Molotow - Merchandise - Whitebook 01 - It´S A Circle

ETA: Date TBA

Regular Edition: Whitebook

New York City is the birthplace of graffiti and especially of train writing. Since the mid-80s 80s writers from all over the world visit their Mecca and many of them try to achieve painting the iconic subway as their heroes did since the 1970s. With the first volume of the WHITEBOOK series, IT’S A CIRCLE has several visits to the big Apple of German writer and photographer Mark Grokenberger between 2019 and 2024 in focus.
“Mark Grokenberger’s initial intention was simply to explore New York City, retracing the footsteps of “graffiti legends“ such as LEE, DONDI, or SEEN. He sought to experience the olfactory ambiance of the venerable tunnels, to execute a piece in locations where numerous milestones had been established, and to capture a vestige of the bygone New York that has largely vanished.”
— René Kästner

The 224-paged hardcover tells the chronological story of befriended writers who first tick off their list to hit the local subway once only to find out that the city has way more to offer for ambitious train writers. With each new trip to NYC they professionalize their missions which leads to concept end-to-ends, full colour wholecars and even wholetrains.
Their actions are separated into six chapters and accompanied by reflective texts and stories on selected actions.

“It’s more craft than graffiti art, but that should be our mark. Megalomaniacal kids from Europe reaching for the stars in the USA. Simple but true. […] Painting so many big pieces was never our intention, but rather a result of a naturally grown affection for the city and its subway system.”
IT’S A CIRCLE comes as a five-year covering travel journey with outstanding photographs, not only of tunnel actions, yard, traffic, and drone shots, but  it also captures the authentic New York in amazing atmospheric street and subway station photographs. Featured names are SEKO, BQEM, YUSUF, TUKI, IRAK, EYSIR, ORG, IOC, MOPS, and more.

„But sometimes, things demand to be seen. Sometimes, I have to step out to share. This is one of those times. These are the memories, snippets, and stories from some of my best adventures, experiences shared with incredible friends.“
The first WHITEBOOK volume opens with an introduction by the founder of the series, René Kästner. It is available as a 250-copy signed limited edition, including two prints and a postcard, and asa  regular edition solely consisting of the book.

Features:

• Production: RED TOWER Publishing
• Editorial/Art Scan: Mark Grokenberger
• Typewriter: Dolores Colores
• Layout/Design/Photo Editing: ARDA Dominic Glöß
• Proofreading: 36/7 Berlin
• Photography: Mark Grokenberger
• Additional Photography: Draco (P 156,157 & 161), Seko (P 27 & 129)
• Publishing House: RED TOWER Media
• Printing House: Gutenberg Beuys Feindruckerei GmbH
• ISBN: 978-3-9825457-2-1
• Swiss brochure: high-quality special binding for easier page turning
• Format: 20 x 30 cm
• Hard cover, 224 pages
• 4/0-colored Euroscale
• Paper: Book cover 135 g/m² wood-free white matt coated picture print
• Processing: folding, open thread stitching, hardcover with straight spine
• Regular Edition: 500 pieces