Kailan Thomas

I took these photos a year ago today for my brother knewk in memoriam for his mentor and close friend Whyoh. Admittedly I put off editing them for awhile, 1 because I wasn’t confident enough in my ability to give these photos the shine that they deserved and 2, I wanted to figure out how to properly articulate my respects for the deceased. After sitting on these photos for a year, I thought it was finally time to sit down and share these photos for knewk and in memory of the late, great Whyoh. While I’ve only met Whyoh a handful of times, I’d known about him for years growing up in Santa Fe, as a hugely influential figure in the New Mexican graff scene. TYO, the graff crew created by Whyoh, was heavily respected in my city not only because of the massive talent in the crew, but also for the work they put in to get seen. Every graffiti writer I encountered growing up had a lot of respect for Whyoh and TYO, including knewk, who was just a young, ambitious artist at the time of me meeting him. After watching and being influenced by the crew over the years, knewk made it one of his main goals in art to be apart of the crew and to paint along side Whyoh. Knewk eventually reached this goal at the young age of 17, making him the youngest member of TYO, and it was beautiful to watch him flourish as an artist under the wings of Whyoh. Whyoh was an incredible mentor to a young knewk, not only because of the confidence he inspired, but also because of his genuineness and humbleness he expressed to everyone that he met in his life. Whyoh was very real and honest, never switched up how he talked to people, treated everyone the same no matter who you were or where you came from, and was always there for the love of the art. His legacy has impacted many not only because of his talent, but also for his great attributes and ability to inspire those who surrounded him. My only goals from taking these photos is to spread the legacy of the man behind the art and to properly pay homage to a true graffiti legend. This one’s for you Whyoh, may you rest in peace and may your art continue to inspire young writers for years to come.
Art by @black.and.chrome
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#RIPWHYOH #TYO