I am confident that, in terms of creation, I can be part of a process that will change and evolve over time. And it's pervasive and inspiring when there is a person's personality, energy and message behind a style.

How long have you been painting?

I've had a passion for graffiti since I was a child. I was introduced to the genre when I was in primary school, and I was completely captivated by it. I remember at the time I did a Punk's not Dead graffiti on the outside facade of a chemistry lecture theatre (funny memory) 😀 It was my first experience of graffiti. As a kid from Dunaújváros, it was only through the worn pages of a photocopied Writecore magazine that I filtered through what was going on in the graffiti world in Budapest at the time. I might add that in the mid to late 90s we had some really cool stuff (Dpq, Vsd, R.I.P Longi Brada) that inspired me as well. At that time I had a couple of weak attempts with prisms and neolux paints, but the story quickly ran its course.

The love for the genre was still present in my life after that, but I was just an enthusiastic observer. Mostly I drew for myself and shared them only with a very small circle of people. I have been active in legal graffiti since about 2020. Looking back, I can see that I was sufficiently starved to create. I became addicted to it practically while being completely liberated. 

Where did the stage name come from? 

I spontaneously came up with the name (Raw) while sketching and liked its simplicity. It's also an association with a prehistoric natural state. To me it means... 

How did your style evolve and what would you call it?

I am confident that, in terms of creation, I can be part of a process that will change and evolve over time. At the moment, figurative things are probably closer to me, so I would say it's more of an illustrative style that I'm experimenting with. Lately I've been really into relief calligraphy type styles. I'm trying to do some of that... 

What inspires you to create?

The others from home anyway! By the way, moods, shapes, colour relationships, memories, eras, everything that has energy in it is inspiring. Foreigners who have shown that the impossible is possible: Maclaim, Belin, Peeta, Daim, Scribe, Brusk... 

A sense of liberation and living in the moment motivates...
When I can just paint without expectations, it's always liberating! That's the state I'm looking for... 

Is there a graffiti group you are a member of? 

None. 

Illegal or legal painting?

Absolutely legal, but I prefer secluded, secluded places. I like it when the approach to a place is more like hiking. And run-down factory buildings have a special atmosphere. For some reason, I always feel at home in those places. As a New Towner, perhaps that's not so surprising. 😀 

Do you see graffiti as a hobby or a livelihood?

For me, graffiti is a passion... If there's an opportunity to paint on commission, I'm happy to do it. I have been approached and asked to do some decorative work for a graffiti session. There have been other requests, but I have not yet invested the energy to advertise myself. I think that will change in the future. The last period has certainly confirmed that I can even think of painting as an additional source of income.

Has there ever been a part of your life that made you feel like putting down the kettle for good?

It was not! I'm glad I picked it up. 😀 I can't think of a reason why I should stop! 

What would have happened if you didn't grab a can at the time? What would you do? 

I don't know... If I could have a fiction like that :D... Maybe making music is something I would have loved to do, but it's just been out of my life. If I had gone in such a direction, I might have been playing bass in a Hc/Punk or some deep Progressive Metal, Stoner or Grunge band or beating the drums at a rehearsal in some remote factory building. 😀 I could also be tinkering with bursty electronic music. 😀 

I'm lazy, superficial and scattered enough to focus on more than one thing... I admire people who can make music while painting or whatever else they do. 

 What do you think about graffiti? 

Regardless of quality, the stuff left in town and on the lines means a lot to me. It's like some urban design that surrounds us (there's always something out there to read or decipher:D) What we mean by "graffiti" has a special charm. And it's pervasive and inspiring when there's a person's personality, energy and message behind a style. For me graffiti has given me a lot, an identity, later goals, an openness to graphics and painting. 

What I see is that, in the face of legal graffiti, lay people are also very receptive. 

How do you see the current situation of the subculture here in Hungary? What has this subculture given you over the years? 

I've only been active for a couple of years and I don't have much insight into the subculture. I also feel a bit like an outsider. But recently I have made friends and acquaintances from here who I think of fondly. I'm glad that there are events where we can open up to each other. It would be great if in the future there were more events to promote the genre. If there are any events that I can sign up for or maybe get invited to, I'll try to attend. 

In the spring I was at the inauguration of the Gasworks Legal Wall in Óbuda, a 2-day event. And in the summer there was a 3-day competition at the Beat festival, where the team was so close by the end, it was like we were on a camping trip. In June, my fellow artist Nemk and I did a set at the opening of the Bókay skatepark. Thanks to All Caps for organizing and sponsoring these!

It's also great that there are targeted exhibitions at the Unmute Gallery that also promote graffiti and bring people together who love the genre. Thanks to Molotow Hungary, they also organized a Jam at Fila, where we painted according to a given concept. Thanks to Suber, we also had the opportunity to create at FesztRap in Koho, where we painted characters with Meyo. Uncompromising also organized a party in Dabas in the summer, where we blew with Grino and Manga. 

There have been several smaller and bigger events this year, workshops, jams and events, but I was able to attend them personally. I think that such events are always a way forward; hostility, rivalry, compensation is not... 

Most memorable blowout?

Blowouts over several days are always more memorable, but I'd rather share a story about an order, because it's funny in retrospect. I painted fantasy figures for the entrance to an arcade in the stairwell of a shop. Behind me down the hall was a beauty salon. I could see the surprise on the faces of the people working there when they were confronted with what I had to create in the building. I actually painted a devil on the wall with big horns. Saaaatttaaannn 😀 

From one day to the next, a sickly stench began to spread upstairs. It turned out that next door to me was the warehouse of a pet shop where they keep pre-packaged frozen mice for snakes. A malfunction caused the freezer to break and thaw with the food inside. The smell of carrion permeated everything, I remember it getting dark outside and the spotlight shining on the wall half illuminating the demon character's face. There was a look that had flies buzzing in front of it. I wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. Plus, the owner was out of town and they couldn't clean the warehouse until the next day. There was a big uproar in the stairwell... 

As if I had created this situation. :D:D:D:D There was another shop up there that was laughing their heads off. I still have mixed feelings about this order :D:D:D:D 

What message would you give to people who are just getting into the genre?

I think that screwed up drawings and "mistakes" give me the opportunity to learn from them. 90% of my sketches end up in the trash, and the other 10% often end up in the not as they should have been category. 😀 Measured against myself, I can be satisfied. Expecting too much of myself only limits and blocks me. When I let go of those, I can come to the liberation of actually doing this. 

The way things work for me is that I like to think about the solutions I can use to paint something. I make sketches and plans, but I also try to rely on intuition and "coincidences"... I don't usually look for subjects, sometimes they just come to me. Sometimes it is very difficult to fit e.g. a 2-day painting session into a weekend, in which case we may already be tired when we go out to a location. But once you're in the painting the feeling of being tired overrides the tiredness. Oh and of course it's definitely about the present, on legal walls the drawings come and go...

I think I definitely need perseverance and humility towards the genre.
I could also recommend this to those who are just starting out. 

Who would you thank for making you stick to your art?

For a scribbling experience on Erzsiline:D:D:D:D... Pop, Olay, Roer, Tiyo and Bak (R.I.P)

I have received a lot of help from Grino and Manga recently. I thank Meyo for her attitude and her example. Ogrenek to Lali-Hop 😀

Thanks to Nemk for the authenticity, I would send him the song "Train is not waiting" with much love. 😀 To Tonik for the traps motivation and for being such a good face. 😀 Thanks Teos and Kons for sharing stuff. 

Yo! Thanks anno for the inspiration and recent encouragement Makk!