Improv History

Bebop & Graffiti — To celebrate the release of Huck #42 - The Improv Issue we got deep into the history of our favourite improvised art forms.

Spontaneity and free expression are at the heart of everything we love here at Huck. Since the mag started, we’ve been scouring the globe to find the raddest people doing their own thing in their own way: making it up as they go along. With the improv issue, we thought it was long overdue to trace the bloodlines back and celebrate the pioneers who laid the groundwork for all of the dope shit that we enjoy today.

Bebop Jazz


Bebop came forth screaming a new individualism that radically challenged the conformism of America’s post-war society. The unforgettable opium-infused sound was the most revolutionary music to come out of black America to date and elevated the role of improvisation to new heights. It was beautiful but angry music that explicitly challenged racial oppression. For Ralph Ellison, Bebop “illuminated the blackness of my invisibility… the invisible music of my isolation.”

In this totally rad interview from an old BBC documentary, Dizzie Gillespie ‘The King of Bebop’ talks about the birth of the genre and how it developed its distinctive aesthetic.

Jackson Pollock and Abstract Expressionism


All art is self expression, but Abstract Expressionism sought to whittle down that journey to its purest form. Pollock was heavily influenced by improvisation in jazz and was determined to look within himself and express his deepest emotions through non-verbal, abstract forms. He used techniques and mediums that facilitated the relaxation of conscious control over the artistic process in the hope that it would release unbridled creativity.

In this film broadcast on American TV in 1951 Jackson Pollock deconstructs his artistic technique, an appearance which marked his transformation into a celebrity and the beginning of his creative decline.

Graffiti and Low-Brow Art


It’s fair to say that any art or writing produced on a public object, in secret, with the fear of police intervention at any point is going to retain a certain immediacy. The power of graffiti is in its ephemerality – the fact it could be destroyed at any minute – and the risk and ambition at the heart of its creation. A street language that offers hidden meanings to those who know it, graffiti – pioneered, legend goes, by kids like Dondi in the Lower East Side – has paved the way for many explosive art movements including low- brow, an unschooled, instinctive genre that subverts the precious and highly considered manifestations of the elitist world of indoor art.

In this clip from graffiti classic Style Wars, early pioneer Dondi talks about the rush he feels when he paints New York subway cars.

Check out Huck #42 – The Improv Issue for a journey through improvised art forms.


Latest on Huck

Smiling person in black wetsuit riding surfboard on calm ocean with rocky hills in background.
Sport

Maryam El Gardoum is breaking new shores for Morocco’s indigenous surfers

The Amazigh Atlantic — Through her groundbreaking career and popular surf school, the five-time Moroccan champion is helping women find their places in the waves.

Written by: Sam Haddad

Dimly lit underground carpark, long winding corridor with concrete walls, floor, and pipes above.
Activism

Youth violence’s rise is deeply concerning, but mass hysteria doesn’t help

Safe — On Knife Crime Awareness Week, writer, podcaster and youth worker Ciaran Thapar reflects on the presence of violent content online, growing awareness about the need for action, and the two decades since Saul Dibb’s Bullet Boy.

Written by: Ciaran Thapar

Colourful embroidered jackets worn by two people, with skateboarder visible in background. Bright colours and graphic designs on the clothing.
Sport

Volcom teams up with Bob Mollema for the latest in its Featured Artist Series

True to This — The boardsports lifestyle brand will host an art show in Biarritz to celebrate the Dutch illustrators’ second capsule collection.

Written by: Huck

Black and white image showing a group of shirtless men socialising, some laughing.
Culture

A visual trip through 100 years of New York’s LGBTQ+ spaces

Queer Happened Here — A new book from historian and writer Marc Zinaman maps scores of Manhattan’s queer venues and informal meeting places, documenting the city’s long LGBTQ+ history in the process.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Four persons - three women and one man - posing outdoors. The women are wearing elaborate clothing and jewellery.
Culture

Nostalgic photos of everyday life in ’70s San Francisco

A Fearless Eye — Having moved to the Bay Area in 1969, Barbara Ramos spent days wandering its streets, photographing its landscape and characters. In the process she captured a city in flux, as its burgeoning countercultural youth movement crossed with longtime residents.

Written by: Miss Rosen

A person wearing a black cap and holding a sign that says "What made me"
Music

Tony Njoku: ‘I wanted to see Black artists living my dream’

What Made Me — In this series, we ask artists and rebels about the forces and experiences that shaped who they are. Today, it’s avant-garde electronic and classical music hybridist Tony Njoku.

Written by: Tony Njoku

Huck is supported by our readers, subscribers and Club Huck members. It is also made possible by sponsorship from:

Signup to our newsletter

Sign up to our newsletter to informed with the cutting edge of sport, music and counterculture, featuring personal takes on the state of media and pop culture from Emma Garland, former Digital Editor of Huck, exclusive interviews, recommendations and more.

Please wait...

Accessibility Settings

Text

Applies the Open Dyslexic font, designed to improve readability for individuals with dyslexia.

Applies a more readable font throughout the website, improving readability.

Underlines links throughout the website, making them easier to distinguish.

Adjusts the font size for improved readability.

Visuals

Reduces animations and disables autoplaying videos across the website, reducing distractions and improving focus.

Reduces the colour saturation throughout the website to create a more soothing visual experience.

Increases the contrast of elements on the website, making text and interface elements easier to distinguish.