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Chocolate Bar: Graffiti Bars
WINNER 2006 CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS “40 UNDER 40 AWARD”: ALISON NELSON, FOUNDER & OWNER
WINNER OF 2 CITYSEARCH 2005 SHOPPING AWARDS: “BEST GOURMET STORE” & “BEST WEST VILLAGE SHOP”
TIMEOUT NEW YORK EAT OUT AWARD WINNER: CHOCOLATE BAR: “BEST CHOCOLATE STORE”

NEW YORK CITY- Great chocolate, pure street. Alison Nelson’s Chocolate Bar turns back the clock, goes back in the day and throws down a stylin’ new line of choc-o-graphic Graffiti Bars to debut this March, 2007. Ten legendary New York City graffiti artists including Blade, Crash, Crachee, Crime 79, Dondi, Dr. Revolt, Iz the Wiz, Lady Pink, Spar One and Stay High 149 have created one-of a kind works transforming wrappers for an array of new candy bar of which a portion of the proceeds will benefit the All-Stars Project. Produced and manufactured by Alison Nelson’s Chocolate Bar, each Graffiti Bar weighs an impressive 2.25 ounces and is filled with classic treats enrobed in the finest gourmet chocolate. New bar flavors include Milk Almond, Milk Cafetto, Caramel, Cookies-n-Cream, Smores, Dark Strawberry, Dark Toffee Crunch, Banana Milk, Dark Rum and Dark Chocolate. Individual bars can be purchased for $4.00 each or a Limited Edition “gallery box” includes the full 10 bars and an authentic graffiti stencil created by Brooklyn-based artist Stencil1 used for customizing wallets, walls, t-shirts or whatever. Price $40.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

BLADE Aliases: STEVE 1 Started: Early 70s Primary affiliations: TC5 Local origin: Bronx, NY Main lines: 2s 5s. Blade, one of the original members of The Crazy Five can be given the title of longest reigning whole car king of the 2s and 5s. Blade started writing in the early 1970s and continued into the 1980s. From 1975 to 1980 Blade was a dominant force on the 2s and 5s. It was like almost every other train had a Blade whole car running on it. Blade’s Style was very unique, he did not follow the crowd. His work could never be confused with anyone else. He did not adhere to any set notions of style or trends common to other writers. Blade did not do wild style; yet still had incredibly imaginative letter forms. He did lettering and imagery that played with perspective and the abstraction of geometric shapes. His style was so distinguished that it drew criticism from many writers, stating that it wasn't graffiti style. But Blade’s admirers far out numbered his critics. Many writers bombed and also did whole cars but, Blade bombed with whole cars. Lee Quinones frequently credits Blade’s approach as being inspirational. Lee would become Blade’s fiercest artistic rival on the IRT 2 and 5 subway lines. During the 1970s Blade started doing window down straight letters covering the full length or the car named block busters. Though not necessarily the first writer to do a block buster, he clearly helped to establish the trend. Among Blade’s many credits was his boldness. He frequently painted at places like Esplanade near the passenger platform in broad daylight and still managed to post his famous quote "Never Busted!!!!!!". Blade’s more recent focus has been the art galleries of Europe. For more information visit www.bladekingofgraf.com

CRACHEE Started: Early 70s. Primary affiliations: TC5. Local orgin: Bronx, N.Y. Main lines: 2s 5s. One of the original members of The Crazy 5, Crachee was a true pioneer during graffiti's Golden Age, throwing up hundreds of pieces. He began bombing in 1972 with Vamm - another TC5 original - and decided early on to keep track of his work. So along with spray cans, Jif- foam nozzles and gloves, Crachee would carry a Kodak Instamatic camera to lay ups and train yards. When he was done, Crachee would snap away. As a result, he was able to document thousands of pieces between 1972-75 - a  critical time when a writer's "name" was the design. Crachee was the first writer to paint a two-man, top-to-bottom whole-car cloud. He also was one of the first ones to use bubble letters. Lifelong friends, Blade and Crachee have known each other since kindergarten. They became hitting partners in 1973. Blade and Crachee were so close they formed a band in 1974,  playing funk and disco and writing original songs. Their band - Bazay - played night clubs all over the New York City area. (One morning, Crachee and Blade even painted a piece honoring their band. By their names were images of Crachee playing the sax and Blade holding a bass).  Crachee stopped hitting in the late 70s, and later moved to Chicago to pursue a journalism career. He reached the top of his profession in 2004 when he received the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Journalism. A book based on his award-winning series - "Tiger Force: A True Story of Men and War," was published in May by Little, Brown & Co. It has received critical praise by major newspapers, including the Washington Post and Miami Herald. Crachee just finished his second book - The Crazy 5 - a coming-of-age novel about five friends growing up in a Bronx housing project in the early 1970s.

CRASH Started: # Primary affiliations: BLS Local origin: Bronx, NY Main lines: 1s, 3s, 5s,2s 6s CRASH hit the IRTs with vigor during the late 70s and early 80s. He produced dozens of window down whole cars with writers like Kel 139 and Daze. Via hard work and talent Crash has made one of the most successful transitions to the conventional art world. His works are displayed and sold globally. His current works still possess the vivid color and energy he produced on subways, with a twist of Lichtenstein. Crash maintains the lettering and image abstraction that many writers feel are crucial to the art form. He continues to innovate. For more information visit www.crashone.com

CRIME 79 Aliases: BC, WAVE, SUPRA ONE, 79ER Started: 1977 Primary affiliations: SIS, CIA Local origin: Brooklyn Main lines: LLs, Js, Ms
Crime 79 started writing on the streets of the East New York Section section of Brooklyn in the late 1970s. Though he hit all three subway divisions, he focused his most consistent writing efforts on the J, M and LL lines of the BMT division. The early 1980s saw the peak of his activity on the subway system. He wrote along side popular Brooklyn writers such as Peo, Sis and Baby 168 formerly of The Bronx. In 1985 CRIME concluded his transit career. For more information visit www.crime79.com

DOCTOR REVOLT:  Aliases: RVLT., ORB,  LINE-129, PAINT-1.Areas hit: IRT's, BMT's, IND's.  Main lines: #1's, #3's, A's, RR's Primary affiliations: RTW, THE REBELS, THE SOUL ARTISTS. When you speak of Broadway you inevitably will speak of Revolt. Born and raised in N.Y.C., an original core member of the historic New York City graffiti crew, The Rolling Thunder Writers (RTW). Known for both his tags and elaborate pieces on the Broadway #1 line featuring colorful, psychedelic and comic art influenced stylings and later, taking it “all-city”. His prolific creative efforts helped to establish RTW as one of N.Y.C.'s most well known and respected crews. With his contributions to the seminal classic hip-hop films “Wild Style" and “Style Wars”, various music videos and, album covers, creating the classic “YO! MTV Raps’ logo and a tour of duty in Baltimore where he, like, "a messenger of style" single handedly kick-started a graff-scene that still feels his influence today, his place in the history of "graff-dom" is secure. His work has been, and continues to be seen in various publications and art galleries globally.

DONDI (memorial bar) Aliases: Asia, Bus129, Naco, Pose 2, Pre 2, White 761, Wirm, 2hot, 2many Started: Approx. 1975 Primary affiliations: CIA, TOP, MAFIA Local origin: East New York, Bklyn. Areas hit: IRTs, INDs, BMTs Main lines: Js, LLs, Ms, 5s,2s, As, CCs. Dondi was a well rounded writer, covering all bases; bombing, whole cars and wild style. He achieved global popularity for his straight letter top to bottoms via the media, in publications such as Subway Art. He gained respect from his peers by doing major work tagging prolifically on the insides of all three subway divisions. Though well accomplished in the fore mentioned, Dondi’s definitive attribute was the mastery of wild style lettering. Dondi on the BMT Most newer generation writers are more familiar with the body of work Dondi accrued on IRT subway division, but DONDI made considerable accomplishments on the BMT subway division. During the late 1970s Dondi was hitting the BMTs with style and color schemes far more sophisticated than his peers. At this point in time skilled writers like the Prisoners Of Graffiti crew, Don of Mafia crew and most members of The Fabulous 5 had stopped painting. For the most part throw-ups and quick straight letter pieces rendered in a limited color pallet were the rage. If not for Dondi, his crew and a small handful of others benching would have been pretty dismal. For more information please visit www.dondiciakings.com

IZ THE WIZ: All time all-city king  Aliases: IZZY, CI (CRAZY IZ), IKE 327, CLICK. Started: 1972 Primary affiliations: TMB, POG, TOP, 3YB, TC Local origin: Queens, NY. Main lines: ALL CITY
Iz The Wiz is without question one of New York City's most prolific writers of all time.  He holds the title of the All time All City King of New York City Subways, and only one person holds that prestigious honor. In aka Kill 3 is credited with the most extensive all-city bomb in NYC during 1975 and 76, but Iz was the longest reigning all-city king in NYC history, taking the title many times throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Iz was well known for his throw-ups in the mid 1970s on the IND and BMT subway divisions. In the late 1970s he broadened his focus by working on top-to-bottoms, burners and scenery whole cars on the prestigious 2 and 5 lines of the IRT subway division. During this period he simultaneously maintained all-city throw-up king status. He painted for a variety of top level crews. He has served as president of The Master Blasters and the Queens division of Prisoners Of Graffiti. He has also painted for The Odd Partners, The Crew, The Three Yard Boys and others too numerous to mention. Iz appeared in the documentary film Style Wars and portrayed a transit police detective in the film Wild Style. His work has been displayed in museums and galleries throughout the world. Iz played a major role in the development of writing and provided inspiration for every generation of writer that exists. Hailing from Queens Iz took over the city subway system line by line. During his career, there was a time when he was doing at least 100 throw-ups every night, for an entire year. The dedication and love for writing is apparent in all of his works, from the burners on the trains, to the sketches on paper, and the canvases that capture the essence of writing, Iz often drops little side notes next to his the pieces, a little message that takes a minute to sink in and when it does, you always get a grin. Iz is also known for his epic role played in the film Style Wars. His witty remarks remain some of the most quoted words and phrases in the writing lexicon. When just the words you have said 20 years ago are recognized and used in current conversations, you have successfully made your mark in the world. In the film Iz was asked “ when will you stop”, and he replied “ I will come back every now and then to let people know I am still around”. The true beauty is the fact that he never left and continues to bless the people with gems that capture the essence of what graffiti writing all about. For more information visit www.izthewiz.com

LADY PINK Started:1979 Primary affiliations: TPA, TC5 Local origin: Queens, NY Areas hit: IRTs, INDs, BMTs Main lines: 2s, 5s, CCs
Pink aka Lady Pink is the most committed and enduring female writer of all time and can without question be labeled the most accomplished woman in the history of writing. In 1979 PINK came into prominence in the New York City subway graffiti scene. There had been few female writers of significance since the early 1970s. During the late 1970s and early 1980s PINK wrote on a variety of subway lines with the top crews in the city. Her artistic ability progressed rapidly; prompting respect and admiration from within the graffiti community. Along with the admiration came jealousy and spite, particularly because she was talented and female. PINK remained unintimidated and continued to break new ground. Her career would excel well beyond those of her critic's, both in quantity and quality. In addition to her accomplishments on the subway system PINK was involved in many important gallery exhibitions of aerosol art during the early 1980s including the Fashion Moda gallery. Her work has also been displayed at the Whitney Museum and the Bronx Museum of the Arts. She has remained active in graffiti culture on many levels, from formal art venues such as art galleries, museums and commissioned paintings to traditional graffiti street murals and even freight trains. She has style and painting ability that are clearly the results of a powerfully creative mind. PINK has painted all over the world and is still very active. For more information visit www.pinksmith.com

STAY HIGH 149 - Pioneer . Aliases: VOICE OF THE GHETTO Started: Early 1970s Primary affiliations: Ex Vandals (Bronx division), U.G.A. Local origin: # Main lines: All-city
During the early 1970s Stay High 149's name adorned hundreds of New York City's subway cars, particularly on the IRT division. He is one of the most famous, influential and admired writers in the history of New York City aerosol art. Most notably admired for his unique tag. He drew a smoking joint as the cross bar for his "H". Each tag was accompanied by a stick figure from the television series The Saint. He also frequently wrote the phrase "Voice of the Ghetto". His logo/name came to define "street cool" for many subsequent generations of writers. He is one of the most frequently mentioned influences for New York City writers. One of the most famous pieces in aerosol art to date is the STAY HIGH 149 top-to-bottom on the IRT subway; documented in Norman Mailer's 1974 book The faith of Graffiti. The painting done in 1973, was an early top-to-bottom whole car. As with most pieces of the time period, it was basically an extremely large version of his tag. His subway paintings also appeared in 1974 in a Richard Goldstein article for New York Magazine. STAY HIGH also participated in early presentations of graffiti art on canvas at Hugo Martinez's United graffiti Artists. By 1974 Stay High had pretty much retired from writing. After his retirement he was seldom seen and eventually went into total obscurity. His absence would span almost twenty years. In June of 2000 he made his first public appearance in the graffiti community at The State of the Art gallery in Brooklyn. Needless to say the many writers who met him for the first time were nothing short of awestruck. He remains an unblemished icon within the aerosol art culture. For more information please visit www.StayHigh149.com

SPAR ONE Aliases: LED 2 Started:1975 Primary affiliations: TFP, TNS Local origin: NYC Areas hit: Street walls Bronx, Manhattan, Queens Lines hit: Js, LLs, Ms, CCs, Ds,Es, Fs, RRs. As a native New Yorker SPAR observed subway art from its earliest stages. He began his writing career on the streets of Manhattan's Lower East Side during the mid 1970s. He made his transition to the subway system in 1977. At this point he formed a partnership with his classmate the Late EL 3. SPAR favored the E, F, LL, J, M and RR lines. He wrote for Lower East Side crews like The Mad Artists and The Non Stoppers. Spar has painted with a wide variety of artists including Sent Tfp, King Kase, Noah, Duro, Soe, Joe 61, Cel, Lac, Keo, Chain 3, Jamestop and many others. Spar’s work has been formally exhibited in a variety of venues including Black and White in Color Gallery, American Vision 145, The New York Public Library and The Fun Gallery. His work has appeared in the books Spraycan Art, and New York Graffiti 1972-82 as well as Stress Magazine. In 1998 Spar One founded the Web site @149st New York City Cyber Bench (www.at149st.com). The site is dedicated to the preservation of the history of New York City subway art. @149st is the result of SPAR's long-term observation and commitment to New York City aerosol art and culture. Spar’s objective is to offer comprehensive documentation of the New York school's many generations crews and artists. SPAR utilizes connections with transit era writers across the city to ensure the factual integrity of the site's content. For more information please visit www.sparone.net