Born in New York City on 10 June 1959 to Puerto Rican immigrant parents, Al Diaz emerged as one of the first-generation graffiti artists in the early 1970s. At just 12 years old, he began tagging public spaces under the name BOMB-1, learning the graffiti culture from his older cousin in Washington Heights.
While attending City-As-School High School in the West Village, Diaz met Jean-Michel Basquiat. In 1978, the pair co-created SAMO©, a graffiti campaign of cryptic, poetic slogans scrawled around Lower Manhattan that blended wit, irony and social commentary. The project quickly attracted attention and became part of New York’s underground art history, before ending in 1979 when Basquiat declared “SAMO© IS DEAD” across the city’s walls.
In the 1980s, Diaz explored music, appearing as a percussionist on the influential hip-hop single Beat Bop (1983), produced by Basquiat and featuring K-Rob and Rammellzee.
After years working in carpentry and construction, Diaz returned to his creative roots in 2016. He developed the “WET PAINT” series, cutting letters from New York City subway signs to form surreal, thought-provoking anagrams and installations. He also revived the SAMO© tag, merging his early graffiti roots with contemporary urban commentary.
Over five decades, Diaz’s work has been exhibited internationally, including in major shows such as Beyond the Streets in Los Angeles and Zeitgeist: The Teenage Art Scene of Basquiat in New York. In 2019, he was formally recognised by New York City’s mayor for his contributions to graffiti culture and the enduring legacy of SAMO©.
