Martha Cooper

Recently, Allen AKA of 12ozProphet had the chance to visit the studio of photographer, Martha Cooper. Martha is recognized for her graffiti and hip hop photos. She's been taking pictures virtually her entire life, when her father gave Martha her first camera when she was just 2 years old back in the 1940s. In the 70s, she moved to New York City and worked as a staff photographer for the New York Post. She started chasing graffiti on the walls of New York City's Lower East Side, crawling through the very same tunnels and train yards as the writers do. She was introduced to the late Style Wars, Style Master General, Dondi White, and he taught her everything there is to know about graffiti. She photographed alongside of Henry Chalfant to publish Subway Arts in 1984.







When digging through Marty’s archives, classic shots like FBA’s Sab Kaze whole car with Tack’s mind-blowing alien and shark characters, and Dondi straddling between two number 2 trains in the Newlots yard as he puts the finishing touches on one of his Children of the Grave whole cars, are just some of what you’ll see amongst the thousands of shots Marty caught during this era.