#BORIS GRAFFITI 6.1 SERIES#

TheyвЂ™d been put there by an adrenaline-fuelled crew (Berlin Kidz) who took graffiti writing to a new level: jumping trains and abseiling down buildings with acrobatic panache. вЂњOnce you agree to be filmed, you have to be aware of what the consequences might be, just as you have to be aware of the consequences when you paint on someone elseвЂ™s property.вЂќ вЂњItвЂ™s a big responsibility to hold that kind of footage, but that is the game: the job of documenting,вЂќ he says.

#BORIS GRAFFITI 6.1 SERIES#

He earned the trust of notorious graffiti writers вЂ“ вЂњThe name Good Guy Boris was not invented but given to meвЂќ вЂ“ with certain relationships forming episodes of an online video series called The Grifters Code, often involving daredevil antics that would piss off police and run high risks. There, Boris began trying to break all the established вЂrulesвЂ™ within graffiti culture: documenting work that wasnвЂ™t beautiful or technically perfect, showing the faces of those involved and introducing an element of humour to a discipline widely considered criminal. He picked the one place in Europe that seemed to be overflowing with art вЂ“ Paris вЂ“ and headed there with just a backpack and a dream, вЂњeven though I spoke zero FrenchвЂќ. It quickly morphed into an art collective and culture journal but, to develop it as a platform, Boris knew he needed to get out of Bulgaria. вЂњI was a nobody,вЂќ he says, explaining why he founded graffiti website the Grifters, вЂњand the hype had yet to come.вЂќДЄt first, The Grifters was a photo blog where he invited friends to document the graffiti вЂlifestyleвЂ™ through film photography. It was a still long way from being considered fashionable, embraced by big brands, and the teenager found it hard to get his reportage taken seriously by publications. That helped Boris land a job as a 3D designer for an architectural companyвЂ¦ but it went bust within six months, inspiring him to launch his own enterprise instead.ДЄt the time, Boris explains, the media took no notice of the culture surrounding street art. вЂњThe advertising agency who published it loved my hustle and I quickly started working for them, which was enough to learn 3D animation as well as master my design, photography and video production skills.вЂќ вЂњMy obsession with graffiti and art in general drew me to work on different projects вЂ“ one of them was a magazine that I curated and designed myself,вЂќ he says. By the age of 14, he was working for his dadвЂ™s business and, within a year, left home to strike out on his own. It didnвЂ™t take long before Boris took things to another level. вЂњTherefore in order to preserve the memory, I started to photograph them.вЂќДЄt first it was just pictures of stuff that he and his friends made, but gradually he focused more on the action and atmosphere вЂ“ finding it so fascinating that he gave up writing to focus entirely on documentation. вЂњEven though, where I come from pieces have a much longer lifetime than elsewhere in Europe, I was aware that my creations were ephemeral,вЂќ he says. His father вЂ“ a strict man who had instilled in him the value of honesty and hard work вЂ“ decided not to punish him that day, leaving Boris room to explore a new creative outlet. It started it Bulgaria, when a 12-year-old Boris first picked up a spray can and drew the local football clubвЂ™s name surrounded by penises. вЂњIf this hadnвЂ™t happened, many good things would never have followed, so I really took the experience as a part of my journey.вЂќ вЂњI trained my body and mind so that I would leave there twice as strong and twice as motivated. вЂњI managed to turn it into something positive,вЂќ he says now. But now that he's compiled it all in a book, the next challenge awaits.Д®arly one Monday morning, in May 2014, police raided the Parisian apartment of a man called Good Guy Boris.ДЄn anti-graffiti task force decided to make an example out of him for his role in documenting a culture of вЂtrespassing and vandalismвЂ™.ДЄfter three days of questioning, Boris was held for four months in EuropeвЂ™s largest prison вЂ“ Fleury-MГ©rogis вЂ“ awaiting trial.Д«ut the experience allowed him to reflect on the path leading up to that point and where it would likely take him next.

From climbing rooftops to outrunning police, Good Guy Boris has taken a world shrouded in secrecy and documented it in style.ДЇrom climbing rooftops to outrunning police, Good Guy Boris has taken a world shrouded in secrecy and documented it in style.

Boris graffiti 6.1