Biography

Born in 1955, Leonard Hilton McGurr aka Futura 2000 (also known as Futura) is an American graffiti artist from the very first generation who lives and works in New York.

Over the course of his career, he transitioned from making New York-based subway graffiti in the early 1970s, to exhibiting at Fun Gallery in the 1980s alongside major artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Kenny Scharf. He also went on to collaborate with the British punk band The Clash, designing their album art and performing live graffiti during their concerts which had a huge impact in Europe.

Futura 2000’s major contribution to Graffiti Art was the use of abstraction as an alternative to the classic letter work, a style of painting characterized by its blending of text and imagery. He therefore pioneered abstract street art, which has since become more popular. Today, the work of Futura 2000 can be found in the collections of the Museo de Arte Moderna di Bologna, the Musée de Vire in France, the Museum of the City of New York, as well as in many galleries and art fairs around the world.