167:, known primarily for his quick, simple two letter tag, 'IZ'. IZ represented a new breed of fame-obsessed writers concerned with finding the perfect balance between quantity and quality. He also wrote "CI" (for Crazy IZ), and "Ike", (short for Mike). He was a member of various crews, the most notable being TMB (The Master Blasters), RTW (Rolling Thunder Writers), and TPA (The Public Animals). He wrote graffiti on every train line in New York City. IZ THE WIZ first started writing with Evil 13 and FI 1 (aka VINNY). After going through a variety of names, including BENZ, CLICK2, and SCAT, he wrote his name Mike then dropped the first letter and chose IKE327. He began to write IZ first with VINNY. In 1976 when the movie
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came out, advertising posters on the subway stations stated 'the Wiz is a Wow'. So IZ thought if the wiz is a wow why can't IZ be THE WIZ. So was born the name IZ THE WIZ.
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Martin was diagnosed with kidney failure in 1996 after years of using toxic aerosol products without any type of protective mask. In early 2000, in an interview for
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became influential in Europe where the use of his tag to form a sentence and his freeform style has been incorporated and adapted by contemporary graffiti artists.
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On
September 29, 1990, Martin married Katherine M. Lucev, also from the Rockaways, in St. Rose of Lima Church in Rockaway Beach, New York.
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art gallery. In August 2003 he self-curated a solo gallery exhibition in New York City showcasing his legal artwork.
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372:"Today in Hip-Hop History: The Source Remembers Graf Legend Iz The Wiz On His Birthday - The Source"
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in a scene where the protagonist is walking down a NYC street covered by IZ tags.
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In 1993 Martin founded the Phun
Phactory in New York which would become the
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131:(November 8, 1958 â June 17, 2009, aged 50) was one of the most prominent
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598:"Michael Martin, Subway Graffiti Artist Iz the Wiz, Is Dead at 50"
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Kimvall, Jakob (Winter 2008). "The Holy Grail of
Freeform Graf".
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570:"REVOK and POSE and the Transformation of The Houston Wall"
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543:"Phun Factory 10 Years Later, A Reunion on the Street"
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incorporated Martin's tag into a mural painted on the
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native. Beginning in 1972, he became a long reigning
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graffiti movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s.
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IZ was prominently featured in the 1983 documentary
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277:in tribute to deceased New York graffiti artists.
246:. His tag is also featured in the 1979 cult movie
568:Harrington, Steven; Rojo, Jaime (3 July 2013).
237:Marc EckÅ's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure
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234:IZ had his art appear in video games such as
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202:. His work, which appeared in the book
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470:"Film Review: Style Wars: Revisited"
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922:Hong Kong (Free Ai Weiwei campaign)
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468:Nagshineh, Alex (24 March 2010).
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63:All-city bombing, throw-up king
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1134:Artists from Queens, New York
1032:Sarajevo Street Art Festival
370:Allah, Sha Be (2020-11-10).
228:Franklin K. Lane High School
445:"Joey TPA Interview @149st"
129:Michael "IZ the Wiz" Martin
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991:Palestine (West Bank Wall)
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1159:Graffiti in New York City
1139:American graffiti artists
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418:Revolt (23 August 2007).
315:"Iz the Wiz (1959â2009)"
226:Iz the Wiz mural at the
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1027:Pasadena Chalk Festival
521:Underground Productions
113:http://www.izthewiz.com
51:June 17, 2009 (aged 50)
1149:American male painters
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124:Graffiti by Iz the Wiz
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908:Southeastern Brazil (
547:brooklynstreetart.com
289:on June 17, 2009, in
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1105:Category: Street art
902:Berlin (Berlin Wall)
631:Early Graffiti by Iz
265:In 2013 the artists
210:Hell IZ for Children
186:Style Wars revisited
147:Martin was from the
86:Hell IZ for Children
54:Spring Hill, Florida
575:The Huffington Post
395:"Iz the Wiz @149st"
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104:Katherine M. Lucev
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596:Grimes, William.
424:subwayoutlaws.com
285:Martin died of a
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932:Northern Ireland
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323:. 29 June 2009
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523:(39): 61â63.
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1073:Street party
1063:Public space
1017:Living Walls
952:Philadelphia
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819:Yarn bombing
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605:. Retrieved
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579:. Retrieved
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551:. Retrieved
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502:. Retrieved
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495:"Iz the Wiz"
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452:. Retrieved
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427:. Retrieved
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402:. Retrieved
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375:. Retrieved
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352:. 2009-06-23
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346:"Iz the Wiz"
325:. Retrieved
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287:heart attack
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259:American Spy
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249:The Warriors
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243:The Warriors
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69:Notable work
1129:2009 deaths
1124:1958 births
1083:Visual arts
1022:See No Evil
961:Balmy Alley
804:Sticker art
710:terminology
607:19 November
291:Spring Hill
275:Bowery Wall
151:borough of
74:John Lennon
26:RTW TMB TPA
1118:Categories
1058:Public art
1007:Beton Fest
824:Wheatpaste
747:Subway Art
731:Propaganda
672:Street art
454:2023-12-18
404:2023-12-18
377:2023-12-18
356:2023-12-18
301:References
205:Subway Art
199:Style Wars
23:IZ the Wiz
1088:Vandalism
937:Melbourne
906:Brazil (
829:Wildstyle
814:Throw ups
716:Handstyle
529:1401-8659
256:'s novel
143:Biography
78:Lady Pink
971:Sarajevo
946:5 Pointz
910:pichação
892:Adelaide
850:Graffiti
706:Graffiti
686:Activism
320:Artforum
217:5 Pointz
165:New York
163:king of
161:all-city
137:New York
133:graffiti
96:Graffiti
93:Movement
84:(1980),
1046:Related
986:Toronto
897:Atlanta
855:Stencil
809:Tagging
679:Culture
295:Florida
170:The Wiz
109:Website
1103:
1000:Events
981:Tehran
885:Places
845:Street
784:Poster
779:Pieces
581:4 June
553:4 June
527:
504:4 June
479:4 June
429:4 June
327:4 June
230:, 1993
153:Queens
101:Spouse
88:(1982)
80:&
774:Mural
757:Types
281:Death
267:Revok
76:with
927:Kyiv
609:2018
583:2024
555:2024
525:ISSN
506:2024
481:2024
431:2024
329:2024
271:Pose
269:and
240:and
155:, a
82:Mare
48:Died
32:Born
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.