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:
Two long walls along a parking lot on Těšnov Street in Prague’s New Town – the largest of Prague’s four historic districts — have long served as a legal open-air graffiti gallery. The crisply executed piece pictured above was painted by the prolific Every Tag Counts for the MontanaGrafficon jam held earlier this fall. Several more images that I captured along the wall — while visiting Prague last week — follow:
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.
Earlier this summer, several members of the OTM Graff Crew brought their spectacular skills to Bushwick, where they fashioned their distinctly impressive rendition of Jurassic World Dominion. Featured above are the talents of Cortes and Scope against a background created by Cortes, Meres, Albertus Joseph and Topaz. Several more images captured from the huge production follow:
Cortes against collaborative background, closer-up
Meres, 5Pointz founder, who spearheaded this production
Curated by COPE2, “Subway Art Legends,” a dynamic mix of artworks created by those icons who “rocked the trains” during the subway era of the early 80’s, continues through Tuesday at One Art Space in Tribeca. The tantalizing image featured above, China Red N.Y.C, was fashioned by the legendary Delta2 with acrylic, spray paint and paint markers. Several more infectiously rhythmic works on exhibit follow:
Bronx native TKid 170, “Old School,” Circa 1989, Redo of a classic
Brooklyn native Dome, “NYC Subway Panel,” Enamel on metal
Yesterday afternoon, James Top Productions brought live painting, art vendors and a host of performances to Jackie Robinson Park in West Harlem. Despite the intermittent rain, the infectious positive energy was palatable from blocks away. Featured above is Queens-based writer and illustrator Topaz, standing alongside his iconic character.
Veteran graffiti artist and painter Wore One alongside his masterly-fashioned hip-hop character
Moving solo to the beats in front of King Bee’s iconic bee
Launched in 2009, Welling Court Mural Project has transformed Welling Court and its surrounding blocks in Astoria, Queens into a welcoming, wondrous open-air gallery. Under the curatorial direction of Alison Wallis, a diverse range of artists are now busily bringing their talents and visions to Welling Court in preparation for this weekend’s festivities. When visiting on Monday evening, I came upon several artists at work and a few newly fashioned murals. Pictured above is artist, curator and arts educator Alice Mizrachi with spray can in hand. Several more images follow:
The legendary Lady Pink, close-up from her almost-completed mural
Another detail from Lady Pink’s hugely impressive and uplifting mural
Japanese artist Shiro brings new vibes to her old spot
These next few days will bring many more artists to Welling Court culminating this weekend in a two-day festival. Featuring live painting a marketplace and more, it will take place June 25 and 26 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 11-25 30th Avenue.
The Second Annual Troutman Rock has once again brought some of NYC’s most intriguing writers together for a riveting first-rate production in Ridgewood, Queens. The image pictured above features the skills and visions of FCEE,Nic1 and Curve. Several more murals follow:
French artist Seb Gorey, Homage, In Memory Of Kings
Whether viewed outdoors or indoors, Kenny Scharf’s infectious aesthetic is always a delicious visual treat. Currently on view at TOTAH on Manhattan’s Lower East Side is WOODZ ‘N THINGZ, a series of dazzling paintings that delight our senses and heighten our consciousness as they reflect the ecological threats our natural world faces — while suggesting alternative ways of dealing with its fragile state.
Pictured above is WOODZ, fashioned in 2022 with oil and acrylic on linen within a powder coated aluminum frame. Several more images from the legendary artist’s second solo exhibition at TOTAH follow:
ZPRUNGZ, 2022, Oil and acrylic on linen with powder coated aluminum frame, 70 x 90 inches
Kelp Us, 2022, Oil, acrylic, spray paint & silk screen ink on linen with powder coated aluminum frame, 48 x 60 inches
WORLDZEND, 2022, Oil and acrylic on linen with powder coated aluminum frame, 70 x 90 inches
PHILIPS TIME TO GO, 2022 Oil on Phillips flat screen TV, 20 x 30 x 5 inches
Located at 183 Stanton Street on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, TOTAH is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11AM to 6PM.
The following post is by Newark-based arts educator, writer and photographer Rachel Alban.
I returned this past Saturday to the Morris Museum in Morristown, NJ to revisit On and Off the Streets: Urban Art New Jersey which remains on view through this Sunday, February 27.Curated by Lois Stavsky with my assistance, it is “the first museum exhibition to examine the duality of New Jersey artists whose creative versatility extends from the street to the studio.”
Working with Lois on this exhibit was meaningful on so many levels. It gave me the opportunity to connect with artists throughout NJ after a year of living almost entirely virtually. And introducing some of our favorite artists to new audiences and presenting them in such an elegant setting was especially wonderful.
The above photograph featuring a couple viewing a detail of Rorshach‘s huge mural was taken this past Saturday. Several more photos follow — some captured this past weekend, and others as far back as late summer.
