Gans, FIA Crew: «We reclaimed urban space through sabotage and transgression»

Photo credits: Clark, Secse, Spice

Hi Gans, it’s truly an honor for us to ask you a few questions—during the era we grew up in (the 2000s), your name was everywhere in Milan and we idolized iconic crews like VDS and FIA. Can you tell us how you got into Hip-Hop and Graffiti culture and your first steps in the scene with spray cans? Was there someone in particular who introduced you?

Hey guys, the pleasure’s mine, and thanks for the invite. First off, props for your magazine and for pushing all 4 disciplines! I started tagging when I was around 14 or 15 thanks to a Roman writer named Urlo. it was 1995. In fact, I was born in Rome to Roman parents and I often spent time in the capital, even though I never actually lived there.

My aunt in Testaccio and my grandma on Via Nomentana would host me when I was a kid, and I’d hang out with my childhood friends—a group of kids who spent their summers at Circeo, a seaside town where I used to go every year. Urlo was a close friend and he introduced me to everything: tags, bombing, trains, crews, b-boys, flygirls, etc. etc.

How did your tag “GANS” come about — both in name and style? Has it evolved over time? And what were your favorite surfaces (walls, metal, platforms, gates, shutters, etc.) to tag on, and with which “tool of the trade”?

Urlo actually suggested my first tag: “Ganjah” 🤣… I had no idea what it meant. But I liked the letters and the vibe, so I kept it for a while. Keep in mind this was 30 years ago—no internet, and very little info out there, so it was easy to make rookie mistakes. At the time I didn’t know much. In Rome I’d see pieces by MT2 and ETC, and tons of foreigners passing through… in Milan, CKC and DCN were super active and doing insane pieces. Stand from Rome used to blow my mind—getting to that level seemed completely impossible.

In Milan I lived in front of the French school, and there I met three local writers: Zink, Fackt, and Flun. We formed our first crew: OG (Original Gangster).I changed my tag to GAN for bombing and GANER for special occasions.

Zink had a basement at home that was like his den—and also a hub for writers. Through that spot, I met Shampoo and Dance from the SAD crew, who went to Boccioni high school and started hanging out with us. Up until then I was painting with Happy Color or cheap crap… Multona or Sparvar when I got lucky… but then Montana cans and pink fat caps arrived—so we really started having fun on all kinds of surfaces. That’s when I switched to the GANS tag.

Tell us about your encounter with VDS and any stories from that historic period? What was the scene like back then?

We really admired VDS and the Lordz of Vetra, who we met hanging around Piazza Vetra and Parco Sempione, their usual hangouts. I’ll tell you a story that sums up that era and the kind of encounters that were happening… At 18 years and 1 day old, I got my driver’s license (my parents never let me get a scooter, but promised me a car once I turned 18). One night I went to a full-blown 18th birthday party—jacket, shirt, dress shoes and all.

After midnight, I slipped away, met up with Sha, changed clothes in the street, and we jumped in the car (a gray Fiat Regata 70, FYI) and drove to San Donato, the yellow line depot, rumored to be impossible to paint (…) I’d had a bit too much to drink, so I threw up  before entering the yard. I remember Sha putting pink fat caps on the cans—we had to move fast. The depot was lit up like daylight and the trains were shining. I painted a panel (my first decent one), and Sha, if I remember right, did a top-to-bottom that ended up in Xplicit Grafix, probably the coolest zine at the time. After painting, we even broke into the driver’s cabin and sprayed the controls—a true act of vandalism 😇.

After the classic photo session, we left the yard hugging and hyped. The next Saturday at the Parco Sempione hill, I remember a few VDS guys came over to introduce themselves and give props… that’s how you “earned” friendship back then!

As a writer, my preference was always for trains and metal—FN/Metro/FS, I didn’t miss a thing. When I went to Rome, I’d hit trains there too—the flavor was totally different!
I’d meet up with Urlo’s crew, which had grown a lot… the Colosseum roundabout was a hangout spot for Roman writers.

There were Moke and Foot (later Reps), plus lots of other cool writers. With them we did lots of bombing missions and tag tours, which I didn’t really do in Milan. At the Tuscolano yard we’d paint FS trains by day, with the Roman aqueduct in view. At Anagnina on metro line A we’d throw rocks at Gast, who basically lived in the yard. At night we’d bus it to the Lido line and sneak into the yard through tunnels in the woods. Back then, writing meant friendship, adventure, and life itself—everything! So many memorable encounters…

Speaking of Gast, funny story: after running into him in the yard around ‘99 (with rock fights and chases), I found him years later at a friend’s place in Milan… I opened the door and there he was!
He goes: “…that time, I got you, huh?” I laughed and we ended up chatting… He wanted to be a photographer at the time. I think we were both around 27 by then and had mellowed out a lot.

How did you join FIA and how did the Fuck It All crew come about?

The original FIA lineup was Dumbo, Shampoo, and Nenche. It grew with Risk and Rocks, and later other writers from our crew, both from Milan and elsewhere. I remember when it was my turn—they gave me a note that said: “You’re in, Gans!”

It was a huge joy and honor for me, especially since I’d never been part of VDS, who were a slightly older generation.

The golden years of FIA Crew were when Panda and Reps moved to Milan, Fenzy started writing Gees, and everyone was going all in. We were at our peak—we had grown up and were fully aware of what we were doing and what we were living through…A historic period of transition, when Milan was becoming a more international, open city—where encounters multiplied and everything seemed possible.

What do you think made you one of the most iconic crews in Italy, and what set you apart from the competition? Any stories?

What made FIA Crew special was mixing at least two generations of writers—not necessarily geographically close, but united by a radical, free approach to this art.

Tell us about the attitude of legendary members like Shampoo, Panda, Dumbo—and some wild adventures with them?

Our defining trait was a genuine excitement and joy in knowing we were doing something special, secret, and wonderfully pointless. It was about living life to the fullest every moment. Of course, there was competition, the desire to stand out, to be better than the rest and earn respect—not for talking big, but for objectively killing it in style and volume.

But we were also capable of great alliances—like with VMD, who I consider brothers. Together we stormed the green line warehouses with 20 writers or did the first wholetrains in tunnels. We often went beyond rivalries and were open to new ideas and collaborations with those who were open-minded.

You were at the top of the scene—but did you have any rivalries or feel in competition with anyone in particular?

As I said, rivalries definitely existed, and that’s normal. Over time, some were resolved or transformed, others stayed under the surface and pop up even after ice ages have passed. Not long ago I ran into an “old school” guy (no names 😅), a bit older than me, who’d already done a lot when I was just starting out…At one point he said: “…yeah, I get it, you guys were the bad ones…”. Maybe he was joking, but I sensed a hint of annoyance.

Gans was everywhere—walls and metal… Do you remember the first and last metro you painted? Any stories?

Oh, I remember perfectly! Funny enough, the first and last stories are connected. 

The first train I ever painted was a green line metro! One of those nights when we entered the green line depot with VMD—15 or 20 writers. It was 1996 or 1997, I can’t recall exactly…We were outside the depot and Neuro—kind of the organizer—would lay flat on the ground every time car headlights appeared, super anxious…Sha, meanwhile, fell asleep outside the fence 🤣 while waiting to go in—totally tired and not too concerned with consequences. That first time I did a terrible piece—three letters, no 3D, no lighting… too much anxiety!! But still, it’s a beautiful memory.

The last metro I did was in 2004 with Rocks, daytime, red line depot—fun! I remember we found a side door open, snuck in for about 30 minutes, and left with no issues. 

Lots of fun escape stories too—especially early on when I was a bit disorganized, I often had to run and all kinds of crazy stuff happened. Once I ran straight into a metal fence without seeing it—tore it down, got tangled in the wires, got back up, and kept running like there was no tomorrow.

Another time on the FN line, instead of running, I camouflaged myself in a train door—the guards passed just 50 cm from me and somehow didn’t see me. I think I held my breath for five minutes. Later, I got to my friend’s car—no one else was there, but luckily the door was open, so I got in and fell asleep waiting.
After a while I stepped out and saw all four tires were flat! The security had figured out it was our car and slashed the tires… no one dared approach it, afraid of getting caught. I had no idea! Eventually I found the crew again and we made it home safe and sound, as they say.

I also had fun painting abroad—especially during a year living in Shanghai, China. With my friend Oboe and a French writer, Dezio, we’d paint crazy spots using 50-cent spray cans from Chinese hardware stores. It was 2009 and graffiti was still rare there, so our tours had a pioneering feel. We painted during the day, undisturbed, and the locals were super curious.

Sicuramente ti capita anche oggi di vedere pannelli, throwup, tag e pezzi vari in giro per la città…la scena del writing è ancora attiva…Cosa pensi quando vedi ragazzi che continuano nel solco di quello che avete fatto voi, dello stato di questa cultura oggi e dell’evoluzione dello stile se mai c’è stata?

Vedere che i graffiti continuano ad esistere, a svilupparsi ed evolversi in maniere anche inaspettate mi fa piacere e mi interessa. Penso che sia naturale che ci sia un’evoluzione nelle cose anzi vorrei che fosse ancora maggiore, e tutto sommato mi fa piacere comunque vedere che questa cosa è ancora popolare tra le nuove generazioni. I graffiti sono ancora qualcosa di sufficientemente concreto e sufficientemente astratto per impegnare positivamente le menti giovani e affamate, per imparare ad avere una cognizione di sé, a prescindere dal proprio ceto sociale. Una volta un writer romano disse“….nella vita di tutti i giorni sei quello che sei..ma nei graffiti puoi essere quello che vuoi”. Ed è proprio così: è questa la magia.

Many writers have evolved, experimented, or radically changed their artistic approach, moving to legal and commercial channels. What’s your point of view, and how has your artistic approach changed today? Have you explored new mediums, techniques, or diffusion channels?

I experimented a lot in graffiti… I think my style is quite eclectic. My pieces are very different from one another—because what I enjoy most is experimenting, even if the results can sometimes be jarring. Anyone doing art can’t afford to be repetitive or self-referential: better to be quirky than repetitive.

What graffiti gave me—besides an enormous social network and a broader worldview—is the ability to see the city and its infrastructure differently: not as abandoned shells, barriers or ghettos, but as aesthetic and social opportunities. What we did as writers, even unconsciously, was to intervene in the landscape—reclaiming urban space through sabotage and transgression.

Today I work as an architect, and that deep understanding of the city is a huge asset. So in a way, these experiences have merged and continue in what I do professionally now.

Shoutout to my crew FIA and all the friends: VDS, TAK, GR, RNS, MDF, SAD, LORDZ, VMD, GRUPPO OK, OAS, BN, CTO, BBS, TRL!

A special thanks to Dj Rash – VDS