Infamous Graffiti Tagger Now Using His Art Skills In A Different Way
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- He became infamous for his graffiti in Pittsburgh. You probably remember seeing his tag "Mook" in some prominent places.
But now, Mike Monack has put all that behind him and is using his artistic skills in a different way.
He's now the owner of 10th Street Tattoo on the South Side.
Monack uses ink instead of spray paint now, but says his graffiti training was actually helpful with his legit job.
"I'd say there's a pretty good majority of tattooers who came from a graffiti background," said Monack.
Back in 2001, his "Mook" tag was well-known. Public Works crews spent hours cleaning up his handiwork.
One of his tags remains high atop the Tenth Street Bridge.
"It was a little scary," Monack said as he shared the story of walking up the bridge cables and being surprised by a pigeon.
"When I stepped on it, he wasn't too thrilled about it, and neither was I," said Monack. "He flew up, and I kind of lunged backwards a little, but I grabbed on to the cable with my arm and kind of steadied myself."
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He says he would discourage any young person who might think about following in his graffiti footsteps.
"Of course there's always that regret, you know, the charge that comes with it," he says. "You never think when you're 18 that in your 30s you might have to deal with a felony."
He wound up spending several months in jail and had to pay thousands of dollars in restitution. He says penalties for graffiti are much stiffer today.
