Monday, July 6

"THE DSKYZER"

I've got to admit that reading this book tonight I was moved to tears. For so long I tried to block all these years out of my consciousness. There were so many unbelievable happy memory's mixed in with out of proportion tragedy and loss. So many young creative people who lost their way and their outlet to make sense of it all and find belonging and community.

Making the decision to turn my back on graffiti back then was one of the most difficult adjustments I've ever had to make. It was a pretty extreme lifestyle that only those at the core of the scene could ever fully understand. It was completely lawless and detached from the regular 9-5 existence that the majority of society labored so hard to uphold. To walk away meant turning the volume of life down from level 110 to a quiet twilight whisper.

By the age of 18 it was mainly the prospect of jail that spelled the end of artistic expression for most, without the life affirming and self worth building side effects of active graffiti writing and creative expression, a large number increasingly turned to drugs to fill the void that had begun to grow within their hearts and souls after retirement. It was so sad to see so many close friends and people I loved either start to fade, look for even more destructive outlets or in the worst situations die by their own hands or by misadventure related to substance abuse. It really darkened my view of the world for a very long time; there were many times there where I even tried to exit the frame. Lucky for me I somehow made it out the other side.

It still fuckin’ drives me crazy that the law makers cant see what a valuable alternative this culture is and that they don’t realise the transformative powers it can potentially have on a young peoples lives? I personally learnt far more about myself and my abilities through my involvement in this culture than I ever did in school, to the point were I could actually use my experiences as a template to be applied to other challenges and learning curves. It's helped me to understand process and how to apply myself over prolonged periods to achieve positive outcomes in everyday tasks and bigger personal challenges that I encounter in my day-to-day existence.

Maybe all schools should adopt community painting projects for every year of study and every student to participate in, how crazy would that be. We could start to play a part again in how our community’s look and feel, and all have some sort of personal involvement and personal pride in our neighborhoods. We are tribal people and we need to belong yeah, as things are now it's like most of us have no connection or ties that bond us to our immediate environments. It's no wonder so many people are out of fuckin order. Oh well I guess there's no profit to be made in a happy, cohesive and functional society? Keep'em all acting like animals and we can turn the misery into an industry yeah, capitalist society, got to love it ha-ha. Anyway I'm getting way of track here, so all I meant to say was thanks guys for making the effort to put this all together, it's an important book in more ways than you can imagine, trust me. ;) Bless.

DSKYZER USA CREW

16 comments:

  1. Kings Way by itself is a superlative view and read, but it’s all the little side stories and anecdotes on this blog, from those who were involved during this period, that really fleshes out the experience, helping the book to become more than just a collection of words and photographically captured moments.

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  2. fuck yeah bej, i really hope everyone comes out and tells their own stories now..i think that was the whole idea behind doing the book the way it was done...

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  3. Yo Dskyzer remember when Yuri beat the shit out of a couple of guy's after we all saw Big Trouble in Little China and the time Mighty Big Crime were spat on when they supported RunDMC or the time Raymond Chang snorted flour up his nose because Breez told him it was cocaine, ahh happy memories.

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  4. i dont think i was there that day bro ? thanks for making me look like a prick though ;) haha

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  5. For all of Gaza's flaws and failings back in the day he was still the writer that everyone aspired to be .His natural ability to push the style boundries when others were doing the same old thing.For me he was the King of Style of the old skool writers from the early era.I think because with all the shit he was doing to him self and the life he was leading.Many of us middle class suburban writers thought "if this guy can pull out these pieces and fill ins, imagine what he could potentially do if he had his shit together.That is why Gaza, you'll always be the king and I'm so glad as everyone is that you came out the other side. You know it!

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  6. DSKYZER inspired more than just writers, a true pioneering legend.

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  7. Yo gazz
    Any writer thats still kickin around from that era has done well,to still be producing fine art in all its forms is a bonus,on top of that to be healthy!!!man you have all 3 So hats off to you my brother..Snare

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  8. hey gaza,
    i read you letter. I found it really interesting man. you sound like your in goof form. it would be great to hear from you at some point (if you read this). You where a true inspiration and someone who had a major impact on my lfie.

    Peace
    Ploter DMA/ MSA

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  9. That's great courage Astro to go from being the Master of Dskyz to making such a bold and poignant statement! To this day we all appreciate you very much.

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  10. That was well said, and very true. If only the rest of the worl can view it like that

    PEACE

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  11. Good to see you are well Gaza...Yes indeed, what a masterpiece...I dont know about you guys, but every time I look at it (which has been alot) I feel a massive urge to do a piece.....DRG THC

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  12. hey Gazza bro..Good old times we had my bro..Gunna grab this book today...Congrats guys...
    ..Bondy....

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  13. GUESS WHAT, droner is my dad

    peace.

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  14. dope roll call,dope album.it rock just like melberns graf scien all the best.sims fresh mess on the connex...!

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