In June 2025, less than two weeks before the opening of Miss Subway NYC at D’Stassi Art, the inaugural plaza mural commission at MoMA PS1 debuted with Lady Pink's ‘Foundations’. The work is an homage to 5Pointz, the renowned graffiti mecca that once stood opposite the mural, before being destroyed in 2013. The mural is composed of a large brick foot emblazoned with the tags of legendary graffiti artists, set against a backdrop of the NYC skyline and 7 train; iconic imagery which make up the parts of Pink visual vocabulary. These motifs present a tapestry of her life and influences throughout many of her works, creating a dense richness which can be examined throughout Pink’s nearly 5 decade long decade career.
Lady Pink (Sandra Fabara) was born in Ambato, Ecuador, in 1964 and spent her early childhood living in her family's plantation in the rainforest. This environment has had a lasting impact on Pink, with lush natural scenes full of bright colours weaving through some of her most iconic works, perhaps most notably her Subway Village series. These organic elements are often in contention with gritty urban environments; brick walls, train lines and the New York City skyline. At the age of seven, her life took a dramatic turn when she emigrated to New York City with her mother and sister. Arriving at JFK in the early 1970s and settling near present-day Williamsburg, she was suddenly immersed in an urban world of snow and elevated trains.
In her early teens, living in Astoria, Queens, art and emotion collided. When Pink’s first boyfriend was sent to Puerto Rico, she began tagging his name - “Koke” - around school as a tribute. A friend named Kai, acting as her first master, taught her the foundational principles of graffiti: that style (how one writes, not just what) is the true mark of respect. Each borough had their own specific style - Brooklyn has very large bubbly letters with small legs to them, Bronx is more bold, the first letter much smaller than the last - to be practiced and mastered.
Pink quickly gained credibility from her male peers for both her artistic capabilities and willingness to keep up with them whilst tagging subway trains. The graffiti scene at the time was dominated by male artists, and although not the first female painting on the scene, Pink quickly became one of the most prolific and visible, earning the title ‘First Lady of Graffiti,’ When Street Art started to be picked up by galleries in the early 1980s, her work was often included, somewhat tokenistically.
The mural at PS1 comes as a full circle moment for Pink, as a space where she exhibited in New York / New Wave (1981) at the age of 17. Her work was shown alongside some of the most recognisable names in street art today; Keith Haring, Jean Michel-Basquiat (whose own presentation Lady Pink remembers contributing to by walking through one his paintings barefoot) and Kenny Scharf amongst around 100 other artists. Her star continued to rise after starring in the cult-hit movie ‘WildStyle’ alongside then-boyfriend Lee Quinones. Pink moved away from painting on the street, preferring to focus on the safer framework of exhibiting in galleries.
Despite this evolution, Pink never strayed far from her preferred medium - spray paint. Spray paint remains at the core of her work, prized for its speed, freedom, and physicality. Pink now passes this knowledge down during mural workshops and lectures worldwide. She often cites the next generation as a continued source of inspiration in her ongoing artistic practice.
In June 2025, less than two weeks before the opening of Miss Subway NYC at D’Stassi Art, the inaugural plaza mural commission at MoMA PS1 debuted with Lady Pink's ‘Foundations’. The work is an homage to 5Pointz, the renowned graffiti mecca that once stood opposite the mural, before being destroyed in 2013. The mural is composed of a large brick foot emblazoned with the tags of legendary graffiti artists, set against a backdrop of the NYC skyline and 7 train; iconic imagery which make up the parts of Pink visual vocabulary. These motifs present a tapestry of her life and influences throughout many of her works, creating a dense richness which can be examined throughout Pink’s nearly 5 decade long decade career.
Lady Pink (Sandra Fabara) was born in Ambato, Ecuador, in 1964 and spent her early childhood living in her family's plantation in the rainforest. This environment has had a lasting impact on Pink, with lush natural scenes full of bright colours weaving through some of her most iconic works, perhaps most notably her Subway Village series. These organic elements are often in contention with gritty urban environments; brick walls, train lines and the New York City skyline. At the age of seven, her life took a dramatic turn when she emigrated to New York City with her mother and sister. Arriving at JFK in the early 1970s and settling near present-day Williamsburg, she was suddenly immersed in an urban world of snow and elevated trains.
In her early teens, living in Astoria, Queens, art and emotion collided. When Pink’s first boyfriend was sent to Puerto Rico, she began tagging his name - “Koke” - around school as a tribute. A friend named Kai, acting as her first master, taught her the foundational principles of graffiti: that style (how one writes, not just what) is the true mark of respect. Each borough had their own specific style - Brooklyn has very large bubbly letters with small legs to them, Bronx is more bold, the first letter much smaller than the last - to be practiced and mastered.
Pink quickly gained credibility from her male peers for both her artistic capabilities and willingness to keep up with them whilst tagging subway trains. The graffiti scene at the time was dominated by male artists, and although not the first female painting on the scene, Pink quickly became one of the most prolific and visible, earning the title ‘First Lady of Graffiti,’ When Street Art started to be picked up by galleries in the early 1980s, her work was often included, somewhat tokenistically.
The mural at PS1 comes as a full circle moment for Pink, as a space where she exhibited in New York / New Wave (1981) at the age of 17. Her work was shown alongside some of the most recognisable names in street art today; Keith Haring, Jean Michel-Basquiat (whose own presentation Lady Pink remembers contributing to by walking through one his paintings barefoot) and Kenny Scharf amongst around 100 other artists. Her star continued to rise after starring in the cult-hit movie ‘WildStyle’ alongside then-boyfriend Lee Quinones. Pink moved away from painting on the street, preferring to focus on the safer framework of exhibiting in galleries.
Despite this evolution, Pink never strayed far from her preferred medium - spray paint. Spray paint remains at the core of her work, prized for its speed, freedom, and physicality. Pink now passes this knowledge down during mural workshops and lectures worldwide. She often cites the next generation as a continued source of inspiration in her ongoing artistic practice.