5 Types Of Graffiti Tags
Graffiti puts a large focus on style so its no surprise that there’s plenty of different ways to tag a single name. Today, we’re taking a look at 5 different types of tags, and if you’re new to graffiti then play around with each one and see which one you find most fun! Our new video on YouTube, "5 Types of Graffiti Tags” , goes over a few while sharing my experience with each.
Drippy Tags - #5
Drippy tags are one of the most satisfying ways to get up. They're messy, grungy, and man are they impactful! Back when I worked at a graffiti store, we just got in the new Molotow markers at the time (these are a similar marker), along with the new krink mops. These were my go to markers, both equally as messy once I filled the krink with my own ink. Personally, I always liked the more controllable drips more. This requires that your ink/paint isn’t too thin, and/or that the body of your marker and the valve has a nice control to it. I never cared for markers with a really stiff body for the marker as these were harder to squeeze, yet markers with a super soft body run the risk of squeezing while in your pocket.
Pros:
Hard to buff (if the dipps are made with good ink and not due to watery paint/ink)
Covers large Area
Looks Great when done well
Cons:
Risks having drips cover your own letters
Drips and ink may bleed outwards depending on surface
Uses plenty of unnecessary supply
Chissel Tip Tags #2
I’ll be upfront with this one, while I’ve studied calligraphy a good deal, and I’ve used my fair share of chisel tip markers for tags, I never enjoyed doing calligraphy in the context of graffiti. I’ve always kept the two very separated when it came to writing. My chisel tip graffiti was more along the NY styles as well as simply doing clean letters. With that said, when many people grab a chisel tip, their first inclination is to start trying to mesh graffiti and calligraphy together. If you dont go this rout then chisel tips have little downsides with plenty of upsides. If you do go this rout then you’ll essentially have to practice and learn two different artforms separately. I’d recommend studying them separately as well, then, once you’ve learned them, that’s when you mix them.
Pros
Built-in flow with the nib itself
Easy line uniformity
Normally, thicker bolder lines
Very Easy to use, low bar for entry
Plenty of line contrast
Cons
Makes it easy to be proud of doing poorly done calligraphy (not really the tools fault, more of a graffiti issue).
Philly Handstyles - #3
Just about everyone wants a Philly hand style and for good reason. These types of tags are heavily stylish and very iconic in how they look. This is partly what makes them difficult to pull off as well. Growing up, I studied Philly tags back when living in NJ, and I was lucky enough to move to Pennsylvania back in 2010, this allowed me to study Philly tags up close. People in PA have a strong feeling that “ you cant learn Philly tags unless you come to/ live in PA. As an outsider who’s moved here, I can certainly say this is not at all true, but it isn’t easy, let me explain. Just like other forms of art, studying and drawing from life is seen as essential. Drawing from life offers the ability to really examine whatever it is you’re looking at. You can get up, walk around the object, move it, change it’s lighting, or change the angle/distance you’re looking at it from. This allows you to understand the object on a deeper level as you control how you view the subject. Studying something through photos and online doesn’t give you this level of control. You can only view a picture as a flat image, but luckily for us, these are letters, not still lives, figure drawings or landscapes. We dont need these to be all too interactive to study. All we need to study any style effectively is to understand the core fundamentals of graffiti that you can learn here. Once an artist understands the basics, it becomes easy to break down any and all styles in graffiti.
Pros
Lots of style
Typically has a line order that helps the tag become faster than other handstyles of equal style
Stands out (Unless you live in PA)
Cons
Hard to achieve the correct look if you haven’t studied philly tags enough
Easy to end up with a sloppy tag
Easy to have lines that cross over letters and destroy them
One-Liners - #2
One-liners are some of the most smooth, and refined tags in all of graffiti and they almost have to be. See the amazing thing about one-liners and what makes them so great is they can optimize your line order and your tag in such a way to maximize flow and even speed. Similar to cursive, one-liners try to keep the movement between letters as smooth as possible, and when done well, each letter becomes an integral part to move the line through the name. These are also very versatile, you can have really simple one-line tags, or really technical one-liners. In addition, they’re simply just fun and satisfying to do.
Pros
Efficient line order that could even result in faster tags
excessive amounts of flow
Cons
When forced, one-liners can become contrived with connecting lines that are unnecessary and useless.
Connecting lines run the risk of obscuring structure
Flair Tags - Bonus
Flair tags are one of my favorite styles hands down! It doesn’t matter if im doing a simple tag, my philly tags, or my personal styles, if i have a can, my tag likely has a flair. Flairs are one of the most versatile and adaptable techniques in graffiti, and they can be used to bring tons of contrast to letters in your name. If you want a letter to stand out, and pop with a bit of style flairs are a great way to do that. In fact, just about any of graffiti’s fundamentals can be heavily impacted with flairs and that can often times be a good thing, but it can in some cases be a negative.
Pros
Easy to use
Can easily influence other fundamentals in a positive way
Cons
Due to how easily it influences fundamentals, you can hurt some basics if done carelessly
New York Tags #1
These are pretty much graffiti in it’s purest form and because of that, you’re going to see plenty of refined fundamentals here. I had to put this at number one simply based on the fact that this was my bread and butter growing up. My dad is an Old School NY back in 71, and I was mentored by the old school NY legend Demer. As if that wasn’t enough of an influence, I grew up in NJ, essentially the dumpster beside NY, and many of the styles in NJ reflect NY. Whats really amazing about doing NY tags is the fact that you have nothing to hide behind, it’s a pure showcase of your fundamental skill. If any of your fundamentals are lacking, then your tag will show it. You cant hide behind fancy extensions, or stylistic flairs with these.
Pros
Textbook graffiti fundamentals - Learning these ensures your basics are set
Clean and refined letters
Easy to learn and do though it's hard to master
Cons
Though they can be filled with style, they still may be a little too simple for anyone ready and looking to heavily stylize letters.
If you’re looking to learn the basics of graffiti then check out our brand new book The Ultimate Graffiti Guide Book Part 1-Fundamentals where you’ll learn all of graffiti’s basics in an easy-to-follow book. By the end of it you’ll fully understand how to find your style, and how to keep progressing for the rest of your graffiti journey.
