Make a mark
“I was painting at the skate park opposite Te Papa on Friday afternoon, and when I turned around 120 people were standing there… There were business guys in their 40s saying stuff like, ‘you’re so good at that’, where in Christchurch they just ring the cops or turn a cold shoulder and walk away. It’s a lot more accepting here than I thought it would be,” he says.
Pauly’s been painting in the graffiti community for 13 years – he was a teacher for Project Legit in Christchurch; a city council initiative that saw at risk teens and those caught tagging taught the skills to make more impressive works.
“[Most kids] would rather show off that way, with the real big things, than with the ugly, scrawly stuff. After they learn the basis of the technical stuff they want to get into the scene. It’s a real community… people out on a Saturday doing something big, rather than a whole lot of little things at night.”
For his next project, Pauly will paint a piece on Cuba Street.
“I’m gonna do an A to Z, starting from Webb Street at the Cuba end and finding enough space throughout the entire stretch of Cuba, on roller doors and little walls, to finish it… I enjoy working with letters and don’t often get the chance to try every letter on the wall. Each one will be different in style and colours... It’ll be a bit of a puzzle, you can walk down and see bits here and there…”
Pauly has been arrested in the past, but his days of sneaking round under cover of darkness are long gone. Much of his work is commissioned; he’s accepted invitations to work in places like Miami and has toured South Korea. His Cuba Street work will only begin after contracts have been signed with shop owners happy to get involved.
Pauly says the main misconception people get about graffiti artists is that they’re, “high school kids on a rampage”.
“The majority are guys in their 30s, some are in their 50s, spending near on $30,000 a year on paint,” he says.
The paint is paid for with commissions, sponsorship and competition prize money.
“I’m just a normal guy with a passion for something, waiting for an opportunity to put my mark on the art scene.










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