Concrete Immortalz

Concrete Immortalz is an ongoing comic series created by graffiti artist Phetus. It is the first mainstream comic series to feature a graffiti artist as the protagonist.

The Wall Lord from the Concrete Immortalz series by Elite Gudz.

Overview

The series is built on the idea that art progresses with and chronicles human history, and "the graffiti movement is the artistic embodiment of current times."^[1] The series' protagonist is The Wall Lord, a graffiti artist who writes messages of hope and defiance against a repressive government. The series is mainly influenced by street art and graffiti culture.

The comic is set in New York City, where modern graffiti traces its roots. In the 1970s, New York's infrastructure was notoriously run down, and graffiti became a way for citizens to reclaim their presence in a city that continually ignored their needs. Like 1970s NYC, the dystopian future of Concrete Immortalz takes the need for trans formative art to epic proportions.

Other aspects of graffiti culture can be seen throughout the comic. The Wall Lord wears a respirator or bandanna and hood over the bottom part of his face, and loose clothes that are easy to move and work in to protect himself from paint fumes and hide his identity. In the backgrounds there are tags and designs. Like graffiti artists who gain a reputation by consistent and widespread tagging, The Wall Lord spends a year writing messages against Mortalem throughout the country to gain recognition for his cause.^[2] Both "Concrete Immortalz: Insurrection" and "Concrete Immortalz:Ruination" feature artwork from three generations of the world's most renowned and iconic graffiti artists, including some who were originators of the graffiti art movement.^[3]

Characters

The Wall Lord

The main character, The Wall Lord, fights the totalitarian powers in Imperium City. Although it is implied he was involved in a resistance movement before, he is changed forever when Dawn, the love of his life, is killed by Mortalem's construction forces in an expansion project. He fights against the lies and deceit of Imperium City's government by inspiring the public through anti-propaganda writing.

Mortalem

Head of the Imperium City Counsel, Mortalem publicly claims his mission is to save the city from decay. He continually tries to suppress truth and art in the name of progress.

Phantazma

Another graffiti artist, Phantazma works out of Chicago. He is completely invisible except for his clothes and his writing, and is thought to be part of the resistance movement against Mortalem. He also has a continuing beef with Cope.

Sgt. Thomas Horus

A Sergeant in Imperium City’s Police Force, Thomas comes from a decorated military background and rose quickly through the ranks of the Vandal Squad. A continuing challenge for The Wall Lord, he is armed with the most cutting edge technologies and resources.

Lady Blaque

Trained by masters in mental and physical disciplines from around the world, Lady Blaque directly serves Mortelem. Her own objectives and motives are a mystery.

Reviews

Concrete Immortalz has had critical acclaim from well-known graffiti artists like Cope2,^[4] INDIE184,^[5] BRONX,^[6] Terrible T-Kid 170,^[7] and BAN2.^[8] On January 7, 2010, Phetus and street artist Such painted a mural image of the Wall Lord on a subway car installation outside of Tuff City Tattoos in Bronx, NY. Phetus was also joined by Cap, Cope2, T-Kid, Ban2, Indie and Cheez who came through to destroy the piece once it was completed as a tribute to the real life actions that go on within the graffiti subculture.^[4] A billboard-sized mural for Concrete Immortalz was created by Phetus and Such across a block-long industrial complex at 5 Pointz in Long Island City.^[9]

Contributors

• Phetus
• Narek Gevorgian
• Rodolfo Ledesma
• Cope2
• Mr.Den

References

External links

• Phetus Official site
• Concrete Immortalz Official Site