Interview of Pesa a member of KD and TNB crew from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Fresh colors and styles for your eyes.

FC: Where are you from Pesa? Tell us about your beginnings and your discovery of graffiti.

I’m from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. I got involved looking at the various gang and hip hop graffiti all throughout Albuquerque in the early 80’s and wondered who was doing it.  I started bombing in 88 and started piecing in 98.


FC: What's the meaning of your name?

Pesa means weight in Spanish. I started to work out after feeling like shit 247 from doing too many drugs and drinking. Sometimes I feel worse though after lifting and rolling around then I did coming off opiates and acid. Ahhh live and learn I guess.

FC: Tell us about the graffiti scene from your town. Who are the more productive crews?

The graffiti scene and Albuquerque as a whole is nowhere close to the way it was back when I was coming up.  Albuquerque was bumping as far as a street scene goes…crazy parties, gangs were going off, cruising was bumper to bumper and graffiti was everywhere. It got so out of hand that the cops and the punk ass mayor put a stop to the cruising and “tried” putting an end to graffiti.  At the same time though it’s about what you’re doing now not what you did, so I’m out doing my own thing and repping my city as much as I can.

 
FC: What do you like in graffiti?

Back in the day it was all about getting up I didn’t care about piecing, but today it’s more about how can I freak the alphabet.


FC: What crews do you rep? I know you are in the KD and TNB crew. What other crews do you rep? Can you explain how did you get in?

I was getting Montana paint from T-kid when it first came to the states. T put me down with Tnb at the hall of fame in Harlem… once I was put down I knew I needed to work on my style and just being an old writer from Albuquerque didn’t mean shit. I met Cope back when he was working at a gym in Manhattan and hit up KD while bombing freights in the BX that night. For a long time I was the only Tnb Kd member this far outside of the east coast in the U.S. I also rep WST which is a graffiti crew as well as a graffiti clothing company… check us out at wildstyletechnicians. OS which stands for Original Styles or Old School is a small crew of tight homies that started here in the Duke City. ATK which is an old school crew started by Agree (rip), and KTC which is an old crew from the BX.

FC: How did your style evolve?

Ohh man its evolved big time, from crap to getting a little bit better.


FC: Are you in anyway linked to hip hop ?

No, but I’m one that believes Graffiti is part of hip hop… rockin b-boys on the wall always looks dope! I’ve been into hip hop music since the early 80’s and have always had hard to find music or music that wasn’t popular but was dope…I remember when I first put on the tribute to Scott La Rock tape before bombing one night, the homies went crazy!

FC: What’s your taste in movies, music, and books? 

Best album from the West coast, Paris the Devil Made Me Do It and Rhyme Pays by Ice-T. East coast there is just do many list! Best movie would probably be Shogun Assassin… it brings back memories of  chillin in San Jose (barrio) working on our cars, drinking and smoking all day and watching that dude fuck shit up. Best book would be a tossup between Spray Can Art and Subway art. Those books showed the world what was up with graff.

FC: Favourite quote?

Not sure if it’s really a quote but I get a kick out of T-kid when he says “YO!”….What up big T!


FC: Name an artist (or many) whose work you respect and admire.

Agree Atk (r.i.p). Graffiti was being painted out here before Agree showed up but he pretty much showed all of us old school heads out here what was up with the hardcore NYC styles. He was nasty with the hand styles, piecing, and throw ups, plus his knowledge and pictures of what was going on in NYC was amazing. Nowadays I dig what T-kid, Zone, and the other members of Tnb and Wst are rocking plus the stuff put out by HSA, MVP, and all the traditional styles being put up all over the U.S and Europe.


FC: If your style was a music band or a song? Which one would it be?

I grew up listening to what my pops was playing so I guess anything from Santana, War, and Sade…those were the days.  Miss you DAD (r.i.p)

FC: How do you organize your paintings? Do you do sketches before? Do you have any “gestures", characteristics or paint habits? 

I pretty much just go up to the wall and start rocking without a sketch or buffing the wall…Once the outline is up I fill in the first letter completely and then move on to the “E” and so on…for some reason I fill in, outline, and cloud the first three letters and leave the “A” blank and then finish it. If I’m painting with shitty paint my style is really loose and if I’m rockin with good paint it’s more technical and clean.


FC: Do you need something particular to be creative?

Honestly sometimes it’s hard to find motivation to paint out here in the desert. I look at my paint stock and say do I really want to paint with this shitty ass paint? I usually say fuck it and jump in the 64 convertible put on some good music and go and check out the scenery and sunsets New Mexico has to offer. After cruising 100’s of miles I realize I haven’t done shit but cruise and loose brain cells and then I start painting again. Does that make sense? Haha


FC: In the street you are more quantity or quality?

Back in the day it was more quantity now it’s more of the quality of the piece and having fun when I paint.

FC: What was your most adventurous and dangerous graffiti?

Every time I went out painting it was an adventure, the city was my playground. I had fun sneaking my way in and out of places, hiding from cops, etc.


FC: What’s the characteristic of a Pesa's piece?

I guess that there will always be something funky going on with it.


FC: What kind of reaction do you want your art to evoke?

That people say hey Pesa is getting loose out there in the desert. If he can do it so can I.

FC: In which way do you want your art to evolve?

That I get better in the way I funk up the alphabet.


FC: Did your views on Graffiti change over time?

It’s still a big part of my life and in a way it’s who I am but it no longer runs my life like it did when I was younger.


FC: Do you practice other forms of art?

If you consider collecting classic cars, cruising, and getting tattoos an art then yeah… I really dislike drawing or painting if it’s not on a wall…I was a “tagger” so it’s not fun for me to sit there and draw, but I’m in graffiti recovery and started to sketch outlines for a few people and have done a few new canvases.


FC: Your favorite time to graff?

Winter time! Throw on the big hoodie and the brownies (brown gloves) and get loose. To me it makes you feel more like a writer when you’re still out there painting while the rest of the city is inside rocking their snuggies and chopos (slippers).


FC: Your favorite colour ?

Vampire purple and silver


FC: A list of words that represent Graffiti (unlimited).

“Dope”, freedom, reputation, fame, style. color, beauty, adventure, commitment.


FC: What's coming up in the next few months?

Same as usual, keep cruising rain or shine, keep searching for the perfect beat, and keep writing graffiti on something.

FC: What's your real goal?

To better my style, have fun when I paint, and have other writers appreciate it.

FC: Any words of wisdom?

Go for yours and don’t forget where you came from.  Peace out to my homies Snake, Strike, Age, Oakey, Temper, Thumper, T-kid, Zone, Daze, Izze, Arrest 150, Bem, Cope2, Slip3, Sugar, Ashq, Bacon, Kane, Kem, Kuaze, my hita’s Adrie, Daya, Kiara and Cielo. Peace to the homies locked down throughout the state of New Mexico, and to all those that are “Chasing the dragon” god bless you I hope you overcome!! Peace to FatCap!  Keep burnin up the web!!

Thanks Pesa!

Pesa on FatCap

Pesa's flikr