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COPE2 : three new paintings between Bronx, graffiti, and New York subway
Three new original works by COPE2 join Galerie 125: two paintings on canvas from the series Bronx Legend and a work created on an authentic New York City subway map.
With "Bronx Legend 2," "Bronx Legend 3," and "New York Subway Map 09," the universe of the American artist is immediately recognizable: explosive colors, dynamic lines, lettering, and direct references to New York's graffiti culture.
Three works that primarily showcase the work of COPE2 on two very different mediums: canvas, a traditional support of contemporary art, and the subway map, closely linked to the history of New York graffiti.
COPE2, a historical figure of New York graffiti
Originally from the Bronx, New York, COPE2 is part of the history of American graffiti.
His work was shaped in the urban environment of New York, influenced by the walls, streets, and subway culture that played a crucial role in the development of graffiti in New York.
Over the years, his name and writing become inseparable from his artistic identity. Tags, throw-ups, lettering, and colorful compositions form a graphic vocabulary that he gradually transposes onto various media.
Today, the work of COPE2 is at the intersection of historical graffiti, Street Art and contemporary art, while maintaining a strong connection to its New York origins.
From the Bronx to Grand Theft Auto IV
The influence of COPE2 extends far beyond the Bronx walls and the gallery world. His work has also permeated popular culture and the video game universe.
COPE2 is notably among the graffiti artists whose work appears in Grand Theft Auto IV, the famous Rockstar Games release from 2008. The artist is officially credited among the graffiti artists in the game.
In the streets of Liberty City, a fictional city inspired by New York, one can find graffiti associated with COPE2 and his famous COPE lettering.
This presence in GTA IV is particularly coherent with his career: the game's universe is largely inspired by New York's urban culture, with graffiti being an essential component.
COPE2 also appears in the video game Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure, entirely dedicated to graffiti culture.
From New York subway culture to GTA's virtual walls, then from the street to contemporary art galleries, COPE2 thus contributed to introducing New York graffiti aesthetics into a much broader culture.
"Bronx Legend 2": the energy of graffiti transposed onto canvas
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With "Bronx Legend 2," created in 2025, COPE2 develops a particularly dense and colorful composition.
Shapes overlap in a palette dominated by blue, turquoise, pink, orange, and black. Some lines directly evoke the spontaneity of graffiti, while other more geometric forms structure the whole.
The number 2, immediately visible in the upper part, also serves as an evident reminder of the artist's name.
This original acrylic painting on canvas measures 63 × 54 cm. It is countersigned and dated on the reverse.
The artwork is presented in a black American box frame, bringing its total dimensions to 70 × 61 cm. The black frame particularly highlights the bold colors of the composition.
"Bronx Legend 3": a more ethereal composition
Also created in 2025, "Bronx Legend 3" incorporates part of the graphic vocabulary of Bronx Legend 2, but in a different composition.
On this square canvas measuring 60 × 60 cm, COPE2 allows the forms to breathe more. Blue plays a significant role, serving as a background for various pink, green, black, white, and orange motifs.
The number 2 reappears, accompanied by lines and shapes that seem to float or intersect on the canvas surface.
This juxtaposition imparts a perpetual motion to the work, evoking the spontaneity of graffiti and urban painting.
Bronx Legend 3 is an original acrylic painting on canvas, countersigned and dated on the back. It is sold framed in a black American box frame measuring 67 × 67 cm.
"Bronx Legend": a title that directly refers to the roots of COPE2
The choice of the title "Bronx Legend" naturally takes on a particular dimension when associated with COPE2.
The Bronx holds a fundamental place in his journey and, more broadly, in the history of hip-hop culture and New York graffiti.
With these two paintings, the artist transposes onto canvas a visual language initially developed in the street. The colors, lines, and graphic signs become elements of contemporary painting while retaining the energy of urban culture.
Presented together, Bronx Legend 2 and Bronx Legend 3 work particularly well: they share the same chromatic universe while offering two independent compositions.
"New York Subway Map 09": painting directly on a New York subway map
The third work takes us even more directly to New York.
Created in 2026, "New York Subway Map 09" is an original painting executed on an authentic New York subway map measuring 82.5 × 58 cm.
COPE2 uses a mixed technique combining acrylic and spray paint.
Unlike the two canvases Bronx Legend, the support thus becomes an integral part of the artwork.
The lines, stations, and geographic indications of the New York network remain visible under certain parts of the painting. They blend with the tags, colors, and various gestures added by the artist.
The metro map, a symbolic medium in graffiti history
Choosing a New York subway map is no coincidence for an artist from graffiti culture.
The New York rail network is closely linked to the graffiti history of the 1970s and 1980s. Subway trains became iconic canvases for writers to spread their signatures and artworks throughout the city.
Working today on an authentic New York Subway Map, COPE2 creates an immediate link between his contemporary work and this history.
The map is no longer just a background: its lines and typography become elements of the composition.
Tags, colors and accumulation: the graphic universe of COPE2
In New York Subway Map 09, the composition is intentionally more raw than in the two canvases.
The inscriptions overlap. The colors appear to have been applied successively, as they might be on an urban wall covered over time.
We also distinguish "Bronx" and "NYC," two references that immediately situate the work in its New York environment.
This accumulation of paint, signs, and tags contrasts with the precision of the printed plan beneath.
It is precisely this encounter between a real New York object and the personal graphic language of COPE2 which imparts the work its character.
From the street to the gallery: COPE2 between graffiti and Street Art
These three new paintings also allow us to observe the evolution of graffiti as it transitions from urban spaces to collections.
On the two canvases Bronx Legend, , COPE2 adapts his vocabulary to a traditional medium. With New York Subway Map 09, on the contrary, it retains a medium directly associated with the city and its history.
In both cases, the identity of New York graffiti remains very present.
COPE2 belongs to those artists who have helped bridge graffiti, Street Art, hip-hop culture, and contemporary art.
Three new original works by COPE2 at Galerie 125
Galerie 125 now presents these three new original works by COPE2 :
"Bronx Legend 2," acrylic on canvas, 63 × 54 cm, 2025, in black floater frame; "Bronx Legend 3," acrylic on canvas, 60 × 60 cm, 2025, also framed; and "New York Subway Map 09," mixed media on genuine New York subway map, 82.5 × 58 cm, 2026.
Three creations that bring together several essential elements of the universe of COPE2 : New York, the Bronx, graffiti, the subway, Street Art, and contemporary painting.
These three original works by COPE2 are available at Galerie 125. Click HERE.