Book Review: Billboard Bandits

Published recently, Billboard Bandits: Outlaw Artists in the Sky by Adam Clark, attempts to give insight into the world of painting billboards, and accomplishes just that. Clark divides the book into two comprehensive sections, one covering writers and the other street artists. He breaks down aspects of graffiti in a way that any average person can pick up this book and enjoy it. The layout and design of the book is well thought out and goes farther than the usual pictures on white pages with walls of black text.

The section on writers is rich with pictures and interviews featuring the likes of AM7 Crew, Augor MSK, Bleek CBS, Daze TZ, Fuct LGF, Jeloe BKF, LTF/KOG Crews, Naut, Nine2, Pharoe LCF, Pysa MSK, Shank DME, YR Crew, and Silencer. The writing is very concise and doesn’t leave you reading through pages looking for interesting or relevant information.  The interviews are entertaining as well as sometimes profane but don’t have a repetitive feel. Even though they all approach the same subject they come from different perspectives giving a diverse but full view of writers and their attitudes towards billboards. The same can also be said about the pictures, no space is wasted on uninteresting photographs; the book includes a few full page spreads, a pleasant sight considering the book is printed in full color.

Clark goes equally as detailed into the Billboard Liberation front and features in-depth interviews with Jimmy Cauty, Mr. Eggs, and Ron English. They all have plenty to say on their careers of subverting billboards and spreading their political and religious messages.

Billboard Bandits does a great job of covering a subject that is frequently seen in our faces but not covered as much in print form. A great addition to any book shelf, it’s certainly worth grabbing a copy and reading it through.

You can find copies of the book and other merchandise here.

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