Since 2002 (updated often), your old-school website for all things stencils. Photo, video, links, and exhibit info submissions always welcome. Enjoy and stay curious.
Donate any amount to support this DIY site.
Buy Stencil Nation or take a tour
Our best photos on Instagram and flickr.
Chris Stain: June Projects
Ad Hoc Art gallery has set up legal window murals in downtown Brooklyn which I will be participating in along with many others. An ambitious creative venture featuring an entire block of downtown Brooklyn consisting of 13 storefronts with 13 awnings/signs which will highlight installations by 13+ artists.
The opening will be a street party on Friday, June 19th, from 12 noon to 4pm.
Participating artists:
Chris Stain, Christopher Cardinale, Cycle, Dennis McNett, Ellis G, Gaia, Josh MacPhee, Lady Pink, Logan Hicks, Michael De Feo, Mike Houston & Martin Mazorra, Morning Breath, Nathan Lee Pickett
Hella Tight Stencil Archive Uploads
Thanks for all your patience on getting the uploads onto the Stencil Archives. Included are my snaps from the Cali Tour, along with submissions from Asia to Europe. Larry Jones, a documentor, has begun to submit some of his snaps from across the world as well....
From The Cali Tour
- Arizona
- Los Angeles
- Southern Cal (Oceanside, San Diego, and beyond)
- UCSD (the famous graff hall)
- Northern Cal (Sacto, Davis, and beyond)
Artists from all over
- S. (sick abstract stuff from Culver City)
- Koleszar
- Xsacto
- Chase
- Submit (Draw Me!)
- Love Hope (Indonesia)
- nabsky
- Banksy (a series of pics showing his defaced/restored Bristol mural)
- spank (included multiple shots due to his stenciling an optical illusion)
- eclair
- Adam5100 for Stencilada
Everything else
- IL, USA
- OH, USA (thanks Larry)
- ES (thanks Larry)
- CZ (thanks Pod)
- UK (thanks cc)
- Stencil Nation (skillshare!)
- Valencia St., SF
- Castro District, SF
- Haight St., SF
Stencil Chile
KALW Interview Today (May 14)
you can download it here
you can stream it here
Penny Nelson sat me down for some stencil geeking this morning for KALW's Cross Currents news show. The interview begins about 3 and half minutes in. The original interview was 20 minutes long so they cut things up for the 10 minute segment. Funny that they kind of threw in the Zero Graffiti comment I made. Yep. Good luck on that SF Gov't......
3fala (PL)
The team 3Fala was born in 1998 in Bielsko-Biała in the southern part of Poland. But we began our adventure with graffiti much earlier. In the second half of 1980s stencils appeared with political, ecological and antimilitary messages.
In that time some of us Already run on streets painting their pictures on walls.
Larry Jones Photography
1967 Mad Follies Stencil Special
xSacto sends another historical stencil artifact. Mad Magazine inserted about a dozen stencils in their fifth Mad Follies (1967), with illustrated instructions by Al Jaffee. The illustrations encouraged kids to alter signs, dupe adults, and create mischief with the cut outs. Oddly enough, I found a stencil of Alfred E. Neuman up on Haight St. a few weeks ago that was made from this 40+ year old stencil!
Early 20th Cent. Stenciling Machines
xSacto is always submitting stencil oddities and artifacts.
Here's a link to the Office Museum's page of "Antique Mailroom Machines"
Scroll down a bit and you'll find the "Elliott Stenciling Machines"