Chris “Daze” Ellis was instrumental in helping early graffiti set off for new horizons. After studying at the High School of Art & Design, Daze exhibited his works alongside Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring as early as 1981.

“… [subway cars] became my whole life from 1976 to 1982. Although I no longer paint trains, painting in general naturally remains the central point in my life. It defines who I am as a person in this world.”

His 2017 work Underground Playground feels like looking backward in time, with memories of times long gone evoked – an everlasting connection to the subway cars that once sparked Daze’s interest in graffiti. As he explained in an interview in 2017: “… it became my whole life from 1976 to 1982. Although I no longer paint trains, painting in general naturally remains the central point in my life. It defines who I am as a person in this world.” There’s a certain melancholy to this – but the light at the end o f the tunnel points to something new that’s on its way.

On loan courtesy of the Gewobag collection.