Possibly, the biggest mistake one can make is to start justifying, comparing, creating a mental list of names, or trying to compensate against their male counterparts. But let’s make a short roll call just to put it into perspective that women are and were there in Hip Hop culture from the beginning. Lady Pink, Roxanne Shante, Queen Latifa, Monie Love, Martha Cooper, Cora E, Musa, Utah, Merlot, Mad C, just to name a very few. It is important to acknowledge that in every town, city, country and continent, there is a massive unwritten list of female talent just waiting to have a light shone upon them. And therein lies the concept for the German allfemale group, “SISTERHOOD” (Girls Go Graffiti). To shine the light on their fellow creators of female orientation who are equally as talented and productive as any other male creators in the media spotlight. In their own words, “Graffiti is rebellion, perfection, thrill seeking, expression and much more: for example, male-dominated. Still, women are part of this subculture”. Which is exactly what their mission is in their self-funded, self-created, and self-organized exhibition concept of the same name; “SISTERHOOD Girls Go Graffiti”. To put the spotlight on their fellow female creative achievers and bridge the gender gaps in a male-dominated culture that they too are an important part of. Active on bricks, streets, and steel, the girls make art that not only catches the eye but engages the brain as well. ↓ No different from their male colleagues, the girls in the SIS- TERHOOD are active in all disciplines of graffiti. ↑ Creeping, watching, and waiting. The SIS- TERHOOD knows how the game works, and above all they know how to play it. To be more exact, the names behind the masks are Antje, Amrei, Alva and Katje. With a network spanning over the whole globe, with just a small reach out to the next sister, the endless pool of available skill sets enables them to achieve a multi-facet of creative activities. Some of them including film making, sound production, product creation and sales, musical event organization, graphic design, artwork, and of course, all disciplines of graffiti. But let’s get back to the important part that connects us all, GRAFFITI. No strangers to a Montana BLACK or GOLD can, SISTERHOOD has all the bases covered in the disciplines of graffiti. Active on bricks, streets, and steel, the girls make art that not only catches the eye but engages the brain as well. And if the viewer is female, then the value is heightened as selfconfidence, self-reflection, and positive messages of self-acceptance are always on offer. With the number or size of the female writing community uncertain, we took the opportunity to speak to the SISTERHOOD to try and see if they could school us some more. Here is what they had to say: 126 Street Report / Interview Sisterhood
MONTANA-CANS Most, if not all of you have been active writers so long that you would be judged by your peers on the quality of your work, and not your gender (we hope). Were there any specific moments or turning points that made your creative focus have a feminist tendency, or do you feel like it was a topic from the beginning you have been tackling all the way? SISTERHOOD The backgrounds and creative careers of the women in our group vary. Some of us have already dealt with feminism before we even started painting and sometimes started from concrete political contexts. Others were involved with graffiti first. Over time, we have all understood the importance of networking with other women to approach the societal phenomenon of sexism in solidarity. Graffiti and the accompanying play with letters is always a guideline for us. Which we accept and is inevitable if we want to paint graffiti. MC Do you all cross over into the other disciplines of graffiti, or do the members of your collective all have certain avenues they specialize in? (e.g. street bombing, pieces, trains, freights etc.) SH We all have different paths and all of us have our disciplines within graffiti where it is the most fun. We live out most of our creativity on the rails and in the streets. But graffiti is more than just that as it is so diverse. Therefore, we also networked with women from different disciplines for the exhibition. MC Is classic style writing and street graffiti as we see it online (dominated by the exposure of male artists) inspirational for you? Or do you go to other sources for your own inspiration? Is it even relavent if a male did or did not create something you like? SH For us, it is irrelevant who created the picture. People’s pictures, regardless of female or male, who we know or like due to their attitude, we celebrate the most. In the beginning, we had mostly male role models when it came to style, but also because in the beginning you never knew for sure whether an artist was male or female. Today we are even more inspired by women who have managed to push their way through. ↑ More than just a graffiti crew, the SISTERHOOD is also involved with the development of varying forms of art and creativity and the making of their own products. MC Is the topic of feminism, or developing the female status within creative culture the most important aspect in the creation of your artworks, or does ‘graffiti’ and its unwritten agenda (style, letters, innovation, competition etc.) come first however offering you an outlet to convey other messages? SH Graffiti and the accompanying play with letters is always a guideline for us. Which we accept and is inevitable if we want to paint graffiti. After some of us had only painted our alter ego names for several years, the combination of political and feminist messages as a group, brought us important new input and energy. This is how we want to reach other people and try to make them think. MC Does your group reach out to other female artists who are not yet involved to broaden the network? Or do the other female artists come to you to be part of it? Street Report / Interview Sisterhood 127
