Our weekly focus is on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities.
Now screening: 1. Narcelio Grud. Escultura Sonora Cinetica
2. Faith XLVII – Calgary
3. NEW WAVE BY Pejac
BSA Special Feature: Narcelio Grud. Escultura Sonora Cinetica
This is exactly why your kids have fun things to play with at the park and to challenge their imaginations. Former/current street artist and public kinetic art sculptor Narcelio Grud shares with us how he made this new interactive kinetic and sound sculpture in Casa do Governador Cultural Park, in Vila Velha/ES. The action is powered by you: a conveyor belt triggers three mechanisms and pulling the strings activates the clappers of bells.
Narcelio Grud. Escultura Sonora Cinetica
Faith XLVII – Calgary
In her ongoing search for meaning and answers to existential questions, Faith XLVII shares a spoken-word piece to accompany this stop-action video of a mural she called “Calgary”.
“Spring marks longer days, nature in full bloom, and the wrapping up of my European tour. With exciting things in the works, more explorations, new studios in Switzerland and Mexico, and plenty of projects lined up, I would like to take this time to share some of this season’s journey. Sit back, relax, and enjoy these moments!” – Mantra
Look who just happened to fly by – It’s French street artist and naturalist Mantra with a diary of what projects he has been involved in this spring. Now that we are officially in summer for one day, we thought you would like to see the recap of this prolific and quick painting scientist. Yes, Mantra’s artworks transcend aesthetics by delving into the realm of scientific exploration. He meticulously incorporates biology, ecology, and zoology elements into his pieces, demonstrating a profound understanding of the natural world.
Mantra’s attention to scientific detail is probably unparalleled in today’s street art/mural scene, as he painstakingly replicates the textures, patterns, and colors of various organisms, mainly insects and marine life. His artworks often feature magnified views of creatures in realistic fashion, revealing the intricate beauty hidden within their microscopic worlds. And we’re pleased to bring to BSA readers Mantra’s personal musings about his experiences this spring.
~ by Mantra
I was very honored to return for the fourth edition of the Oskarshamn Street Art Festival. This freehand mural, entitled The Oskarhamn Collection, illustrates butterflies like the Clouded Yellow (Colias Croceus) or the Large Blue (Phengaris Arion), which are only found in this part of the country on the southeast side of the Baltic Sea. This collection brings harmony that balances with the natural architecture of this building and strengthens the ambiance with a soft color palette.”
In the midst of spring, during my time in Fimon, Italy, I had the incredible opportunity to witness the breathtaking countryside of Arcugnano in full bloom. I was able to closely observe most of the specimens I selected for my project right in front of the wall. This mural serves as a captivating reflection of the Veneto region’s rich and diverse ecosystem, inviting us to appreciate the intricate details of each unique species on a grand scale.
Returning to Denmark was another great experience, this time to visit Braedstrup alongside Kunstbureauet Kolossal. In this latest piece, entitled A Poplar Admiral Journey, I immersed myself in the natural habitat of butterflies within this region. By surrounding them with the lush flora that constitutes their world, I aimed to appreciate their ecosystem and imagine what life could be like in their captivating microcosm. I hope that this mural brings harmony to the town and initiates curiosity about these fascinating insects, inspiring a deeper respect for the natural world around us.
This mural, in my hometown of Metz, France, is composed of photographs I took of flowers, insects, and other aspects of nature that inspired me while visiting the Metz botanic garden and the lush countryside. The woman in this mural, Leeloo Clasen, was born and raised in Metz and is a ballet dancer at the conservatory. Immersed in a tranquil moment of reading, Leelo is surrounded by plants and butterflies, a tribute to the green city where I grew up.
The Gar Gar Festival in Penelles, Spain, is in its eighth edition this year, showcasing street art, muralism, and a new fleet of artists creating pleasant and clever attractions for city walls.
“The festival hopes to generate resources that allow us to correct the effects of time and the deterioration of our streets, reinspiring hope in our neighbours,” says the website, and who can deny the regenerative effect that street art has been adding to moribund sectors of the urban environment for the last decade or two.
Mounted in early May this year over a period of a 3 day festival, Gar Gar featured nine hundred square meters of murals and a program of art, projection mapping, music, expositions, craft beer, and food trucks, along with workshops related to other artistic disciplines. A cooperative of public and privately funded projects, Gar Gar is steered and administered with the help of the advertising and interactive design firm Binomic Cat, which also brings artists together for commercial walls on other occasions.
We’re pleased to show you some of the murals this year thanks to the talent and industry of photographer Lluis Bulbena Olivas, who shares his images here with BSA readers.
Looks like Pener got some of Autone’s patterned circuitry welded into his layered metal abstractions this weekend when the two friends got together in Gdynia, Poland. The viewer and the artists learn more about their individual practices when they create something collaboratively, and the more familiar you are with their personal style, the greater appreciation one gains.
Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)
Back here in his hometown on the Baltic Sea coast, Pener for his vibrant and geometric murals, characterized by bold colors, intricate patterns, and dynamic compositions. Map-like and electrically diagrammatic, Autone’s angular style is freestyle and automatic, possibly a deconstruction of the graffiti writing he began doing in the late 1990s.
Either way, it looks like these two found an improvisational vibe to work together on something new and to enjoy June’s warm temperatures. a fitting partner for improvisation on a warm June day.
Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)Pener X AutOne. Gdynia / Poland. (photo courtesy of Pener)
Frequently one step ahead of broader cultural movement, conceptual street artist John Fekner concisely gets right to the point with this text piece on a brick wall called “Juneteenth”. It’s a relatively new sanctioned national celebration that only took about 130 years to be recognized.
Marking the day in 1865 when Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced General Order No. 3, which proclaimed the freedom of enslaved people in Texas, the illustrative point of this story is that the announcement came two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
Today we call it Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day or Emancipation Day, commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans and acknowledging the end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth serves as a reminder of the struggle for freedom, the resilience of African Americans, the legacy of slavery, of how far we need to go for equality, and how important it is to honor the achievements and contributions of African Americans and foster unity and cultural understanding.
Welcome to BSA Images of the Week! These are our longest days of the year. Savor them, luxuriate in them, celebrate the light. The trees, the grass, the plants, all richly green. The breezes are smooth against your cheek, the sound of kids screaming as they play in the park is like music.
The ebb and flow of humanity washes across the pavement daily here in our gritty city – forlorn, inquisitive, raucous, opinionated, gentle, buoyant, clever, blunt, wonderous, rarely neutral. Our murals are mighty, our styles can be wild, illustrative, fantastic, inertly corporate, romantically impressionist, electric and eclectic. Unlike many downtowns, this collection is organic and unmediated – perfectly imperfect. As inhospitable as this city can feel to a newcomer, remember this; You are welcome. Do your thing.
Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: Faile, Joe Iurato, Queen Andrea, Dasic Fernandez, Optimo NYC, CES, Hef, Spot, KMS Crew, Ange, Bekah Bad, Logan Hicks, Hiraku, Agud, Lexi bella, and Jeff Hernandez.
Following the evolution of The Bushwick Collective and its annual block party in Brooklyn has been a captivating journey akin to an anthropological exploration into the growing embrace of street art and murals within the realms of graffiti and HipHop. Back in the day, as the neighborhood began transforming with the influx of gentrifiers, street art faced outright dismissal or was treated as a rare phenomenon, a curiosity.
Unaware of the previous codes that roughly governed the practices of graffiti writers on the street, art-students-cum-street-art-poets often obtusely stomped their way into public view to circumvent a gallery system and to express their right to self-expression in public; something HipHop culture had been encouraging for years but had perhaps not envisioned this way. The rivalry between graffiti aficionados and street artists/muralists was sometimes palpable, with throwies vandalizing fresh paint, the OGs asserting territorial dominance, and at times, even resorting to threats and insults in person and in online forums.
As the block party, now in its twelfth year, unfolded, its early editions predominantly featured international and some local street artists eagerly seeking out BC’s visionary leader, Joe Ficalora, for an opportunity to leave their mark on his neighborhood walls. Local street art forums found fault with Ficalora, masking a barely hidden contempt for a streetwise guy taking a leadership role and betraying their own classist privileged opinions about the right to curation. That has all melted appreciably; this year’s event evidenced the remarkable shift that has been underway. Graffiti writers took the stage alongside the muralists in prime spots, sometimes seamlessly collaborating to create art transcending boundaries, all while the electrifying sounds of live HipHop performances reverberated through the air and TikTokers danced in front of them.
Let’s raise a bottle to those who always believed in the possibility of this transformative phenomenon, and to those who championed inclusivity over exclusivity. It’s yet another reason why our hearts beat for this extraordinary international art movement, the embodiment of the people’s democratic spirit and the unlimited creative spirit that is in every person. And most importantly, it’s a reminder of why we hold you dear.
Our weekly focus is on the moving image and art in the streets. And other oddities.
Now screening: 1. Joiri Minaya’s Pattern Making. A Film by Alina Rancier
2. My Father’s Secret Ballet Career / Dad Can Dance / Via The New Yorker / A Film by Jamie and David Ross.
3. Tactical Urbanismo / Graphic interventions on the streets of Barcelona / Arauna
BSA Special Feature: Joiri Minaya’s Pattern Making. A Film by Alina Rancier
Joiri Minaya has a varied multidisciplinary practice – one that is appropropriate to what we study here at BSA is The Cloaking (2020) where the artist uses hand painted patterns in spandex to cover monuments of colonizers.
“I’m thinking of a way to re-signify that public space that is used to commemorate, uh, colonial history and instead trying to commemorate the people who resisted colonialism, who don’t have a statue,” she says. “I’m just thinking of public space as this space that’s supposed to be democratic – but then of course there are forces that determine what is more significant and what is left out. So I’m trying to tell the stories that remain untold.”
Joiri Minaya’s Pattern Making. Via Art21. A Film by Alina Rancier
My Father’s Secret Ballet Career / Dad Can Dance / Via The New Yorker / A Film by Jamie and David Ross.
“My dad was a ballet dancer, and for almost 45 years, no one in the world knew that he was.”
A personal mystery with multiple layers, at the heart of which is an artist who chooses a different route, yet never stops being an artist. There are a few stunning observations throughout, including some by a dancer who followed the path. She’s talking about dance, but you could easily substitute any field of art here.
“You’re called,” she says. “You know, there’s a lot of difficult aspects of it, a lot of painful aspects, a lot of criticism. You’re putting yourself out there. You have to deal with a lot of competition. It’s not about making your living that way. It’s about having the opportunity to be able to share that depth inside of yourself with other people.”
Tactical Urbanismo / Graphic interventions on the streets of Barcelona / Arauna
A little excitement for the Street Art world this summer – the news that the international man of mystery Banksy opens a new show in Glasgow documenting his first 25 years of stenciling.
“I’ve kept these stencils hidden away for years,” he says in a press statement, “mindful they could be used as evidence in a charge of criminal damage. But that moment seems to have passed, so now I’m exhibiting them as works of art in a gallery. I’m not sure which is the greater crime.”
The Wide Open Walls (WOW) festival, which originated as the Sacramento Mural Festival in 2016, has evolved into a remarkable celebration of art and community, thanks to the dedicated efforts of principal organizer/curator David Sobon, and a coalition of public and private interests. Over the years, this extraordinary event has embellished the urban landscape of the greater Sacramento area, including its suburbs, by adorning more than 200 walls with captivating murals.
In line with its commitment to uplifting schools, the WOW festival took on a renewed emphasis on school campuses this year, with Rosa Parks Elementary and Middle School as a prominent example. Collaborating with approximately 40 artists, encompassing local talents and renowned national and international figures, the festival unveiled a collection of awe-inspiring murals within the school grounds, captivating the imaginations of students, educators, and the wider community.
The WOW festival is a powerful manifestation of the symbiotic relationship between art, society, and business. It forges connections, fosters cultural understanding, and instills a sense of community pride by creating new murals that respond to the community. This year, celebrated photographer Martha Cooper was invited to document as many of the new murals as possible, and we are delighted to share her captivating captures with the readers of Brooklyn Street Art.
Within the walls of Rosa Parks Elementary and Middle School, the murals become portals to the imagination, stimulating critical thinking and nurturing cultural appreciation among the students. This project creates an environment where creativity and learning converge, leaving an indelible mark on the hearts and minds of all who experience it. The profound impact of the WOW festival at Rosa Parks Elementary and Middle School stands as a testament to the enduring power of art in shaping communities, inspiring young minds, and hopefully cultivating an engaging and inclusive world.
We again join the world of street artist Nespoon, this time nestled in the enchanting town of Blagnac, in the picturesque region of Occitania, which serves as the backdrop for her latest artistic endeavor. Blagnac (pop. 23,759), a serene residential suburb of Toulouse in the south of France, is not only known for its tranquility but also for being home to the illustrious headquarters of Airbus, the largest aerospace corporation in the world.
Invited by the curator, Maud O’Jeanson, Nespoon embarked on a journey that would culminate in a solo exhibition of her paintings and sculpture at the esteemed Odyssud Cultural Center from May 12th to July 5th, 2023. As is her custom, she was also commissioned to create new work for the walls of the city hall.
NeSpoon. City Hall. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)
The city authorities proposed a project that paid homage to the ancient symbol of the region, the Cross of Occitania. This revered emblem, also known as the Cross of Toulouse or, albeit inaccurately, the Cross of the Cathars, has held profound significance for over a millennium. In the medieval era, it adorned the coat of arms of the St-Gilles family, the Counts of Toulouse. Today, this emblem can be found on official symbols of local government bodies, fluttering on flags, etched into house walls, wrought in iron on bridge balustrades, and even imprinted on postcards. Its ubiquity extends to the local subway, where it marks its presence, and it is cherished as jewelry, sought-after souvenirs, and even as graffiti on urban walls. Some believe that the origins of the Toulouse cross predate Christianity, possibly once representing a radiant sun wheel with its twelve rays. Traditionally, the numbers 3, 4, and 12 were intricately incorporated into this symbol.
NeSpoon. City Hall. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)
In a Nespoonian twist, the artist chose to disrupt this rhythmic pattern and embark on a deconstruction journey of the symbol. Adding new elements and forging novel divisions and symmetries, she breathed new life into this timeless icon. The numerical essence of her project can be described by the numbers 4, 5, 8, and 20, intricately interwoven into her mesmerizing creations.
Inspired by the intricate artistry of lace, Nespoon derived her pattern for the mural from a delicate technique called tatting. Every stroke and design element bore her mark, infusing the cross with her own artistic language. Despite the challenges posed by the surprisingly cool and rainy May weather in this region, Nespoon devoted ten days to her work transforming the city hall’s façade.
Nespoon extends her heartfelt gratitude to the city of Blagnac, the team at Odyssud, and especially Maud O’Jeanson for their unwavering support in making this extraordinary project a reality.
NeSpoon. City Hall. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)NeSpoon. City Hall. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)NeSpoon. City Hall. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)NeSpoon. Odyssud Cultural Center. Blagnac, France. (photo courtesy of the artist)
NeSpoon’s Dentelle de rue at the Odyssud Cultural Center runs until July 05, 2023. Click HERE for more details.
“…multiple emotional states caught between contemplation and confrontation”
The Gateway Arts District is a vibrant arts community located in Mount Rainier, Maryland, near the northeastern border of Washington, D.C. It is a designated Arts and Entertainment District that encompasses several neighborhoods, including Mount Rainier, Brentwood, North Brentwood, and Hyattsville. The district is home to a wide range of artists, including painters, sculptors, musicians, dancers, writers, and performers. The district aims to foster creativity and support local artists by providing affordable live-work spaces, galleries, studios, and performance venues. It also serves as a hub for artistic collaboration, expression, and cultural exchange.
JAHRU. FLUX. Otis Street Arts Project. Mount Rainier, Maryland. (photo courtesy of the artist)
One of the main attractions is the Gateway Arts Center, a multi-purpose arts facility that features galleries, artist studios, and performance spaces. It hosts exhibitions, workshops, art classes, and community events, showcasing the talents of local artists and engaging the public in the artistic process.
JAHRU. FLUX. Otis Street Arts Project. Mount Rainier, Maryland. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Recently, Filipino-American artist Jeff Huntington, also known as JAHRU, painted a mural on the wall of the Otis Street Arts Project. This project is part of a complex of warehouse studios that mainly hosts artists from the Washington DC metropolitan area. JAHRU is the co-founder, along with Julia Gibb, of Future History Now, a nonprofit arts outreach program for teens that brings murals to walls in the community.
For his new mural named “FLUX,” JAHRU offers commentary on the divided attention and feelings of distraction that arise from our adoption of new behaviors with social media and smartphones. Using his niece as a muse, the artist positions the teenager as “existing in a rapidly changing world of daily updates and reconfigurations seen through an electronic screen.” He explains, “The superimposed faces capture multiple emotional states caught between contemplation and confrontation, punctuated by a pattern of vibrant vertical lines of varied widths that mimic a barcode.”
JAHRU. FLUX. Otis Street Arts Project. Mount Rainier, Maryland. (photo courtesy of the artist)JAHRU. FLUX. Otis Street Arts Project. Mount Rainier, Maryland. (photo courtesy of the artist)JAHRU. FLUX. Otis Street Arts Project. Mount Rainier, Maryland. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Street art welcomes all manner of materials and methods, typically deployed without permission and without apology. This hand-formed wire piece …Read More »
BROOKLYN STREET ART LOVES YOU MORE EVERY DAY
