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Seen
Seen in Paris
Born18 October 1961
StyleGraffiti, mural

Richard "Richie" Mirando is an American graffiti artist who goes by the alias Seen UA.[1][2] Seen is one of the most well known graffiti artists in the world, having been referenced by others as the Godfather of Graffiti, his work served as a foundation for the Hip-Hop movement.[1]

Seen first started painting New York City Subway cars in 1973.[1] His crew, United Artists included other Graffiti artists such as, DUSTER, SIN, PJ, MED, AZ ONE and his brother MAD[3]. United Artists was infamous for painting whole subway cars from top-to-bottom in New York City.

Life[edit]

Seen was born in the Bronx in 1961. For the next 16 years he painted pieces across the city and on all subway routes, but they were especially prominent on the 2, 5, and 6 trains.


During the early 1980s Seen started working on canvas, which were displayed in galleries and bought by museums and private collectors worldwide. He was also featured in group exhibitions with artists such as, Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Dondi, Quik, Blade, and Lee Quinones.[citation needed] Even after Seen became famous and was able to travel internationally, he stayed in New York City painting subway cars until 1989. This was long after increased pressure from the MTA stopped many Graffiti artists from doing so. Seen is also included in the 1983 PBS documentary Style Wars.

In the late 1980s Seen undertook tattoo art, opening a tattoo parlor named Tattoo Seen,[1] which became one of the most successful studios in New York City.[citation needed] Seen's more recent work includes three-dimensional sculpture, mixed media work with reclaimed or discarded materials (often found in the street), and a series of hand-painted MTA New York subway maps. He continues to produce and exhibit worldwide independently and alongside other artists such as Banksy.[citation needed]


Seen's Art work can be seen in digital video-games such as, The Warriors, Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure and Grand Theft Auto V.

He now focuses on painting comic book heroes, and has his own clothing line that features his lettering and comic hero renderings.[1]

Exhibitions[edit]

Individual exhibitions[edit]

Collective exhibitions[edit]

  • 1980 : New York, New Wave, P.S.1, New York City[citation needed]
  • 1984 : Graffiti, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (Denmark)[citation needed]
  • 1991 : Graffiti Art, Musée national des monuments français, Paris[citation needed]
  • 2007 : That 70's show, Power house arena, New York City[citation needed]
  • 2009 : TAG, Grand Palais, Paris[7]
  • 2009 : The Carhartt Show, Germany[4]
  • 2009 : Nés dans la rue Cartier fondation pour l'art contemporain, Paris[8]
  • 2009 : Urbain Ier, Galerie Léadouze, Paris[4]
  • 2010 : T.A.G Palais de Tokyo Paris[4]
  • 2010 : "Playboy Redux" Andy Warhol Museum Pittsburgh USA[9]
  • 2011 : Opera Gallery[10]

Bibliography[edit]

  • Mirando, Richard (2014). They call me the godfather of graffiti Chapter 1973-1981. NYC: SEEN Studios / SDLB Publishing. ISBN 979-10-90020-01-6.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e Wyatt, Daisy (19 June 2014). "Graffiti artist SEEN: 'Street art has lost its edge – it's not the same anymore': The 'Godfather of Graffiti' explains why he turned his back on street art". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  2. ^ Bachor, Kenneth (20 April 2017). "Preserving New York's History of Graffiti Art". Time. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  3. ^ "United Artists @ 149st". www.at149st.com. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "Seen Studios".
  5. ^ "Seen, un artiste en état de graf'". Libération.fr (in French). Retrieved 22 September 2007.
  6. ^ Seen, l'emblème du graffiti, Marie Claire, 2007
  7. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-04-16. Retrieved 2009-04-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ Fondation.cartier.com
  9. ^ "warhol.org".
  10. ^ "operagallery.com".

External links[edit]