Chris Stain’s Long Short Story catalogues his exhibition at the Wooster St. Social Club, site of the television show NY Ink. Both the exhibition and the book present an autobiographical reflection of the artist’s life through a collection of writings, letters, photographs, memorabilia, and artwork that illuminate a lifetime of experience that is the source of inspiration for Stain’s poignant imagery.

His work, marked with strong social undertones, has at times been compared to the themes echoed in the American Social Realist movement of the 1930s and 1940s and is filled with the adversity that one faces in the inner-city. The book clearly demonstrates how Stain’s dedication to both his craft and his message has led him to become a prominent figure in the American street-art scene.

“I was brought up to respect other people’s struggles.  It is important that we treat others the way we would like to be treated – regardless of race, nationality or social status.  If there is a message in my artwork, it is that we need to be more aware of each other.” – Chris Stain, talking to Street Art NYC.

In Long Story Short, his first publication, Stain continues to illustrate the struggles of the unrecognised and underrepresented individuals of society. In today’s delicate social environment, where the sentiments of the social and economic injustice embodied by the Occupy movement continue to run high, Stain’s work has never felt more relevant.