keinom

GRAFFITI WORLD:
An Interview with author Nicholas
Ganz

The world according to Nicholas Ganz aka Graffiti Artist Keinom is a beautiful, immense place. And unlike
Phileas’ whistle-stop 80 day trip, Keinom spent two years researching and travelling its vast urban jungles and
landscapes in pursuit of the Continental Kings and Queens of Graffiti. No mean feat he assures me, at the
book's launch party at AKA Bar..

Keinom is not your stereotypical graffer. A bespectacled and well-dressed
individual, he oozes the feeling of grandeur without the extravagance. Ganz is
originally from Essen, Germany which intrigues me as during my time in Berlin I
became fascinated with the overwhelming sense of art at its most
contemporary head-butting art at its most traditional. This feeling is a lurking
shadow within most Berlin streets where magnificent palaces are juxtaposed
next to decaying urban towers. This is epitomised by Daniel Liebskind's
renowned New Jewish Museum which is incongruous with the opulence of the
adjoining Old Jewish Museum.

It is interesting that Keinom is a German author of the most prevailing insight into
modern graffiti. This is because modern graffiti was thrust on to the world's stage
15 years ago and found its place effortlessly among the history books. From
ancient times pictures on walls were a form of expression and communication
and as Keinom says, “this has transcended into a great influence over modern
youth cultures and the art world.” However, the controversial topic of art and
politics was thrust on to billions of people who witnessed the fall of the Berlin
Wall on Nov 9th 1989. From that moment, graffiti became an international
message and clearly, was here to stay.

Keinom is currently training full-time as a male nurse in Essen and epitomises the
successful graffer; a mature individual who has an interest in urban art and works in an
average, community-based job. Pride from the most influential British crew, The Chrome
Angelz is a Brand Manager and Student Mentor, his fellow Chrome Angelz crew member
Zaki Dee runs his own record label and rising star Adam Neate is a designer for a
Marketing agency. So, please kill the stereotype that all graffers are hooded urbanites.

If you are an art lover, buy this book. If you are interested in modern youth
culture, buy this book. A fabulous insight into a world which is now much
more overground than it ever has been. Flowing with fascinating pictures
that will expand your horizons and leave you all the wiser that graffiti is not
just a scribbled tag and at times, can be wholly inspiring and breath-taking.

Graffiti World
Street Art from Five Continents
By Nicholas Ganz Edited by Tristan Manco
ISBN 0500 511705, over 2000 colour
illustrations
Price: £19.95 (hardback)

Special thanks to Amelia Webb from
Thames and Hudson

For more info: Graffiti World and Keinom

Background Photograph by Radka Makoviczka

Painting by Adam Neate

Keinom tells me that through his early days on the Essen graffiti scene,
"I soon began to realise that graffiti is an international phenomenon and
met many international graffers through this art form. It was just the next
obvious step to seek out others and document how versatile and diverse
graffiti is."

The evolvement of graffiti into an art form is the stance Keinom advocates in his
book. His years of research pay off as the book is designed in a reader-friendly way
as Keinom lists artists by their home continent and reveals 2000 images of the best
graffiti around. By looking at the Picasso-esque work of UK graffer Adam Neate and
haunting images by Oz's Stormie, it becomes clear that like any genre of art, artists
use their medium from all angles.

There is no doubt that the age old problem of whether graffiti constitutes art or is just a
by-word for vandalism as most MPs will have you think, is prevalent now as much it
has ever been. The Government launched the 'Name that Tag' scheme in November
2003 and even set up a hotline to report unauthorised taggers. It is an issue greatly
discussed and will not just die away. Does something constitute art if the public are
forced to look at it and have no choice in the matter? Is the Government's stance a
suppression of people's freedom of expression or is graffiti merely a demonstration of
anti social behaviour

After speaking to renowned graffers, the general consensus is for the Government
to support graffiti as an outlet of expression by encouraging commissioned works
in certain areas. Such schemes have been successfully launched under the Greek
and Brazillian governments. This book is NOT a discussion of the above and
summarises the positives that graffiti has introduced into the art world by
meticulously documenting the world leaders in this genre.