Photograph by Henry Chalfant

Image Title: VTB (Very Tough Breakers) Busk on Broadway and 95th St. 1984

Paper Dimensions (H x W): 10 1/4"x15"

Image Dimensions (H x W): 9 1/4"x 14"

Year Created: Photo taken in 1984 and printed in 2021

Sign on lower right

Image Description: Some members of Rock Steady Crew lived in the neighborhood and they were mentors to the younger kids, who formed their own crew.

Photographer's Bio: Henry Chalfant is best known for his photography and film documentation urban youth culture. His photographs of New York's subway paintings record hundreds of ephemeral art works that have long since vanished. He has co-authored the definitive account of New York graffiti art, Subway Art (Holt Rinehart Winston, N.Y. 1984) and a sequel on the art form's world-wide diffusion, Spraycan Art (Thames and Hudson Inc. London, 1987).

In 1983, Chalfant co-produced the PBS documentary, Style Wars, the highly considered documentary about Graffiti and Hip Hop culture . In 1993 he and Rita Fecher directed Flyin' Cut Sleeves, a portrayal of 5 street gang presidents in the Bronx. His film From Mambo to Hip Hop was featured in the Latino Public Broadcasting series, Voces in 2006-2007, and won an Alma Award for Best Documentary.