THREE ASES: SUBS A.K.A EASY 13

Following the tracks of influential and accomplished graffiti writers for our 3 Aces, this time we traveled to Denmark and spoke with one of the pioneers of the scene: Subs, a.k.a Easy 13 (Styles 2 Remember Crew and Fat Boys) for the lowdown on his three favorite pieces and the reasons why.

Subs began his graffiti journey in 1983 in Copenhagen. He belongs to the first generation of writers in the country and despite a 9-year hiatus from 1987 to 1996, he does not live off off the past and is still active today.

In the words of his crewmate and friend Swet:
A good, profound and interesting person. Innovative and playful in style and letters. He is never afraid to let himself go on a piece. He always stays close to the essence of graffiti with a unique touch and confidence. No fancy techniques or tricks. He belongs to the first generation of graffiti in Denmark, and while everyone else from that era only lives off what they did at the time, Subs is still doing it now.
We can say more but better not to. Let’s cut to the pieces he chose.

• About 10 years ago I was on a vacation and I wanted to sketch, but all I had was a Penol 750 marker and a dime-store sketchbook with cheap coarse paper. The marker would bleed out the lines if you didn’t move it really fast, so I was forced to make much simpler and intuitive letters. And I realised it set things free. Before that I would spend hours on one sketch, correcting and outlining it, planning the colours, and blah blah blah, ending up all cramped up about it. Now I do 5 sketches in an hour and try out all sorts of ideas. I just make sure I have enough outline colour before I paint, and then sort the colours as I go. I switched from skinny caps to stock caps to paint faster and less perfect, and I freestyle 99 % of the time. So I try to set it free. I just go painting, not having a clue what the outcome will look like or caring what others would think about it. You win some, you lose some, but the award for me is a much greater satisfaction within the process. This one turned out all right.

“So I started thinking what I wanted my pieces to contain and I ended up with, like a Ramones song, “Tight, silly, and in your face!””

• One of the things I picked up from countless hours of painting and talking graffiti with Swet is how to use the energy of the letters in the piece. Packing them together, pushing and pulling each other. If the letters are just standing there next to each other, it’s just letters. A piece is like a puzzle bursting with energy. You have to solve the puzzle or it won’t work!

• I never really felt like I could control the direction of my style. It always sort of went it’s own way. So I started thinking what I wanted my pieces to contain and I ended up with, like a Ramones song, “Tight, silly, and in your face!” This one comes close I think.