Interview by: Lee Majors - 50MM Agent
Photos courtesy of EYOS
Translated by Lee Majors and Genio
An underrated, under-the-radar country in graffiti yet it has some of the
most talented most active graffiti writers I've ever seen. With a booming
scene that has been recently creating a global buzz, 50mm heads down
south again…to Mexico.
Last year, while eating tacos, I introduced Peque-VRS from Mexico. And
over some strawberry cappuccinos, I caught up with pioneering legend,
PRIME of K2S. Now? I bring ya’ll an exclusive, visually filled and eye candy
interview with a well-rounded collective crew from Mexico. Los EYOS.
50MM - So wassup fellas? Why don’t you start by telling us what EYOS
is and tell us about the crew's formation…
Dyal - At first it was just ELLOS which
means THEM in Spanish. Then we started to write EYOS and later we
did the Evolve Your Own Style acronym that since has become the
crew manifesto. Reload and I started the crew in early 2002, in Guadalajara
(GDL), Mexico, but we celebrate the anniversary each August, because at
that point, some of the graff heads of that time joined the crew.
We also wanted to have a crew where every member were equal in
hierarchy and also where members schooled young writers from their hoods
to generate more and better graff. In the recent years, the main goal of the
crew is to execute better and bigger works. Even though some members
keep the hustle on the streets and others do it in galleries or other areas, we
are all down to represent whatever project it is as though we all worked
together to build it or bring it.
How many members would you say are in the crew?
Dyal - Around 16 active members. About the same number in
retired members and people we consider family but don´t write.
And where?
Dyal - GDL City, Mexico City (D.F.) and San Jose California.
And who we got here with you today?
Dyal – We have Sego, Rload, Saner, Spider, Jonk, Esho, Osoe,
Unkle and Me
“I started doing the cholo lettering that was around
my hood when I was young….â€- Dyal
Cool. How did each of you get started?
- Dyal - I started doing the cholo lettering that was around my
hood when I was young, years later I left the barrio and started to be more
interested in graffiti and hip-hop.
- Sego - I started painting on a hidden wall near my home, with
all kinds of crappy caps, haha.
- Saner - Started seeing Mexico streets around ´96, then my
brother started to paint and since then I got big love for Graffiti.
- Osoe - My interest in Graffiti started in my social circle at a
very young age. It caught my attention, all the shapes and styles found in it,
so I started to paint and get involved with writers. I was alone on my first late
night missions and changed my tag several times before writing OSO, which
means Bear, and have been writing OSOE for a while now.
- Jonk - I started in the hood where I grew up, called WLF, north
side of GDL city.
- Rload - I started in the streets, illegal, bombs and tags.
- Spider - I started to paint around ´97. Before that, I was doing
letters for the gang in my hood, but after some troubles, I decided to paint with
a new sense. I started to write Spider1 and wanted to make sure people knew
I was there representing.
50MM - How long you guys been writing or been in the scene?
- Dyal -Been writing tags since ´93 because most of the writers
only did that at the time, I started to doing bombs and pieces in ´98.
- Sego - Since December 2000.
- Saner - Started in ´98, took a break in 2000 and came back in
2003.
- Osoe - Started in late ´99 with tags, and been writing OSOE
since 2002.
- Jonk - Since ´93, few years after graffiti appeared in the city.
- Rload - Since ´93.
- Esho - Since 2000, tags and bombs.
- Spider - Since ´97.
“I think consistency and credibility of each member
of the crew speaks for itself, anything else comes within.….†-
Jonk
“Dedication and respect to other writers.†-
Rload
50MM - You guys are perhaps considered one of the most
respected and
active crews in all Mexico. How would you say you got there?
- Dyal - I think these kind of statements are often
misunderstood and generates senseless beef or hate towards the crew. We
do Graffiti for ourselves and our permanent goal is to get better and be better
than yesterday. I respect people’s opinions but to me trying to define who´s
number one or the best is always an endless discussion than more than once
ended up with people having bad feelings towards others.
- Osoe - With consistency and a mindset of only do good stuff.
Trying to be creative’s and not being afraid to experiment. And last but not
least doing what we like.
- Jonk - I just like doing graffiti, I think the consistency and
credibility of each member of the crew speaks for itself. Everything else
comes within.
- Unkle - There are a lot of respected crews in Mexico that are
still active because they got years in the graff game. Logically, a Crew
whose members have been doing graff for more than 10 years would
probably be more respected than a Crew whose members are active and/or
paint more, but only paint or last a couple of years or even month. Before any
os us were EYOS, we each had an individual track record, To methat’s what’s important.
- Rload - Dedication and respect to other writers.
50MM - What do you enjoy most about doing graff?
- Dyal - I like experimenting with letters, But maybe what I enjoy
most is the feeling I get when I finish a bomb or a piece that took a lot of hard
work to get done.
- Sego - I like seeing an idea or an image on a wall or a place or
any surface. I also like other things like painting to new places in Mexico or
other countries. I like meeting people from other places that also do graff, The
reaction of people when they see me painting. A very important thing that I
also enjoy is sharing moments with my friends and also giving me an
opportunity to experiment with my work on the walls.
- Saner - Sharing a little of my world to the people.
- Osoe - The chances of all the things that can happen, never
knowing what´s going to happen the day after, going to the spot to take
the pic and your stuff is gone. Being on the news, being sued, etc.
- Jonk - Doing it ilegally.
- Klase - Travelling doing what we like to do, meet people from
other cities or even other countries just because of Graffiti.
- Esho - I know it sounds cheesy but I think it’s the feeling of
freedom that painting gives you. Also meeting interesting people that
understand and share the same feeling or the feeling one gets with the sound
of a can.
- Spider - Chilling with my friends while doing a nice wall and
after.
“The danger, the atmosphere of the night, not
knowing if you going to be able to finish the job without the unexpected
happening. The getting chased…..â€- Osoe
50MM - What you enjoy most about bombin’?
- Osoe The danger, the atmosphere of the night, not knowing if
you going to be able to finish the job without the unexpected happening. The
getting chased….
- Jonk - Everything from looking for a spot, hustling it and doing
a good job. Personally I prefer the high spots and downtown.
- Rload - To me is going the next day to see what you did and
the satisfaction of see it finished.
“Mine is really Mexican at this moment…..†-
Saner
50MM - How would you each of you describe your style?
- Dyal Wild Style. I like to try new things every few pieces,
sometimes it works, sometimes don´t, but.
- Sego - Freestyle, not thinking if people are going to like it, I
can say it’s an honest style that reflects a lot of my personality and the way I
grew up visually. It´s experimental but with a lot of Graffiti roots and also a
technically diverse style, equally clean and dirty at the same time.
- Saner - Mine is really Mexican at this moment; representing
the roots, colors, attitude, but most of all, showing a part of our popular
culture, past and present.
- Osoe - Wild Style & Bomber.
“In Mexico…it’s not innocent until proven guilty. It’s
guilty until proven innocent.â€- Jonk
50MM - Some of you recently got some mad heat for bombin’.
How’s that coming along?
- Osoe - I don’t know if the government really had an idea about
us, if is just gossip or if is going to handle it for real.
- Jonk - A few months ago, the laws on graffiti in GDL City
changed, now if you get caught doing it illegally you go directly to prison. In
Mexico, for any crime, it’s not innocent until proven guilty. It’s guilty until
proven innocent.
Convictions and fines are higher now. A few months ago I got in a lot of
trouble with these new laws that still affect me today. I still do illegals but
not like I used to. I got a probation-like conditioning so I chill more. But when
I do, I do more higher spots or go paint out of of the city, since laws in other
cities are different.
50MM - Recently Saner collaborated with Sam "Tiger" Flores, can
you tell me about that?
It is always interesting to work with somebody from out
of town, adapting our styles was nothing but fun, and being able to share a
little of what we do and leave a mark on a popular place like “El Mercado†was
wonderful.
50MM - Who or what are some other collaborations?
- Dyal - All the members of the crew had collaborated with
several local writers as well as international writers, Sego went to France to
the Kosmopolite Festival and Cuba, Rload had done stuff with writers from
LA and the Bay Area, and as a crew we had done stuff in the past for
distributors in Mexico for brands like: Nike, Adidas and Tribal, some Tequila
brands, and and also done gallery events. Now we linked with an Urban Art
Promotion Company that goes by the name of Bionika, and a lot of good stuff
has came from that relationship.
Most of the oldest members ride like family, so we
tryin´ to keep it like that. - Dyal
50MM - How tight would you say your crew is?
- Dyal - Most of the oldest members ride like family, so we tryin´
to keep it like that, even with the members from other cities, they got into the
crew because they came to paint but also liked the vibe within the crew, which
was some of the main reasons some of them joined.
50MM - Once, over a conversation, you mentioned that to get
anyone in your crew, in addition to having a collective decision, you also had
to hang out with the crew. Can you expand some more on that?
- Dyal - To me it´s like how it used to be. To be down with a
crew first you started to hang with them and after a while if you make it, the
main head would put you down and shit. When a member wants to promote a
writer to the crew or a writer has asked to be down, we take the decision by
voting.
What I meant on that conversation is that it’s hard for a writer to be
down if most of the members don’t know if they can trust a writer, you know
how it is… there are writers that do some really dope shit on the wall, but act
as dickheads or talk a lot of bullshit…I think everywhere is the same shit.
50MM - Yeah. I feel ya. Who are or are some of your influences
- Dyal - I used to feel a lot of the NY heads back in the day, but
now I like a lot what’s coming out of LA because most of the writers I like are
constantly experimenting, Europe and South America got some crazy
stuff also.
- Sego - I don’t think I have a clear, or conscious, influence. To
me is more like inspiration and motivations, organic forms inspires me a lot,
textures of natural things, sometimes I got inspiration from painters that got
nothing to do with what I do, like Francis Bacon. Music is a very important part
of my creative process, what I do is 100% linked with music, minimalist music,
dub and other genres.
- Saner - Mexico’s craftsmen, the party’s, the masks. The
everyday living, most of the muralists like: Tamayo, Gonzales Camarena,
Siqueiros, Orozco, and Rivera etc that have been part of my influences.
- Osoe - Writers from LA, NY, Europe and South America.
- Jonk - JOKER NWO (RIP) from my city and from other
countries, some writers from L.A. and N.Y.
- Rload - To me it started with old school writers from my city,
but since I arrived to California I got influences from different cities.
50MM - Your crew recently had a project to bomb a building, can
you tell us about that?
- Osoe -Some directives of a publicity corporative had the idea,
they got 3 floors of that building and we destroy them as if was and illegal
mission. They tried to break some of their employee’s ideas, like people
needs a degree or a vectorized design to be creative; they tried to open the
minds of their people by provoking a reaction on them. Graffiti is not only
some paint over a wall.
- Jonk - The Project consisted in taking the streets to a Design
Firm main office, painting it as if were vandalized. Only the Owner, the CEO
and building security knew about the project. It was an excellent experience,
very relaxing.
- Sego- To me it was a good experience hahaha, done that was
nothing conventional because is an international publicity corporative in a
very luxurious zone of Mexico City. It was good, about 20% of my work is
illegal, so it was just fun.
“Today, there are a lot of active writers and with
excellent quality in Mexico Cityâ€- Sego
50MM - Who, aside from some of your crew members, would you
say are the most active in Mexico or GDL?
- Dyal - Lots of writers… if I got to name a few I would say
Aozve, Crash, Oran and some young writers in GDL, and too many people in
Mexico, 2A Crew, VEW Crew, GAW Crew, Dhear/Smithe/News, Seher, Motik,
Roier, Kube(Mty), Buster(Mty), LosDeLaEfe, Ofier… a lot of good writers.
- Spider - Maybe the most active writer now days in D.F. is
SILE, and is notoriously seen just walking around in any area of the city or
even on the outsides of the city.
- Sego - Today, there are a lot of active writers and with
excellent quality in Mexico City, but talking about consistency I think Siler is
the one, you can see him all over the city and that´s definitely not easy since
the biggest city of the world is Mexico City.
- Saner - UUUUFFFF, the list would be too long. But I can say
2A, GNK and HCNK are some of the most active ones.
- Jonk - GEORGE VEK and ORAN VEK from GDL got the
mayhem right now. 2A Crew from Mexico DF are excellent writers.
- Klase - Zombra (DF), as well as Motik, Sile, 2A Crew, Stunt,
VEW Crew, Kube (Monterrey), Buster (Monterrey) and in GDL I would say
Aozve, Venom, Rock, Near.
â€A very influential and versatile style, I think it’s
because the number of cultures that contribute to the form and personality of
the style of that city. One of my principal influences.â€-
Spider
50MM - Okay, I strongly believe some of the most influential cities in
the graff scene is LA…What do you guys think of LA Style?
- Dyal - To me the term LA Style represents having an original
style, and the constant seeking of the evolution of it. It´s a very competitive
scene, where styles get old fast, writers need to evolve in order to stay on
top.
- Sego - I think it´s ok, I consider myself a person that enjoys
the different forms of graffiti and I respect that style, although has nothing to
do with my style. I also think that as in every other scene, there´s good and
not so good artists. In the LA scene not all of the writers are as good as it
seems or as some people believe.
- Saner -I like it a lot, I think they got an identity and a very
particular style, and also I like the fact that a lot of LA writers got Latino roots.
- Osoe - Real good, what I like the most is the constant
evolution of the writers.
- Jonk - One of the best.
- Rload -I think there´s a lot of real good crews, not just in LA
but all over California.
- Unkle - LA style has always been characteristically of a good
structure and innovative forms of transforming letters… I think the
styles coming out of California are amongst the world’s best. There´s a lot of
good writers there, but to me a standout is Chaz Bojorquez, his story and
what he represents, the Cholo lettering, his monograph´s, his calligraphy
deserve to be conserved in honorable showcases and no doubt a lot of
writers been influenced by his work.
- Esho - I love LA !!!!
- Spider - A very influential and versatile style, I think it’s
because the number of cultures that contribute to the form and personality of
the style of that city. One of my principal influences.
50MM - Who would you say are some your favorite writers?
- Dyal - Too many… most of them are from GAW, KOG, LTS,
7th Letter, old K2S, STN, COI, PDB, 3A.
- Sego - At the moment some of the ones that get my attention
are, Popay (France), Roabot (Belgium), FEFE (Brazil), Dalata (Brazil), Jaz
(Argentina).
- Saner -I like a lot the work of Mexico´s Old School, CHK, SF
and others. Now, I like Dhear, Smithe, Sego, Unkle, Zombra, LosDeLaEfe
(Mty), VEW Crew from Estado de Mexico, and international writers such as
OsGemeos, Twist, Mike Giant, AlexOne, Krsn, Nunca, and Flying
Fortress.
- Osoe - Lemza and most of the MSK Crew writers, also
european writers that crush trains.
- Jonk - Twister and Picasso, remember Picasso?
- Klase - I like Smash137, Rime, Askew, Ruets, Retna, Pose,
Atom, Vents, OsGemeos, Augor, CanTwo, Scien, Like (Chicago), and others.
- Rload - Bates, and I like what Rime is doing now.
- Spider - Saber, Atlas, Chaz, West, CanTwo.
50MM - You ever plan to come to LA? or any other city?
- Dyal - No doubt, I hope to comeback soon. SF is another city I
want to visit. Much props to the Maintain Team for all the love showed while I
was in LA, there’s nothing like going to a city and witness what’s really
happening on the streets, because not all that you see on the internet is real.
Shout-out to: Duce, Brek, Prone, Vox, Vyal, Rload and of course Make.
- Sego - Not for now, there´s a big graff scene in Mexico now
and a lot of stuff to do here, but if an opportunity presents in the future it will be
good. I got friends there like Rload and Retna.
- Saner - For sure, if the opportunity comes, I’ll be there.
- Osoe - For sure.
- Jonk - L.A. is one of the cities that I want to paint since I can
remember and I’ll be painting there soon with some good friends I have
in the city.
- Klase - I hope to have the opportunity to travel one of these
days to LA or San Francisco, I want to paint with some writers from there.
- Rload - I been there a couple of times and I’m planning to go to
Spain and Argentina.
- Spider - I hope to make a visit to LA and many more cities in
US, just as I´ve been able to do here in Mexico.
50MM - Being a crew that originated in GDL, what is the vision or
thoughts that the members in DF have as a crew?
- Spider - I am sure it will continue to be one of the best
organized crews. I like the spirit of friendship and family that prevails in the
crew and all of this creates a sense of pride to be part of the crew.
- Sego - The vision is that it’s a solid crew that yet gots a lot to
give. There´s a real good relationship between the members in GDL and to
me is one of the best in Mexico.
- Saner - I like to be part of it. It´s like a big united family. And
even when I know I’m “a little farâ€, I know everybody got my back. It´s like
being a first cousin or something like that.
“Even some writers are getting better styles as a
consequence of seeing better works running… pure visual
education.â€- Unkle
50MM - Some of you guys have been rockin steel for a while now…
how would you describe the freight scene in Mexico?
- Spider - There are writers that got many years doing good
quality trains and also making big numbers. Trains go all over Mexico and a
lot of them have been photographed or filmed in USA and Canada. I think it is
evident that there is a strong scene in Mexico and it is going in a good
direction. Each year we see more whole cars and more elaborated pieces on
them.
- Rload - I think is getting better year after year. It must get
better yet!
- Unkle ¬- It´s been really good experiences’ being able to travel
and paint in places other than your hometown, always seeking good spots.
The train scene in Mexico is growing and getting better thanks to hush hush
places where writers can do an elaborated work without rushing it up.
Even some writers are getting better styles as a consequence of seeing
better works running around… pure visual education.
- Osoe - It´s a good scene, most of the writers that paint trains
are seasoned veterans that know it´s different than to paint on a wall or any
other spot. I like the different aspects of it…like going into the public transport
system and hitting them on the side of a freeway. It´s like sending a mail
leaving the address field blank, ha, because you never know who´s
going to see it or how far it is going.
- Esho - My first bomb on a train was 7 years ago. Back then
there where these spots outside the city where Ferromex parked a lot of
wagons or freights for a couple of weeks or even months. Then they would
move them and bring in new ones. You can find any type of steel you want:
tolvas, gondolas and the best ones autorack (the big white and tall ones), and
you can paint all day with no problems. When the cleaning campaign
or the buff in the city started, these spots began to disappear, so the search
for new spots has been was difficult. There are a lot of places that you can go
that peeps know of but lately the security has increased and they are
nothing like our ols spots.
“…legal graffiti or with permission is like an alcohol
free beer.â€- Osoe
Osoe you are perhaps one of the most mentioned graff writers in
Mexico when it comes to illegals and bombin’, what is your overall vision for
graff?
- Osoe - Doing illegal graffiti is the way most writers get a name
or rep. There are too many youngsters or new writers that misunderstand
bombin’ and getting respect. Many end up doing crappy shit and
demand respect just because it´s illegal. Naw man…Illegal graffiti is one of the
best pleasures of writing but I think it always got to have at least some style
to it. But to me, it´s my life…legal graffiti or with permission is like an alcohol
free beer.
50MM - Any shout outs or last words??…
As a crew we like to give props to all the people that supported us along
the way. WLF, CLK, Make STN/WCA/AM7, Duce GAW/TNT and all the
Maintain Team, Like from Chicago, Fish KOG, Smok IA, 2A Crew,
50mmlosangeles.com, Unit at 50mm, Bionika Team, Adiccion Magazine, Ilegal
