In the footsteps of slavery
This week Saype is painting the latest installment of his project “Beyond Walls” in Ouidah, Benin, and the location is tragic because of its history.

“The ‘Beyond Walls’ project aims at creating the largest symbolic human chain around the world, promoting values such as togetherness, kindness and openness to the world,” say organizers of this project that has its tenth stop in this historic site of the tragic slave trade. With five frescoes in total, he painted four of them in the floating village of Ganvie, which was at one time a refuge from slave capture raids.

Additionally his is painting a fifth fresco by the ocean in the village of Abouta) in the Ouidah district, he says, “the beach that saw millions of slaves sent off across the Atlantic.”
This is the 10th step of the project for the land artist Saype. He says that after nearly two years he has visited 3 continents and 37 people have helped paint 77,300 square meters with biodegradable paint.









Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
Anyone in New York will tell you that the adage holds true if you are trying to get your dream to happen in this city– a band, a restaurant, a store, a website, a clothing line. It could be a genius ...
Welcome to BSA Images of the Week! Who’s in town this week? New York is no stranger to visiting street artists, but the thrill never fades. Right now, we’ve got Kiwi sensation Owen Dippie here...
Springtime makes you do spontaneous acts of nature – like running to the local plant store or corner deli to buy a plant for your mom, or your grandma, or that colorful guy who runs the laundromat on ...
It's a unique talent to capture the fervor of an opening like "Beyond the Streets" in one minute. The show spreads over two floors and fifty years - the reunions alone were enough for an hour mov...
This is the harvest season when all the fruits of Street Artists labor are on display for everyone to admire - and just before the frost transforms all the leaves and turns the grass brown and you...