Graffiti Breakdown

Here is a bit on the process involved in shooting the Global Transmission Media Dotcom graffiti piece on Sunday, September 10th:

After videotaping many days of Roma and his spray partner Nicolás introducing us to graffiti in Buenos Aires and shooting one of their fifteen foot long by six feet high pieces at a youth hostel in the city, Roma asked us if we would like him to make us a piece. He knew of a group of walls on the outskirts of the city where these giant works are permitted. Of course we said yes.

We took a train out to meet Roma and one of his crew members, Poeta, on a sunday morning after our last party. Luckily we were to meet him at noon and not earlier.

Poeta took Mateo out on a scouting mission on his graffitied Vespa to find the right wall with the right amount of sunlight shielded a bit from the wind.


After a couple rounds of hacky-sack, the scouting crew showed us the wall to be adorned. Andrew and I readied the video gear, Alex put his audio equipment together and Ren was taking photos as Roma readied the paint and Poeta put some finishing touches on the paper sketch.

Roma made some last minute additions to the sketch and they began.



Spray art is all about the layers. You can watch a layer go on and think, "hum, that looks strange" and then it totally changes with the next layer.


Andrew, with the Panasonic HVX200 in a Kata rain slicker to protect it from the paint. The boys finished it right before we lost the sun.


We showed the artists and their enterage the clips. They were impressed with the four hour timelapse.

The finished product, taken in total darkness, with the shutter wide open.