The 25 Greatest Australian Graffiti Writers

The Australian street art scene is on the rise. We've profiled Kid Zoom, who has had triumphant shows both home and abroad, and followed the fortunes of folks like Anthony Lister. With Young & Free: Contemporary Australian Street Art, they hit San Francisco this Summer alongside powerhouses MEGGS and DMOTE, proving the breadth of Australia's bustling scene.

These are the new stars though. And, Australian writers have been bombing trains and hitting walls since the 80's.

On Topsafe's recent trip to Sydney Australia, the guys had the good fortune to meet with Ozzie legend and top bloke, DMOTE. Here he gives us his top 25 writers in the history of graffiti in Australia. In his words, ""It would be hard to make any kind of numerical placements so I'm going to just mention them in no particular order and they're respective contributions."

The 25 Greatest Australian Graffiti Writers.

Adelaide's finest!

WINNER did not product a huge body of work. However, the quality was second to none in Sydney.

A master of the simple, JENO was the first person I saw in Australia to use a round cap to final a piece. Super clean, super funky!

The best and most prolific of the big four (AC, MSA, DMA, WCA) in Melbourne in the 80's and 90's. PRONTO kinged the trains with end to end throw ups and insides...

A true all rounder and master of the tool, SOFLES is changing the face of technical graffiti. He is the future!

BREAK is one of the most active and consistent train writers of the 90's, 2000's, and beyond. Unbreakable.

The blokes crushed it worldwide. They are the first of a new breed of Australian vandals.

There is no doubting KSINO's presence on the international scene in the '90s. The first true graffiti ambassador from Australia, KSINO made things happen.

KERUPT has always been there and never stopped, he continues to do the most and some of the best graffiti coming from Down Under.

The crazy PRINS is and was an amazing talent that forged ahead from what was expected. He created his own style of native wildstyle, truly original.

KADE, the "acid king", is the master of markers, handstyles and all things raw...

The funk style master is ever changing and evolving into the future. Scram is the Pied Piper of a band of talented Sydney style rats...

This infamous crew from Bondi boasted some of the best cars ever painted in the early '80s. They ran tough and ruled with an iron fist.

HAMS was way ahead of the game in the early 80's. Based in isolated Brisbane, by '84 his pieces were so refined that he was already miles ahead of the game.

The last true train king, PUZLE. He did them big, bad, and bold, full concept cars with all styes, all city. The WCA leader and major influence on his peers and the scene.

Some of the biggest, funkiest, most stylish true hip-hop heads in the game!

Part of the the FAB 4 crew in Sydney, CASIM is credited with being the first graffiti writer in Sydney and arguably in Australia. The first piece was "TRACER" in the domain. R.I.P.

Part of Melbourne's new wave, alongside NEW 2, TAME is DMA style king.

Here comes the new wave in Melbourne. Together with TAME, he took over with the funk, bringing the most accurate New York style of the eighties to Australia.

Melbourne's DUEL is a wildstyle technician. The multilayered B-Boy king is an early master, putting some of the most detailed burners on Melbourne's train system. Also, he was the first Australian to put paint on a New York subway car.

Part of the futuristic FAB4 crew in Sydney, STYLEZ was a master of color, technique, and handstyles. A huge influence on the culture from day one.

Noted as one of the original style masters of Melbourne and first to do it. True Wildstyle master.

Australia's original train king, JCEE achieved numbers in the hundreds while most other writers were no where close. He managed to pull off full color top to bottoms and whole cars when it seemed almost impossible. He's most famous for his running battle with detective andrews, and was head of the vandal squad in Sydney. R.I.P...

No other writer in Australia has achieved the fame and infamy that BANOS has managed. He's built an incomparable body of work. No doubt Australia's king of bombing.

Part of the a.k.a crew, and internationally recognised as a major player from as early on as 89' - after being mentioned in Phase 2's International Graffiti Times international style competition. Merda has always been ahead of the game with both style and concept, if there was anyone at the top it would have to go to him.