East River, following the Brooklyn and the Williamsburg bridges...
.
Although Revs began tagging in the 80's, his graffiti byline gained serious notoriety only after he began working with Cost in 1993. The two covered Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
with wheat paste stickers, which they posted on the back of hundreds of Walk/Don't Walk street crossing signals.
On these stickers, which were essentially 8 ½ by 11 white pieces of paper, adhered with wheat paste, the two printed cryptic messages in bold, black letters: "Lousy Kid Revs," "Cost Fucked Madonna," "Zookeeper Revs."
The two were notorious for painting their tags in sprawling block letters on the broadsides of buildings or any other surface deemed optimal. The scope of these works was remarkable: a finished COST REVS tag, done in white or yellow paint, often stretched an average of 15 feet in length and 6 in height. The act required a paint roller, the kind usually used for painting houses, and one full bucket of paint.
Revs and Cost did these paint roller tags in the most conspicuous places — a billboard at a cross section in Manhattan was fair game, as was a wall on a roof facing a busy thoroughfare — places where the two could have easily been caught or hurt.
"We think art should be dangerous," Revs told a freelancer for ArtForum magazine in a 1994 interview. "Everybody's into safe art," he continued, "doing safe things in their studio. We're bringing danger back into it. It's got to be on the edge, where it's not allowed."
Revs refuses to sell his work. He told a Times reporter, "once money changes hands for art, it becomes a fraudulent activity."
Revs also released a vinyl record album in 1993, entitled, "REVS - JUST STAY AWAY".
Following a brief hiatus in 1995 — which probably resulted from Cost's getting arrested a few months earlier — Revs ventured into the tunnels armed with spray paint, and scrawled diary entries, personal histories and ruminations on the walls deep, if not hidden, within the underground tunnels. He said this was a "personal mission" and "didn't care if anyone ever saw it."
In 2000 Revs was arrested after being set up by an informant that goes by the tag Ader, for much of the work bearing his name in the subways. He did no more work between 2000-2004. In 2004, steel sculptures began to pop up around Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...
, which were created with construction-grade steel and spelled out the name Revs. Contacted for comment, again by the New York Times, Revs told reporter Randy Kennedy he had, for the most part, received property owners' permission to weld and bolt these sculptures to the outsides of buildings.
"A car can back up into [the sculpture]," he said. "Somebody can get their head cracked open on it. A dog can go on it. Somebody can paint it if they want. It rusts. It's more interesting that way, you know?"
The story of Revs' diaries and his arrest were featured in the Public Radio International
Public Radio International
Public Radio International is a Minneapolis-based American public radio organization, with locations in Boston, New York, London and Beijing. PRI's tagline is "Hear a different voice." PRI is a major public media content creator and also distributes programs from many sources...
show This American Life
This American Life
This American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
which can be heard here ("Cat and Mouse" first aired 2/24/06, episode 309).
External links
- http://www.powerhousebooks.com/gallery/autografbios.html, article from graffiti photographer.
- http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/18/arts/design/18revs.html?ex=1271476800&en=ae71d7f94523678d&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss, New York Times article, A Graffiti Legend Is Back on the Street
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hw4YkmHlIQg&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Erazorapple%2Ecom%2F2007%2F03%2F29%2Fteenage%2Dpiece%2Dvideo%2Dwith%2Drevs%2F, Rev's video interview entitled "Teenage Piece" .
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9saDoUo4maY, Revs interview from Bomb It, the global graffiti documentary http://www.bombit-themovie.com