![]() In the words of the 30-year-old Hydrane: "Sometimes I suffer from terrible coughing fits that wake me up in the middle of the night." Yet she confesses that she wears a protective mask only when she’s working indoors. Several research studies published by Grenoble University’s Faculty of Medicine in 2000 identified these notorious VOCs as a factor in the development of asthma, allergies and pulmonary conditions. Even the solvent-free aerosol spray cans currently on the market are not 100% safe – although they are said to pose no real risk to health, they nevertheless contain alcohol and glycol ethers, collectively known to the scientific community as volatile or- ganic compounds (VOCs). Exposure over a prolonged period can lead to disorientation, drowsiness or even coma. It didn’t take me long to shell out for protective gear." Solvents are ingested into the body via three pathways: the respiratory system, the skin and the eyes, and they can also attack the nervous system, resulting in dizziness and severe headaches. The health risks became very real to the graffiti artist 2Rode when he completed his first tag indoors: "I painted my first interior mural without a face mask, and I really suffered – crushing headaches, fluorescent snot, unbearable coughing fits. The French National Authority for Health has since made several recommendations for their use, including protective gear such as gloves, long sleeves, goggles and a filter mask. ![]() This can have tragic consequences, as shown by the case of American artist Kase2, born Jeff Brown, whose aerosol spray cans brought him fame but who died from lung cancer in 2011 at the age of 52. Toxic substancesīetween the 1970s and the 2000s, aerosol spray cans contained a significant proportion of substances that were classified as toxic, including solvents derived from propane and methane. The number of artists whose work is valued by the market is still small, of course, but this change in status is shaking up a subculture whose members derive their identity from creating informal art outside the law. A canvas by the French graffiti artist KAWS, for example, sold for 14.8 million dollars at Sotheby’s Auction House on 1 April 2019. Some people regard graffiti taggers as vandals, while others see them as fully fledged artists, but there’s no denying the fact that this genre of street art has revolutionised the contemporary art scene since its rise to prominence in the 1990s. Journalist Jade Serrano and photographer Sadak Souici met French “taggers” Swen MC 93, Xare Graff, 2Rode, Hydrane and TresDos, and found out about the risks they face in their work: harmful products, danger on the streets at night, and a sometimes uncertain relationship with the law.
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