Art & Design

Types of Street Art Styles

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Updated:3/7/2026
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Style
Origin / Era
Medium
Notable Artists
Known For
Tagging
Philadelphia/NYC, late 1960sMarkers, spray paintTAKI 183, Cornbread, SEENThe most basic and oldest form of graffiti, stylized signatures, territorial marking, every graffiti artist starts here, contentious: art or vandalism?
Wildstyle
New York City, 1970s-80sSpray paintTracy 168, Zephyr, DondiInterlocking, overlapping letters nearly impossible to read, arrows, connections, and extensions, the most technically complex graffiti form, NYC subway cars were the canvas
Stencil Art
1960s political protest, popularized 2000sSpray paint through cut stencilsBanksy, Blek le Rat, C215Fast application (seconds, not hours), political messaging, reproducible images, Banksy made it world-famous, Blek le Rat pioneered it in Paris
Wheat Paste (Paste-Up)
1960s-70s political posters, art since 1990sPaper/poster affixed with wheat pasteShepard Fairey (OBEY), JR, SwoonPre-made art applied quickly, Shepard Fairey's OBEY Giant campaign, JR's massive photographic portraits on buildings, less legally risky than spray paint
Muralism
Mexico 1920s (Diego Rivera), global revival 2000sHouse paint, spray paint, mixed mediaDiego Rivera, Os Gêmeos, KobraLarge-scale wall paintings, often commissioned and legal, community storytelling, Diego Rivera's political murals, Kobra's kaleidoscopic portraits
Throw-Up
New York City, late 1970sSpray paint (two colors: outline + fill)COPE2, COST, INQuick bubble letters (done in under a minute), quantity over quality approach, 'bombing' — covering as many spots as possible, bridge between tags and pieces
Piece (Masterpiece)
New York City, 1970s-80sSpray paint, multiple colorsLee Quiñones, Futura, Lady PinkFull-color, detailed spray-painted works, the gold standard of graffiti art, NYC whole-car subway pieces were the pinnacle, can take hours or days
3D / Anamorphic
2000s-presentSpray paint, house paintOdeith, Edgar Mueller, DAIMCreates optical illusion of depth on flat surfaces, looks three-dimensional from specific viewing angle, Instagram-era street art, Odeith's hyperrealistic insects
Yarn Bombing (Knit Graffiti)
Houston, Texas, 2005Yarn, knitted/crocheted fabricMagda Sayeg (Knitta Please), OlekCovers street objects in colorful knitting, non-destructive guerrilla art, Magda Sayeg started by covering her door handle, the 'grandma' of street art
Sticker Art (Slaps)
1990s-2000s punk/skate cultureAdhesive stickers, vinylShepard Fairey, D*Face, InvaderMass-produced and stuck everywhere, 'Hello My Name Is' postal stickers as canvas, low-risk, collectable, skate culture crossover, trading culture
Mosaic / Tile Art
1990s-presentCeramic tiles, Rubik's CubesInvader, Isaiah ZagarInvader installs pixelated Space Invader mosaics worldwide, each installation is 'scored' like a video game, durable and weather-resistant, Zagar's Magic Gardens in Philly
Reverse Graffiti (Clean Tagging)
2000sCleaning agent / pressure washer on dirty surfacesPaul 'Moose' Curtis, Alexandre OrionCreates art by removing dirt/grime from surfaces, legally grey — you're cleaning not vandalizing, Alexandre Orion cleaned skulls into a São Paulo tunnel
LED / Projection Art
2000s-presentProjectors, LED lights, lasersGraffiti Research Lab, Hera, SWEATSHOPPETemporary light-based graffiti, L.A.S.E.R. Tag projects writing onto buildings with lasers, zero permanent damage, digital-age street art, interactive installations
Calligraffiti
2000s (named by Niels 'Shoe' Meulman)Spray paint, ink, brushesNiels 'Shoe' Meulman, eL Seed, RetnaFusion of calligraphy and graffiti, elegant letterforms at street scale, eL Seed paints massive Arabic calligraphy on buildings, bridges fine art and urban art
Installations / Sculptural Street Art
1990s-presentFound objects, sculptures, mixed mediaBordalo II, Mark Jenkins, Joshua Allen Harris3D objects placed in urban spaces, Bordalo II creates animal sculptures from trash, Mark Jenkins makes realistic human-shaped tape sculptures, blurs art and public space

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