By Tara Gentry
A cold, gray sky loomed over a long stretch of brick tenements, a stark contrast from the bright, warm landscape of Puerto Rico. It was December 10, 1979, when nine year old Samuel E. Vázquez rode through the streets of New York City for the very first time. Though his parents had shown him subway maps and photographs, nothing could have prepared young Samuel for what he would actually experience by living in New York. As the family approached their new temporary residence in Harlem, anticipation increased and Samuel’s imagination ran wild, dreaming of all he would discover in this intimidating, yet fascinating city.
On his first subway ride from Harlem to the Bronx, Samuel discovered firsthand how unique the city could be. To this day, the image of a middle-aged African-American man wearing iconic 70‘s fashion lingers in his memory. Dressed in torn jeans, jacket, boots, cap and shades, this stranger was the epitome of cool. Looking back, this style was clearly a reflection of the times, a kind of urban, revolutionary feel, deeply rooted in Harlem. It seemed that very personal, expressive music was endlessly streaming from one apartment building to another - “soul” music. This idea of “soul” would permeate Samuel’s world, in music, art and life to come.
Unfortunately, that ride to the South Bronx brought a devastating shock to the Vázquez family. Approaching the apartment building they had planned to move into, they were struck by the harsh reality of the times. The neighborhood looked like a war-torn area, with buildings either partially or completely destroyed. Samuel would later learn that these were the remains of the urban uprising in the South Bronx, where people destroyed their own buildings in protest to the government and what was felt to be the social injustice of neglect for adequate living conditions. Touring the apartment, Samuel’s parents quickly realized this was no place for their family to live. This was a painful realization, as Samuel’s father had spent months working multiple jobs in the city to bring his wife and kids to the Big Apple, the United States, “where dreams come true.”
Though the experience in the South Bronx took an emotional toll, Samuel and his family soon relocated to an apartment in Washington Heights—a neighborhood in upper Manhattan, where they were met with great promise. An area comprised mainly of Jews, the Vázquez family were among the first wave of hispanics to move into the Heights. Despite the cold winter in an apartment with inadequate heating, it was a neighborhood they found, for the most part, calm and welcoming, where Samuel often enjoyed the sweeping views up and down St. Nicholas Avenue.
Samuel attended his first public school at 189th Street in Washington Heights. During this time, he was intrigued by all of the graffiti that covered the city’s subway system. Soon Samuel began to meet graffiti artists and became aware of the work of legendary graffiti artist PJay. Although he enjoyed his time there, Samuel’s stay in Washington Heights was cut short due to a building fire that displaced his family for months. As a result, they were left to find shelter in a Red Cross housing area through the summer of 1980.
By the end of the summer, Samuel and his family moved to the East Side, or Spanish Harlem, finding their home to be vast and modern compared to previous dwellings. The new apartment overlooked 2nd Avenue and 101st Street, where Samuel attended P.S. 121, now known for being the birthplace of the “I Have A Dream” Foundation. Here, Samuel took music and percussion classes and was further exposed to rap music. He also continued to enjoy the disco funk and soul flavored music that allowed uplifting, happy tunes to rise out of the ghetto through those rough years.
Like a scene from the movie “Style Wars,” 1980s New York City was brimming with creativity. Gangs and graffiti crews became a strong presence on the streets, often marked by colors, symbols and other identifying items. After a short return to Puerto Rico in 1983, at the age of 13, Samuel was fully immersed in the graffiti, rap and break dancing movements.
Among scores of vivid memories, nothing can quite compare to meeting late artist Keith Haring, a prolific writer in the eighties who became known for his quick chalk drawings in unreserved advertising spaces in the subway system. While the media and others in the art world labeled Keith a graffiti artist, to some in the graffiti world, he was not considered a true writer. As a result, Samuel and his friends started crossing out any of Keith’s chalk drawings they could find. Later, in 1986, a few blocks from his apartment building, a community project was underway. As neighborhood children joined a local artist to create a mural at a handball court, Samuel wandered over to look at the project in progress and casually met Keith Haring. That mural was Haring’s now infamous “Crack is Wack,” currently under protection by the City of New York. It has since become an international arts destination. Although in retrospect Samuel regrets destroying Haring’s work in the subways, he fondly remembers the honor of meeting the great artist face to face on the streets of New York.
In time, Samuel became a prolific tagger at his school. He started sketching art during class and often skipped school to go check out graffiti-covered subway cars. Samuel remembers one teacher denouncing his creative inclination early on, warning, “Graffiti will take you nowhere.” Another teacher, however, understood his passion and suggested that he apply to the New York High School of Art and Design. Unfortunately, Samuel’s application was rejected, so he went on to attend Julia Richman High School instead.
Richman was far removed from Samuel’s upbringing, as it was tucked away among affluent citizens in midtown Manhattan. Despite the setting, most students who attended were from inner city neighborhoods from all five boroughs of New York. The block and interior of the school resembled the neighborhoods, with graffiti-covered hallways, urban fashion, language, music and attitude.
At Richman, Samuel became a city-wide graffiti writer with ties to all boroughs. Within a few months, he was the top writer at his school, having a sort of “celebrity” status, even being termed a “king” among other writers who acknowledged his determination and talent. This brought peer admiration accompanied by constant scrutiny from school administration. Though they sought to “catch” him for two years, Samuel managed to elude administrators and continued to pursue graffiti art.
After experiencing academic trouble, Samuel became more future-focused, joining the football and handball teams, as well as an after school program. Through that program, Samuel was able to visit the advertising agency, Young and Rubicam. At age 16, he realized he could have a future in the arts and went on to study Art and Advertising Design at the New York City College of Technology in Brooklyn.
This new found admiration for design began to diminish Samuel’s interest in graffiti for about a year, until he met King Bee, founder of the now legendary “UW” graffiti crew. Meeting King Bee revived Samuel’s passion for graffiti, and he was asked to join the crew. Samuel went on to produce work that was featured at New York City’s Graffiti Hall of Fame, an almost surreal honor. Years earlier, Samuel would stare at the Hall of Fame, studying the work of legendary artists, such as A-One, who later became one of his mentors. During that time, A-One was collaborating with artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, a source of inspiration for many street artists. Samuel’s hopes to meet Jean-Michel were unrealized due to Basquiat’s untimely death in 1988. With his own work featured at the Graffiti Hall of Fame, Samuel hoped that his art would now inspire other young people to embrace the arts as well.
In 1991, Samuel closed his sketch books and moved away from New York City. Harlem was going through many changes in the early 1990s, so Samuel made a move to the midwest, settling roots among family in Indianapolis. The transition was difficult, to say the least. After months of showing his portfolio to curious prospects, it seemed Samuel was not understood as an artist in Indianapolis. At the suggestion of a friend, he enrolled at Herron School of Art and then worked for several design firms. He did art direction and design on many high profile projects including BAA Indianapolis International Airport, Chicago Museum of Science and Industry, Conseco Fieldhouse, Indiana University Kelly School of Business, NCAA and SAP United States Grand Prix - Formula 1.
After a decade, due to exhaustion and at the news of A-One's death in Paris, Samuel moved away from design to enjoy family and explore other interests and culture in general. For the next few years, he participated in numerous exhibitions in Indianapolis and New York City, gaining international recognition for much of his work.
In 2006, Samuel made his graffiti sketches public for the first time through an exhibition called, “Spitting Rainbows.” The name refers to the rainbow-like colors that graffiti artists see in their spit after years of inhaling spray paint fumes. While the sketches themselves are in black and white, Samuel says, “the colors are inside me and it is a matter of spitting them out.”
This passion for art in its many forms continues to drive Samuel’s life and work. He is currently returning to his art through graffiti, cut and paste, and other creative means of self-expression. It would seem Samuel’s story has come full-circle as he now serves as an adjunct professor at Indiana University’s Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis. He has also made it a priority to devote time to world relief causes, a passion perhaps awakened as a young boy walking the streets of New York.
- Tara Gentry is a freelance writer and mentor to at-risk youth in the Indianapolis area. For more information, contact taracitc@gmail.com.
Published March 2011
Photo credit: Katie Basbagill
http://www.bohemianredimages.com/
For more info about Samuel E Vazquez visit:
http://twostrangerswaitingforlovers.tumblr.com
