Shoe’s Black Book − Graffiti in the 1980s by Niels Shoe Meulman (Regular Edition)

Shoe’s Black Book − Graffiti in the 1980s by Niels Shoe Meulman offers a window into an artist’s formative years. Before the galleries, the recognition, his development as a typographer and founding the Calligraffiti art movement, there was this: a worn and relentless black book filled with tags, pieces and outlines.

Between 1985 and 1987, Niels Shoe Meulman (Amsterdam, 1967) documented his growth from wide-eyed newcomer to an artist who has fully developed his own style.

More than just a sketchbook, this black book is a testament to when Shoe tagged along with New York artists like Rammellzee, Dondi White and Keith Haring. It’s a record of learning: part diary, part playground, part testing ground. Here is a facsimile of a book that was stolen and mysteriously returned. But it’s also adorned: Shoe’s additional notes and sharp recollections bring the era into focus.

Each page captures graffiti knowledge, passed down mouth-to-mouth and hand-to-hand. Shoe’s Black Book is both document and artefact: immediate, unpolished, authentic. While other books record a culture, this one helped build it.

Note: Hand signed with a Shoe tag, which forms an integral part of the typographic cover design. 

Regular
Format: Paperback
Paperback cover: 8-page gatefold
Size: 24 × 33 cm
Extent: 232 pages
Publication date: 6 December 2025
Language: English
ISBN:9789083349343
Authors: Niels Shoe Meulman, Carlo McCormick
Editorial direction: Ferry van Zijderveld
Copy editing: Steve Korver
Design: UNDOG
Publisher: Ruyzdael Publishing (Amsterdam, Netherlands)