Opening this evening, Friday, January 13 and running through February 5 at City Point in Downtown Brooklyn is POSITIVE VIBRATIONS. Curated by Collect with Lulu and Silvertuna Studios, it is an exhilarating exhibition featuring an eclectic scope of works by a range of contemporary artists from legendary graffiti writers to pro skaters.
The image featured above was fashioned by the wonderfully talented Bronx-based Zimad, who also painted a huge, brightly-hued mural at City Point’s Flatbush Atrium as a tribute to the approaching Chinese New Year, the Year of the Rabbit. A limited-edition of Year of the Rabbit coloring book calendar will be also available for purchase at the gallery.
A small selection of images of additional artworks on exhibit in POSITIVE VIBRATIONS follow:
The gallery is welcoming to children, as well. Among the exhibition’s highlights are classes scheduled for children by the legendary Al Diaz on “How to Create Your Own Graffiti Alphabet.”
Spanning over six decades, a comprehensive illustrated timeline traces the history of NYC graffiti beginning in 1967 with JULIO 204, whose tag and street number captured the attention of his peers in Washington Heights/Inwood. Four years later, when fellow Washington Heights tagger TAKI 183 was profiled in The New York Times, graffiti went on to gain the attention of a wide, diverse audience.
By the mid-70’s, graffiti had evolved into a “firmly established cultural movement with clear principles.” Whole-car train pieces began to roll by and the publication of Norman Mailer’s The Faith of Graffiti lent validation to the art form. But by the early 80’s, Mayor Koch waged outright war against graffiti writers, accusing them of “destroying our lifestyle and and making it difficult to enjoy life.”
Yet despite the war against graffiti, key talented and passionate photographers, documentarians, filmmakers and curators increasingly began to celebrate the culture which continues to make its way not only onto public space but into galleries and museums worldwide.
In addition to the exhibition’s graffiti timeline, there is also a timeline of “Key Current Events,” such as the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968, the election of NYC Mayor David Dinkins in 1989 and the outbreak of COVID-19. – all lending socio-political context to the graffiti movement. And homage is given to the many “Fallen but not Forgotten Players in the Game.” Included among those many writers are such noted ones as: A-One, Don 1, Dondi, Iz the Wiz, Sane 182, and Stay High 140. On view too are black books, graffiti paraphernalia and varied tools of the trade, along with videos, documentaries, recordings and first-person accounts.
Accompanying Part I of the exhibition is an invaluable catalog — published by Howl Arts — that includes: both the graffiti and the current events timelines; key essays by Al Diaz, Eric Felisbret, Mariah Fox and Chris Pape; a glossary of graffiti terms by Eric Felisbret, and learning tools and resources for educators by Mariah Fox. The catalog can be purchased at the gallery or by emailing books@al-diaz.com.
Among those on exhibit by the legendary photojournalist Martha Cooper is her 1982 Bronx capture, DUSTER/LIZZIE: 2 top to bottom whole cars in straight letters and wild style.
While Part I — located at 6 East 1st Street — closes this coming Sunday, the 15th, Part II of the exhibition continues through January 29 at 250 Bowery. Both spaces are open Wednesday-Sunday, 11am-6pm.
Since 2014, The Raw Project has been bringing intrigue and inspiration to schools in Miami and beyond at a time when American schools continue to see their arts education programs defunded. First rate artists from across the globe transform blank school walls into alluring open-air canvases inspired by the students, school and community. Under the curatorial direction of Robert Skran and Audrey Sykes, magic once again came to Miami during the week of Art Basel, 2022. And travel and street photographer Karin du Maire aka Street Art Nomad was there to capture it.
The image pictured above was painted by Montreal-based Kevin Ledo, Titled “Fabian,” it portrays a first-grader at the West Little River K-8 Center. What follows is a sampling of several more murals that surfaced last month on the walls of the West Little River school.
Los Angeles-based Eric Skotnes, “Nolite Timere” (“Don’t Be Afraid”)
Miel Krutzmann of the Dutch duo Telmo Miel, “Minds Unfolded”
Telmo Pieper of the Dutch duo Telmo Miel, “Throwing Sticks and Chasing Stains’
London-based Dale Grimshaw at work on “Linky” — titled by a student
Despite the many changes in Philly’s West Kensington neighborhood, the walls along North 5th & Cecil B Moore continue to host a huge range of striking, first-rate graffiti murals. The image pictured above is the work of the gifted Philly-based Colombian artist Busta. Three more adjacent murals — all on the theme of the greek myth “Jason and the Argonauts” — follow:
Since 2015, the annual SHINE Mural Festival has been transforming St. Petersburg, Florida’s coastal “Sunshine City,” into an intriguing open-air museum featuring local, national and international artists. Travel and street photographer Karin du Maire aka Street Art Nomad was there to capture this year’s festival which had taken place in mid-October.
The distinctly dramatic image pictured above was painted by Berlin-based James Bullough, who is posed in front of his mural. The artist explains his choice of colors as “a subtle shoutout” to Amsterdam-based Joram Roukes whose artwork was previously on this wall. Several more images from this year’s SHINE Mural Festival follow:
LA-based, French duo 123KLAN in front of their mural
Adding sixteen new murals to Downtown Cincinnati, BLINK, the nation’s largest light and art festival, took place last month for the first time since 2019. The cleverly captivating artwork featured above was painted by Atlanta-based Greg Mike. Several more murals — all captured by by travel and street photographer Karin du Maire aka Street Art Nomad — follow:
Chicago-based Max Sansing portrays two figures “in meditation with their thoughts while looking up to the sky symbolizing the future and limitless possibilities.”
Amsterdam-based Mr. June presents “an alternative experience of the environment, which has been optically manipulated by form, colors and perspectives.”
Athens native Insane 51 portrays Euthenia, the ancient Greek female spirit of prosperity
Denver-based duo Lindz and Lamb at work on “Who Dey!” referencing the chant that breaks out after the Bengals score touchdowns at Cincinnati’s Paul Brown Stadium
I first came upon Brothers of Light’s winsome, witty aesthetic on the streets of Jerusalem several years ago. I was an instant fan. Currently on view at 30 Yefet Street — a stately, atmospheric building in Jaffa — is From Dirt, a delightfully intriguing exhibition featuring dozens of artworks fashioned this past year from metals found outside the brothers’ studio space. Featured above is Crossing the Bridge — fabricated with industrial paint on salvaged metal. Several more images I captured while visiting the exhibition earlier this week follow:
“Everything Is Temporary,” Industrial paint on found metal
“No Pain No Gain” and “Cuchara” to its left,Industrial paint on found metal kitchen utensils
“What Do You Eat?” Industrial paint on found metal kitchen utensil
“Time Sinking,”Industrial paint on found metal
“Suddenly,” Industrial paint on found metal
“Throwback,” Industrial paint on found metal
Segment of exhibition largely featuring small works–
Produced by Brothers of Light — real-life siblings, Elna and Gab — and curated by Hadas Glazer, From Dirt is at once environmentally conscious and aesthetically engaging. It continues through Saturday evening with a closing party beginning at 6pm. A short film by Amalia Zilbershatz-Banay and Dan Deutsch accompanies the exhibition.
I recently had the opportunity to speak to BedStuy Walls Mural Festival founder and chief curator Miki Mu about the hugely successful community arts festival held earlier this month on Lexington Avenue and Do the Right Thing Way in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.
This is all so wonderful. What was your initial inspiration for this project?
This is my neighborhood. I’ve lived in Bed-Stuy for over ten years. I was interested in celebrating and beautifying my neighborhood. And I know the huge power of art to uplift a community! I also wanted to create a space where people and businesses in my neighborhood could interact. My vision for this particular project began about a year ago.
How did you secure these walls? They are in such a prime spot, and these murals have totally transformed the entire block.
My neighbor introduced me to the owner of one of the the businesses on the block. But there were many challenges to actually securing these walls. It was not an easy task!
What were some of these challenges that you encountered in seeing this project through?
After I did secure the walls, I had to get a permit to close the block for the day of the festival. The walls and sidewalk had to be primed in advance. I had to purchase supplies. The entire project was quite expensive. I set up a Go Fund Me, but I did have to cover most of the expenses myself.
You have here such a wonderful range of artists here — from legendary graffiti writers to noted contemporary urban artists to newer emerging ones. How did you get the word out to the artists?
We started an Instagram account, and the word quickly spread. So many artists expressed interest in participating — far more than I could have imagined. I still get requests!
How did the community respond to the event?
The response was tremendous! The community loved it! Families came out, and there were so many kids…jumping rope, dancing to the hip-hop music, making art and simply having fun! It was wonderful — actually better than I had anticipated! But I never could have done this alone; there were many folks whose generosity made this possible. Among them are: Chateau Brooklyn for serving as our mothership, headquarters and base; Badman Bus aka Cookie Monster Bus for providing music and a sound system; all of the DJ’s for volunteering their talents; Cheryl Foy, a retired teacher and resident of the block, for helping us secure the block permit and Joe Cirano from Rogers & Sons, the owner of the walls; the Blue Bus Project for providing activities for the kids; Radial Park for lending us ladders; Project Barkada, also, for lending us a ladder and scaffolding; Solidarity Movers for helping us move all the equipment from one location to another and for providing, as well, a fun activity for kids; Black Men Build, Black Chef Movement and Josiane Lysius for providing free food; Loop Colors for adding extra cans to our order; Frankie Velez, my co-curator, for assisting and supporting my efforts in every aspect of this project, and, of course, all of the artists for generously sharing their skills and visions with us.
A public art and mural festival founded and run by volunteer members of the Jackson Young Professionals, Bright Walls has brought more than 70 vibrantly intriguing murals to Jackson’s downtown district within the past four years. The remarkable image pictured above — spelling out “REMARKABLE” in reference to Jackson — was painted by the masterly artist Pref, who defines his aesthetic as “Post typography.” It was captured last month at this year’s Bright Walls by travel and street photographer Karin du Maire aka Street Art Nomad, as were the following images:
Tracing the emergence of graffiti from an underground subculture into a legitimate profession, Duality: A Graffiti Story — directed by Ryan Dowling — focuses on the struggles and successes of five noted graffiti artists. In the Buffalo 8 documentary feature film, legendary writersMeres One, Dual, Sloke, Jaber and Never1959 share their challenges and ventures as they reflect on their personal journeys in this ever-evolving culture.
Many graffiti writers — who were initially deemed as vandals for their tagging and illegal interventions — now earn wide recognition and respect for their stirring murals that grace cities across the globe. Their aesthetics have made their way inside and outside a range of upscale properties from luxury hotels to major corporations — who court them to enhance the “coolness” of their brands.
Once working mainly clandestinely, these artists now foster community, as they share their talents openly with others — who are eager to learn from their skills or simply observe and photograph them as they paint. And as their artwork begins to blur the lines between graffiti, urban art and fine art, it also increasingly finds a home in galleries.
Among the film’s recurrent themes is the artists’ addiction to getting up and their deep love for graffiti. “I’ll probably never ever not want to write my name on something. It’s an addiction for sure,” states Dual. “It’s amazing that there’s that opportunity to bridge the gap from doing illegal graffiti to doing commercial work with big companies.”
Several screenshots from the riveting documentary follow:
NYC-based Meres One, founder and curator of the iconic graffiti mecca 5Pointz — whose talents continue to make their way onto walls, huge canvases, lightbulbs and varied corporate settings.
Houston, Texas-based Dual, best known for his wheat pastes — whose body of artwork includes everything from meticulously-made tape collages to sign painting to huge commissioned murals that beautify cities
Austin, Texas native Sloke — who, in addition to painting, curating and mentoring youth — has produced murals for a range of companies including Apple, Facebook, Nike, Google, Red Bull and Time Warner
West Coast-based Jaber (ala El Ninja Blanco) — who has been making his mark on the streets since the early 9o’s and now does — among other things — design for major fashion companies and film sets
Los Angeles-based Never1959 — who is best-known for his large scale murals on buildings around Los Angeles
Never‘s 50-foot high mural that parodies the 1958 Orson Welles film noir “Touch of Evil”
The premiere of this splendid homage to graffiti will take place tomorrow, October 19th, in Austin, Texas. And beginning Oct. 21, it will be available on Amazon Prime, AppleTV/iTunes, Google Play, Vudu, and YouTube movies.
