In this tutorial, we are going to take a look at building a solid foundation on developing graffiti pieces from a basic letter structure. This is a great starting point if you are just getting into graffiti art or simply want to refresh your memory on the essentials.
I hope you enjoy this guide and that it will give you some great tips to develop a sick personal style. Bare in mind, this is not the only way of designing graffiti letters. There are thousands of variations. This tutorial is based on my personal experience and observations of other artists.
1. Basic Letter Structure
In order to create amazing, “readable” letters, it is very important to study the basic construction upon which the letters are formed. Then, basic forms have to be broken down into blocks, which can later be manipulated in many different ways. I am going to use three examples to illustrate the whole process: D, A and S.
As you can see from the example above, the first step is deconstructing the letter into separate chunky blocks. Feel free to extend the blocks slightly past the border of the letters. Those extensions can later be used as additional style elements.
In this first step, make sure all the blocks are the same width. Having different widths throughout the letter can look really bad, especially if you are just starting out and don’t know much about building great letters.
Certain letters can be broken down in more than one way, for example creating another block instead of a curve. Feel free to experiment with different methods of breaking down letters into simple forms - this technique opens up lots of opportunities in letter construction.
2. Bending Basic Forms
The next step is more fun and involves bending the basic “blocks” in different directions to create cooler looking letter designs. There are many, many ways you can bend a letter, but always make sure you maintain the basic fundamental shape.
Bending forms gives your piece directionality and looks more pleasing to the eye. This is a basis for building great graffiti letters. At this stage, it is good to keep the intersections of lines visible as it helps with maintaining a good structure in next steps.
As previously mentioned, you can bend these blocks in a variety of ways, in more than one place. At this point, feel free to experiment with different widths throughout the “blocks” and get the feel of the letter.
3. Linking Letters Together
Once you are satisfied with the way your letters look, it is time to learn how to link letters together to create a full piece. I am going to demonstrate 2 main ways I use, which you can also see being used by the majority of other artists. The same techniques can also be used in building single letters, when attaching foundation blocks to each other.
The first, most common way, of linking letters is by removing parts of the line and combining letters into “one shape”. When you use this method, sharpen the tip of the line so it looks more smooth.
The second method involves overlaying letters. What I like to do when placing letters on top of each other, is adding a little shadow underneath the letter that is on top. This depends on the position of your light source, which I will explain in more detail in future tutorials.
4. Adding Style Elements
Once you are happy with your letters, it is time to add some additional elements to the letter structure. The type of elements you add depends on the type of style you are aiming for. Whether you want to develop evil or cartoony-looking letters, whether you want your letters to be simple or intricate.
Here I am showing you some style elements in red. There are thousands of various forms, shapes, arrows, extensions, corners you can add to the basic letter structure. Research other peoples’ work for ideas and try to come up with your own unique style additions - freestyle it.
I really love to use Pinterest when I feel like I am super stuck and need some inspiration. It is easy to find graffiti artists from all over the world nowadays, with the availability of the internet, but it can be overwhelming at times.
5. Flow
In order to make your piece look great, you have to have some kind of a flow to your letters. There are two main ways to make your graffiti look like complete piece of work: having reoccurring elements throughout the piece and bending letters in similar ways.
In this example, I have used different colour circles to show you how certain elements repeat throughout the piece, making the whole thing nicer and creating flow. Also, notice that letters tend to bend in a similar fashion.
Another way of creating flow, that lots of writers use, is having some proportions in place before sketching out your piece. This is by no means necessary, however I have liked using it in my recent pieces as it creates an eye-pleasing effect. You can experiment with this technique by creating different proportions, eg. a pyramid structure, upside-down pyramid, letters getting gradually bigger/smaller.
The arrows on the piece show a direction the letters are going in. This is another way of making your letters have a “flow” and look great!
6. Inspiration
The availability of internet at your fingertips opens up a massive pool of ideas for inspiration and style development. There is no longer a need to buy magazines, travel to different cities to see new styles.
The internet is packed with pictures of graffiti pieces, alphabets, calligraphy which can all be used to your advantage. Some of my favourite platforms for gathering ideas are: Pinterest, Instagram, Flickr, Bombing Science. Some of these platforms are also great for collaborating with other artists, meeting other writers and forming a crew.
Explore calligraphy as it is an amazing source of inspiration. You can get valuable insights on bending your basic letter structure, extending “blocks” and adding additional elements that look amazing. Also, Dafont is a great website, storing thousands of different fonts for you to get insights into letter design.
Here is an example of a piece using the calligraphy alphabet from the previous image. As you can see, the letter structure is borrowed from the font, however adding my own details has made it look unique and in line with my personal style.
Conclusion
Stop using overrated graffiti creators and put in some time and effort into developing your own style. The satisfaction you get from finishing a piece is indescribable! Even if you spend 20 minutes a day sketching, in a year or so, you will see amazing results. Also, don’t forget to get out there and paint with real spray paint, it takes several years to gain a good level of can-control.
This tutorial is by no means an ultimate guide on drawing graffiti letters. The guide was created based on my own perception of how great letters are formed, and through observing many other artists from all walks of life.
Thank you for taking your time to read this tutorial. Stay tuned for more guides such as colour combinations, 3D effects and more!