Martinez Gallery in New York is America's premier showcase for graffiti art. The gallery has worked with the vanguard of the graffiti movement since 1972.
In that year, Hugo Martinez, the gallery’s Director, formed United Graffiti Artists to encourage collaborative work among the writers from the vanguard of graffiti culture, to preserve their works of art, and to safeguard their lifestyle. In 1973, Martinez curated the first graffiti gallery show in New York, and worked with renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp to create a stage set for Deuce Coupe that was assembled onstage by graffiti writers as the dance progressed. Since then, the gallery’s nomadic exhibition program take it to strategic locations in New York City and beyond. Through its extensive photo collection, the gallery has assembled and documented the graffiti movement’s evolution from its inception to the work it exhibits today.
