Above Ground: Art from the Martin Wong Graffiti Collection, Museum of the City of New York, until August 10, 2025. Photo by Katherine J Michaelsen.
Last week’s opening of Above Ground: The Martin Wong Graffiti Collection at the Museum of the City of New York again provides graffiti enthusiasts with an opportunity to see a quality selection of NYC graffiti art from its early heyday in the 1980s.
The exhibition focuses on the painted canvases of Lee Quinones, Lady Pink, Rammellzee, Daze, Futura, Zephyr, as well as, other graffiti pioneers that were collected by artist Martin Wong for his short-lived Museum of American Graffiti. But of equal interest for Gallery 98, are the vitrines at the beginning of the exhibition that display announcement cards and other paper ephemera tracking the history of graffiti’s rise from street phenomenon to art movement.
It was a reminder that large quantities of top-tier graffiti-related ephemera have passed through Gallery 98 over the years. Inspired by the exhibition, we’ve assembled here some of the most prized cards, flyers and posters. Since graffiti-related ephemera are such a popular category of art ephemera, most of the items below have already been sold. However, a couple are still available, and remember, Gallery 98 adds new items daily.
See more Graffiti and Street Art ephemera.
Seen, Stellweg Séguy Gallery, Card, 1983. Size: 4.25 x 6 inches.
Rammellzee, Stellweg Séguy Gallery, Card, c. 1983. Size: 4 x 6 inches.
Lee Quinones, Fun Gallery, Color Xerox Flyer, 1982. Image: Handball court-Lower East Side. Photo: Martha Cooper. Size: 8 x 10 inches.
Daze, Lady Pink, Crash, Futura 2000, Lee, Limited Edition Poster Signed by Each of the Artists, Klarfeld Perry Gallery, 1992. Graffiti art pioneers Lady Pink, Daze, Crash, Futura 2000, and Lee (Quiñones) each added their original signature tag to this limited edition poster. This copy is #18 out of 300. Size: 18.5 x 26.5 inches. Available for Purchase.
Keith Haring and LA2, Tony Shafrazi Gallery, Card, 1982. Size: 4 x 6 inches.
Daze (Chris Ellis), Will be in Vienna, Flyer with Fashion Moda letterhead, 1985. Size: 8.5 x 11 inches.
Internation Graffiti Times, Benefit Party at Danceteria, Come in Peace Leave The Enemy Without, Card, 1984. Image shows Mayor Edward Koch, who had declared war on subway graffiti. Size: 5.5 x 8.5 inches.
Post-Graffiti, Group Exhibition with Basquiat, Crash, Daze, Futura, Haring, Sidney Janis Gallery, 21 Page Exhibition Catalogue, December 1983. Cover by Crash and Daze. Size: 8.5 x 11 inches.
The Samo Graffiti, Emily Harvey Gallery, Card, 1991. Samo was a collaboration between Jean-Michel Basquiat and Al Diaz. Photograph by Henry Flynt. Size: 4 x 6 inches.
East Village USA, with Lee Quinones, Gretchen Bender, Jimmy DeSana, Greer Lankton, New Museum, 6-Page Brochure, 2004. Cover by Lee Quinones. Size: 5.5 x 8.5 inches. Available for Purchase.
Lee Quinones, A Life Takes A Life (1984), in the exhibition Above Ground: Art from the Martin Wong Graffiti Collection, Museum of the City of New York, until August 10, 2025.
