public art

Centre-fuge Public Art Project Cycle 16 to Continue in the East Village with: Moody Mutz, Joshua David McKenney, Marthalicia, Michael DeNicola, Lexi Bella, Foxx Faces, BK, Raquel Echanique and more

February 24, 2015

The Centre-fuge Public Art Project continues its mission to transform the Department of Transportation trailer on First Street and First Avenue into a vibrant open-air gallery. These past few wintry weeks, its 16^th cycle has brought an infectious energy to an otherwise cold and stark site. Here are a few close-ups:

Moody at work in mid-December — at the beginning of the current cycle

Joshua David McKenney at work

And to the right of Pidgin Doll — Marthalicia Matarrita, Michael DeNicola, Basil and Lexi Bella

Foxx Faces, Raquel Echanique and Marthalicia Matarrita

Vernon O’Meally, Lelex and Fade, AA Mobb

Arbiter, Miss Zukie, Foxx Faces, BK and Sest2

Pebbles Russell, who co-founded the Centre-fuge Public Art Project in 2012, reports that Cycle 16 will remain in effect for a few more weeks. If you would like to participate in future cycles of this project, send a sketch, along with reference images to other works, to centrefuge@gmail.com.

Final photo by Lois Stavsky; all others by Dani Reyes Mozeson

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Jose De Diego Middle School as Outdoor Museum: Rafael Sliks, Reka, Bikismo, MTO, Paola Delfin, Martin Whatson, Madsteez, Axel Void, Don Rimx, Diana Contreras, the Hox & more

February 21, 2015

While in Miami this past week, I had the opportunity to visit the grounds of the Jose De Diego Middle School. On the edge of Wynwood, its students are among the city’s most economically disadvantaged. Over 600 youngsters, who had been deprived of an arts education due to insufficient funding, now attend a school that is also a wondrous outdoor museum. Curious about it all, I spoke to Don Rimx, one of the many artists who had participated in the school’s amazing transformation.

How did you become involved in this extraordinary project?

Soon after I moved to Miami, I met Robert Skran of WynwoodMap.com, a site that documents the public art that surfaces in Wynwood. A few months later, he invited me to participate in this particular project, the RAW Project, in partnership with the Wynwood Arts District Association.

What was the goal of this project? Did it have a particular mission?

One goal, of course, was to transform a drab, blank concrete canvas into a vibrant outdoor gallery. It was also conceived as a means to raise funds to enable the school to restore its arts program that had been lost to budget cuts.

When did the actual painting begin?

We began in November and most of the murals were completed by early December.

How did the students respond to the entire process?

They loved it. They were fascinated. They loved watching us paint, and they kept on asking us questions.

What kinds of questions did they ask you?

Questions like: Why are you painting this? Where did your idea come from? How do you do this? How long will it take you to finish it? Why are you painting sticks?

Back in December when Art Basel was in town, the school’s makeover attracted so many street art aficionados and art lovers. What’s happening these days?

The entire community loves the murals. The art on these walls have brought us all closer together. When I pass by, I often see teachers taking students on tours of the murals. The kids are always interested in learning something new about them and about the artists. And because so many of the artists traveled to their school from across the globe, there is so much to learn!

This really is fabulous! It would be wonderful if the Jose De Diego Middle School could serve as a model to other schools — on all grade levels — everywhere!

The murals pictured above are just a small sampling of what can be seen on the walls of the Jose De Diego Middle School:

1. Brazilian artist Rafael Sliks

2. Australian born, Berlin-based Reka

3. Puerto Rican artist Bikismo

4. French artist MTO (left) and Mexican artist Paola Delfín

5. Norwegian stencil artist Martin Whatson

6. West Coast-based Madsteez (left) and Miami-based Axel Void

7. Puerto Rican artist Don Rimx currently based in Miami — with son, Kye, standing on bottom right. (I’d asked him to take me to his favorite mural!)

8. Miami-based Peruvian artist Diana Contreras

9. Miami-based the Hox

Photos and post by Lois Stavsky

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NYC’s Expressive Doors, Part V: Beau Stanton, EKG, Kenny Scharf, Pyramid Oracle, Cost & Enx, Michael De Feo and Good & Shiddy

February 15, 2015

This is the fifth in an occasional series featuring images of New York City’s doors that sport everything from tags and stickers to sophisticated images.

Beau Stanton on the Bowery, close-up

EKG in Crown Heights, Brooklyn

Kenny Scharf in Manhattan

Pyramid Oracle on the Lower East Side, close-up

Cost and Enx in Tribeca

Michael De Feo on Manhattan’s Lower East Side

Good and Shiddy in Bushwick, Brooklyn

Photos: 1, 4 & 5, Lois Stavsky; 2, 3, 6 & 7, Dani Reyes Mozeson

Note: This blog will be on vacation through Friday. Follow me in Miami on Facebook and Instagram.

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Mott Haven’s Motley Medley of Street Art: Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz, Seth Mathurin, Dek 2DX, Dennesa Usher and more

February 12, 2015

Interspersed among some of the drabbest streets in the South Bronx Mott Haven-Port Morris neighborhood is an intriguing array of public art. Here’s a a sampling:

Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz, Wepa Woman

Seth Mathurin, Bronx Bull

Dek 2DX

Unidentified artist has money falling from trees!

Dennesa Usher, Unlock Your Dreams, close-up

Photos: 1-3 & 5 Lois Stavsky; 4 City-as-School intern Zachariah Messaoud

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Guys on Walls, Part VII: Nick Walker, E.L.K, Anthony Lister, Bly, Dasic, Conor Harrington, Heesco & Damien Mitchell

February 10, 2015

This is the seventh in an occasional series featuring images of males who surface on NYC public spaces:

UK’s Nick Walker on Manhattan’s Upper East Side

Australian artist E.L.K at the Bushwick Collective

Australian artist Anthony Lister in Bushwick, Brooklyn

Swedish stencil artist Bly in Dumbo, Brooklyn

Chilean artist Dasic Fernandez at ABC No Rio on Manhattan’s Lower East Side

Irish native Conor Harrington for the LISA Project in Downtown Manhattan

Mongolian native Heesco and Australia’s Damien Mitchell for the Bushwick Collective

Photo credits: 1,2 and 7 by Lois Stavsky; 3-6 by Dani Reyes Mozeson

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Politically and Socially Conscious NYC Street Art: Bikismo, Gilf!, #Dysturb, LMNOPI, Luis Rosenfeld, Sophia Dawson & Hunt Rodriguez

February 7, 2015

Here are a few of the works reflecting a range of political and social issues that have surfaced on NYC streets:

Bikismo in Williamsburg

Gilf! in NoLita

#Dysturb in Manhattan

LMNOPI in Bushwick

Luis Rosenfeld at work in SoHo

Sophia Dawson, lead artist, in the East Village

Hunt Rodriguez in SoHo — in response to the Charlie Hebdo attack

Photo credits: 1, 3, 4 & 7 by Dani Reyes Mozeson; 2. Lois Stavsky; 5. Lenny Collado aka BKLenny & 6. Tara Murray

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Comic Characters on NYC Walls: John “Crash” Matos, Ozmo, Jerkface, Mr OneTeas and See One

January 26, 2015

A range of comic characters — from Calvin and Hobbes to Snow White to Batman — have made their way onto NYC walls. Here are a few:

John Matos aka Crash in the South Bronx for the Tag Public Arts Project

Ozmo in Little Italy for the LISA Project

Jerkface in Bushwick

Mr OneTeas at the Bushwick Collective

See One at the Bushwick Collective

Photos 1, 4 – 6 by Lois Stavsky; 2 by Tara Murray & 3 by Dani Reyes Mozeson

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Rainer Judd’s Journal Pages at rag & bone’s Houston Wall Project Space

January 24, 2015

Often showcasing artworks by diverse street artists – from DALeast to Ludo to Meres – the wall outside rag & bone has also featured various artists who don’t generally share their visions in public spaces. For the past several weeks we have been treated to a selection of pages from the journals of Rainer Judd, the daughter of the late artist Donald Judd,

Close-up from “Sunlight on the Iguanas.” Book no. 6, Black Leather Silver Corner, 1987- 1989 — as seen last week

“The idea was to see books on the wall, changing pages,” Rainer explains. “I’ve been filling journal books since I was 11. On November 16, 2014, I brought Swiss bags full of these books to photographer Henry Leutwyler and Javas Lehn. With a focus on the graphic quality of them as objects I could see them differently. For me, journals are a place of dialogue with myself, a testing ground for ideas, a pal, a repository for the stuff of the highway of my heart. This is a small window into a deep archive.”

Here are some pages from Rainer Judd‘s journal that surfaced in December

Then earlier this month

And through the end of this month, you can check out the final piece now outside rag & bone on Elizabeth Street off 73 East Houston.

Photos 1-3 by Dani Reyes Mozeson; 4 courtesy rag & bone’s Houston Wall Project and 5 by Lois Stavsky

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New York City’s Uptown Open-Air Gallery with Cone, Kool Kito, Panic, Jero, Pulse and Ree

January 22, 2015

Few NYC graffiti walls change as frequently as those in Upper Manhattan’s open-air gallery. Curated by South Bronx native, Crane, the walls off the 1 train on 207^th Street and 210^th Street serve as revolving canvases to several veteran NYC writers and their occasional guests. Here’s a sampling of what has surfaced in the past several months:

Uptown stylemaster Cone

Veteran graffiti writer Kool Kito

Local artist Panic Rodriguez

LA-based graffiti writer Jero ICR

Legendary UK graffiti writer Pulse

Veteran graffiti writer Ree

Photos 1, 2, 5 and 6 by Lois Stavsky; 3 and 4 by City-as-School intern Travis Hicks

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Greenpoint’s Vibrantly Diverse Graffiti with: Justin Phame & Bella Amaral, Shiro, 2ESAE, Yes One, Noah TFP, Wolf 1 AOK and Tone MST

January 18, 2015

The walls in the vicinity of McGuinness Boulevard and Clay Street in Greenpoint continue to showcase a diverse range of vibrant graffiti. Here are a few captured this past week:

Justin Phame and Bella Amaral

Shiro, 2ESAE and Yes One

Noah TFP

Wolf 1 AOK

Tone MST

Photos by Lois Stavsky

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