Wondering about graffiti in Italia, I googled it and suprisingly found few websites about it. Most of them were closed, maybe because of the governement. By the way, an italian writer replied to my email and here is what he wrote:

"I’m Pao, from Milano, Italy.

I started painting in the streets in the 2000, in Milan there was just traditional graffiti, no street art yet, I wasn’t in the hiphop scene, and I began painting on street furniture some crazy characters, most of them penguins, just for fun. Soon my game interested a lot of people so I continued, at the same time other new things appear in the streets. Street art began. Since I started painting I met a lot of interesting people, writers, artists, and I learnt a lot of incredible things, So I continued my beatiful game with great passion. I paint in the street trying to make my city a better place, fighting with colors against the grey. I find inspiration from other italian writers and street artists, like Teatro, Paolo Buggiani, The tvboy, and from traditional art as from comics. I have influences from pop art, Warhol, Haring, Basquiat, Mihazaki, Toryjama, Jacovitti and many others.

Milan is the most painted city in Italy. Every building is full of tags and the Administration try to stop the phenomenon in a hard way, but with few results. Common people enjoy often my works because I choose accurately the places, and so I am appreciated from people, but of course not from administration!

Graffiti in Italy maybe started in Milan, TDK is a historical crew that made a lot of beatiful pieces, they used a realistic style and bring writing to an higher level. In the nineties a small guy, called “Noce” became famous for his pieces made at incredible heights, sometimes at the 8th floor of the building, he made also a piece on the building in front of the cathedral dome, and people asked how he could. Nowadays there are a lot of good writers, “Dumbo” is one of the famoust for the incredible number of tags he made around the town, but he made also really good pieces. 16k is a crew that improve an own “organic” style, VMD70 paints an incredible number af trains. The street art scene is also very active, with the works of Bo130 and Microbo, Abbominevole, the Tvboy, Bros, Fruttolo, L’x and Sonda. If you come in Milan, visit the area near “navigli” rivers where you can find a lot of beatiful pieces."

Site web : paopao.it
Version du texte en français.

Interview & translation : Bongo
Photos : DR
Février 2007

Galerie #1

Galerie #2