Joseph Johnson reportedly died. The name might be unfamiliar, his graffiti likely not
Joseph Steven Johnson was arguably Tacoma’s most prolific graffiti painter, either a rebel street artist or a menace to society. Known by his tag, GRIDE, Johnson attached his work to Tacoma’s walls, overpasses, water towers and other high-profile locations for over a decade.
Johnson, according to social media posts, an online memorial and fresh graffiti around Tacoma, has died. The News Tribune has not confirmed his death or how and when it occurred.
A page on fundraising site gofundme has raised $15,500 to “send him out in style.” It was organized by “Wesh MSP.”
“My brother, my best friend, my partner in crime. Joseph “Gride” Johnson has passed on,” Wesh MSP wrote on his Instagram page.
Johnson, who had appeared in court numerous times on graffiti and vandalism charges, was 30.
Although the city of Tacoma does not track tagging by individuals, according to spokesperson Maria Lee, it removed approximately 10,000 instances of graffiti reported by the public in the public right-of-way in 2023.
Tributes
Among local graffiti artists, who aren’t fond of speaking with the news media, Johnson appears to have been respected.
An approximately 80-foot-long and 30-foot-tall “GRIDE” mural recently appeared on a retaining wall separating the northbound lanes of state Route 7 from Tacoma Rail tracks. It’s book-ended by figures of a tagger with spray paint cans in his waistband and another figure in prayer. Tributes have been written next to the figures.
Condolences and tributes to Johnson were left on both the gofundme page and on city structures.
“Rest in Paint, thanks for art,” one gofundme poster said.
“The best always leave us soon,” said another. “But we will always love you because that’s who you are to us.”
“RIP GRIDE” has been written on a guard rail of the East 34th Street bridge overlooking the state Route 7 mural.
Tribute graffiti was also seen in Seattle.
Wesh MSP did not respond to interview requests from The News Tribune.
Art or nuisance?
Among those who practice or admire it and those who remove it, graffiti is as divisive as any political issue. Some graffiti artists, like Keith Haring and Banksy, go on to world-wide fame. Others are reviled.
In Tacoma, unauthorized graffiti on public and private structures can be a scourge, say those who fight it. It’s also illegal.
Johnson, or at least his moniker GRIDE, was well known at the state Department of Transportation (WSDOT).
“At WSDOT, we do not take a position on the aesthetics of graffiti,” said agency spokesperson April Leigh.
Nevertheless, WSDOT’s policy is to remove it. Leigh said graffiti is challenging and sometimes dangerous to remove. The agency is currently testing a drone that can fly to difficult locations and spray over the art.
WSDOT spent over $815,000 on graffiti removal statewide in 2023.
“That’s nearly 10,300 hours of labor spent covering 700,000 square feet of graffiti along our highways,” Leigh said. “But that’s still not enough to remove all the graffiti that appears along our highways.”
Graffiti soon returns.
“Our crews report seeing new graffiti appear sometimes days or even hours after an area is cleaned,” Leigh said.
Johnson’s record
Johnson’s activities didn’t go unnoticed by law enforcement. His rap sheet dates to 2008 when he was a juvenile and spans counties and courts.
Johnson was charged at least four times in Tacoma Municipal Court for graffiti and vandalism. He also appeared in Yakima Municipal Court on a malicious mischief charge.
In 2016, he appeared in front of a judge.
“It’s just unfortunate that people are bailing him out — or the bail bondsmen need to stop putting him out on bail,” then Tacoma police community officer Shelbie Boyd told KOMO news in 2016. Boyd is now a TPD spokesperson.
Johnson eventually was sentenced to 364 days in confinement but 334 days were suspended, according to court records.
This story was originally published May 9, 2024 at 8:00 AM.
