Martha Cooper is a documentary photographer whose work helped define the visual history of graffiti and street art culture. Beginning in the late 1970s, she immersed herself in New York City’s underground creative scene, capturing subway graffiti, breakdancing, and the emergence of hip-hop with an unmatched sense of authenticity and immediacy. Her photographs preserve a pivotal moment in urban culture, documenting artists and communities whose work would later shape global street art movements.

Best known for her groundbreaking 1984 book Subway Art, created alongside photographer Henry Chalfant, Cooper’s imagery became an enduring source of inspiration for generations of graffiti writers and street artists around the world. In addition to documenting the early New York graffiti movement, Cooper has photographed many of the iconic murals and artists featured at the Wynwood Walls, helping capture the evolution of contemporary street art on a global stage. Her work has been exhibited internationally and remains one of the most important visual archives of urban art and culture from the 1970s to today.