Getting Up: Subway Graffitti in New York

In depth sociological study of New York City graffiti writers in the 1970's and 1980's. Castleman probes many aspects of the subculture giving an inside perspective into subway graffiti. Explains the terminology and colloquialisms of the young people involved in this movement, discusses the legal ramifications of writing graffiti and explores organizations dedicated to graffiti artists. Includes many interviews with influential graffiti artists of the time.

Been wanting a copy of this book for 35 years. Now I have one.

A beautiful book and a great read from start to finish! I particularly enjoyed the parts about early graffiti gangs in New York and the slang they used - DGA: Don't Get Around (someone who is unknown and/or knows nobody). Another great part was the description of the whole train by Lee and the Fabulous 5. Great work fellas. Get up! Somebody say... Get up! Additional to this, I recommend Subway Art by Martha Cooper & Henry Chalfant.

Getting up is one of the best book i've ever seen. It contains more about graf. so Craig Castleman had a good job for readers!

JUST STARTED READING THE BOOK, SO FAR SO GOOD.👍🏽

From the second you open this book, to the day you put it down for the last time, you are exposed to the origins of graffiti and the graffiti lifestyle. From the in depth interviews with the infamous "Fabulous Five", to the bias opinions of New York's M.T.A(Metropolitan Transit Authority), this book brings you back to the late 70's, where style's were made and the fame was gained. As a graffiti artist myself, I related to a lot of the stories told by the artists documented in this book. Craig Castleman portrayed the perfect image of what it's like to be an "artist" and a "criminal" at the same time. The adrenaline of a late night excursion, to the overload of a police chase. At the end of it all, the overall satisfaction of seeing your name roll by on the local transit line. I really enjoyed looking back at the photos captured in the book. There is a lot of history documented in this piece. The first "whole train", the evolution of the "bomb", to miscelaneous "tagging" are all shown in detail colour pictures. I feel this book captured the essence of the graffiti culture, and documented the views and opinions of both sides, the artist, and the audience. "Getting Up" Craig Castleman, definetly a good read, for any audience. Educational and fun at the same time.

If you’ve read Martha and Henry’s books this fills in the gaps I left it feeling a sense of understanding for the guys that paved the way for us

Definitely one of the best street art book I have ever had. Well written, and it gives to the reader an authentic overview on how it was, at the beginning, the street art in NYC. A must have for street art lovers.

very good.