miamigraffiti.com - miami graffiti art pictures, photos, flicks - south florida / miami / ft lauderdale / kendall

July 2007
1) What do you write and what crews do you represent?

I write Siner. I push DME FUKQ BSK DTT & WBB

a feeble attempt...sin/1985

2) Where did you get your tag? Any special meaning behind it?

I was given the name SINISTER in 1984 by my first mentor, NITRO DELUXE. He was an older cat from my neighborhood that first began schooling me. My brother and I were always getting into trouble and my mom is extremely catholic so we had to go to church every sunday, no exceptions. So one day after getting out of mass we were chilling outside the church with some other kids, out of nowhere my brother and some cat start fighting. I just went nuts and started kicking the kid in the face and stomping him until finally I got pulled off of him. NITRO was there and when we spoke later he was like "Yo, you're a sinister ass little shorty". I was probably 9 or 10 years old at the time. The name stuck and within a few months I realized it was too long so i started writing SIN, then over time I added on the E-R for length and balance.

crack kills part 2 @ the immortals wall...nitro zot siner gb,ksn crew/1990

3) When did you start writing and what were some of your early influences?

I became aware of writing through b-boying in 1983. That's not to say I was an active writer that early. Mostly I just tagged on stuff around my neighborhood with markers and once in a while with a can if I was lucky enough to come across an open shed or garage at one of my neighbors houses. There used to be this abandoned cement factory right off of I-95 at Ives Dairy Road where all the writers from North Dade and South Broward would go and paint. I could walk there from my house so that was really my first encounter with graffiti. For those that remember the "Merry Christmas Miami" by FROSTY, that's the spot I'm referring to. There was alot of stuff by TFF and TCB there. USC, BBB, Block Boys, TMOD and OSB were the main crews that I remember seeing there regularly. So I have to say those were my earliest influences. It wasn't until 1986-1987 that I really started noticing stuff outside of my neighborhood when my dad would take me further south to The Bakehouse and around Little Havana to take flix. That's when the whole picture came into focus for me. Seeing stuff from crews like VO5, AIM,and DFC really inspired me to take it more serious and made me realize that it was a movement that alot of people were involved in. In 1988 I met SNAIR, who was one of my favorite writers and he saw enough potential to include me in a new crew he was starting up, WBB. This was the boost of confidence that I feel motivated me to stay involved and continue to strive forth into the 1990's and beyond.

4) What was your favorite Penit/Wall and why?

My favorite spot was the warehouse in Hialeah (Hialeah Penit). It was where I met KVEE and TERMS, who became huge influences on me. It was also where some of the most memorable experiences I've had writing took place. Seeing things like the "Power" piece by DK and the huge GB roller on the loading dock were monumental for me. The atmosphere and surroundings were just so grim and filthy, but somehow amidst all this deterioration we were creating, making something otherwise unattractive into something beautiful.

humble beginnings...kv,tvc crew @ the warehouse/1990?

laying the foundation...terms,tvc crew @ the warehouse/1990?

S-n-M @ the warehouse...siner and 2melo,2am crew/calle ocho 1991

top visual crime...kv,tvc crew @ the warehouse/1991

moc by terms,tvc @ the warehouse/1993

5) Is there any crazy story that sticks out in your mind from the early days?

Yeah, but I can't share any of the good ones because I don't wanna incriminate myself or others.

6) Name a Miami writers work that you respect a lot (thats not in your crew/associated crews) and why?

The first name that comes to mind is FREEK. Style, Consistency, Originality, Flavor, Personality. The man and his work speaks for itself so there's not much else I can say.

7) Any good stories about a time you got chased or busted?

It must have been 1991. GB, JP (the original from SA who started DME with CENE (also the original who first wrote NV)), and I, were painting a spot right next to I-95 by Miami Gardens Drive. When all of a sudden a cop spots us and slams on the brakes. We take off running and somehow GB was ahead of us. JP and I were running along Snake Creek and he decides to cross this pipe that goes over the canal to the side where G's car was parked. So I follow and start running across this little pipe. Needless to say we both lose our balance and fall into Snake Creek. By this time there are cops everywhere and I guess they heard us splash into the water. We made our way to the shore where there's all these bushes and shit along the side where we need to get out. Within a couple seconds there's a canine growling and barking and flashlights shining and I'm telling JP, "Yo, lets get out!", all I kept thinking was that this dog was about to jump in the water and start biting my ass. JP takes a deep breath and goes under water. I just gave up and started yelling "I'm coming out. Don't let the dog loose. I'm coming out." So they're asking me where's your friend? blah, blah, blah. I told them I didn't know what they were talking about etc., and finally they stopped asking and put me in the back of the car. I get to the station and they got this nigga GB there already. He had tried to jump in his car and take off so they blocked him in, pulled him thru the window and banged him up a little bit. I was still a juvenile so they called my mom and she came and got me. This cat went to the county. The next day I talk to my girl and she's telling me how JP showed up at her house soaking wet and how "You're so stupid" or whatever. This nigga JP stayed in the water for hours waiting until the cops left the area and then walked like 5 miles to my girls' house. Talk about determination!

tri-rail terrorist...gb,ksn ack hs crews/1994

8) Whats the biggest problem with Toys nowadays?

No respect! No respect for history. No respect for the concept of writing and its code. No respect for the old school writers who laid the foundation. No respect for themselves. The other problem is that there is very little mentorship nowadays. The few older writers who are recruiting new jacks are not teaching them what they should know, therefore it almost amounts to toys being schooled by toys. Some of them, even though they have been in the game for a minute and might even have some level of skill, were probably never taught properly the concepts of writing and therefore never graduated past the level of being a toy, except in their own minds and maybe the minds of some of their friends. (If anyone takes this personally, I'm probably talking about you.)

9) What do you think of the Graf Scene in South Florida and Where do you think its headed?

I think there is alot of talent and potential that usually goes misdirected and therefore overlooked. Ultimately we are headed for self destruction as a "scene". There is so much negative energy connected to the South Florida writing community. For a true scene to thrive there has to be some form of unity and organization and as I said before, most of the older cats who are guiding the movement don't have these aims in mind.

10) We know you were close with GB (RIP), a legend of South Florida bombing, care to share some memories or stories about his graffiti career?

Man, I remember the first time I saw a big ass G-Bone. I really thought it said Gee Bone hahahaha...anyway.. Jorge Barreda arrived in Miami from the Bronx in 1990. I remember being on I-95 on the bus in route to school and seeing a huge GBone throwy on a rooftop and then again on a sound barrier, one after the other between Ives Dairy Road and Miami Gardens Drive. Then I get to school and upstairs in the math section of North Miami Beach Senior High the classrooms all had chalkboards on the outside in the hallways. This guy had gotten to school early and bombed every fukin chalkboard in the whole math department. He destroyed it with throwys and tags, it was insane. Within the next couple of days someone introduced us and it was on. GB, ZOT, and I started catchin wreck and became very close friends. I've never seen anyone bomb as savagely or accumulate the amount of destruction that this cat caused in the North Dade/South Broward areas. When we would go to hit a spot he would take off running ahead of us to make sure he got the best spot and did the biggest throwy. He is the first cat I know of that had shit running from the Keys to Palm Beach and beyond.

One night me and 2REAL decided to hit this rooftop right along the CSX tracks in North Miami. The building had to be 25 feet high and as we were walking along the tracks we see a ladder laying in the bushes that was tall enough to get up on the roof. We were almost finished painting when 2REAL comes over and tells me he heard a noise coming from the back of the building. We tip-toe over to the edge of the roof and look down and GB is quietly attempting to steal the ladder that we needed to get back down off of the roof. We fuking died laughing. He had seen the ladder a few days prior and was coming back to jack it. If we wouldn't have heard him, we probably would of had to jump off the roof to break out.

GB was the most good-hearted, kind spirited, funniest man I have ever had the privilege of meeting. He taught so many writers and inspired so many more. It was an honor to have had the chance to paint beside him and call him a friend. He is my guardian angel, and when my time has come we will meet again in paradise.

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*Siner has supplied over 20 rare flicks from his collection to appear exclusively with this intervew. Enjoy!