Graffiti and New York City are inseparable. Regardless of how many security cameras are installed or other preventative measures enacted, there is no way to completely stop writers from leaving their names on surfaces across the expansive five boroughs. It’s a decades old tradition that not even rabid gentrification can cease. And in 2010, it’s good to see that walls, doors, street posts, and all reachable surfaces are still being hit up with style.

As an outsider who makes it back to NY every couple of years, I try to shoot as much graffiti as possible when I’m in town. On a quick weekend trip I found that there were a few areas that looked cleaned up and not so graf-saturated anymore (see Midtown), but overall, the city is still crushed. From Chinatown to Coney Island graffiti of all kinds is rocking—simple marker tags and big spray painted fill-ins alike.

Being in town so briefly, I really only touched the surface on what one can see walking through Manhattan, Brooklyn, or any borough really. But from what I did catch, it was fun seeing a mix of veteran locals up alongside determined out-of-towers making a name in the Mecca of modern graffiti. Here’s to keeping things colorful and not so pristine.

Words and photos by Max Herman