All posts tagged: Stikman

BSA Images Of The Week: 11.26.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 11.26.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

How are feeling? Did you have a good Thanksgiving day, and did you see the crowds and balloons and marching bands along the parade route and the still intact orange and yellow leaves on the trees on Central Park West? Did you see Dolly Parton dressed as a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader singing at the halftime game, and did you see your girl Ava from up the block with her vintage vest and platform boots when grandma sent you out for a can of whipped cream for the pumpkin pies?

“Have you kept pace with the latest revelation in the art world? A remarkable BBC interview with Banksy, dating back two decades, has recently surfaced, sparking renewed excitement. These are indeed vibrant times for art enthusiasts and creators alike. Take, for instance, the Brooklyn Museum’s current showcase. It features an engaging Spike Lee exhibition alongside the innovative ‘Copy Machine Manifesto.’ This zine exhibition is a deep dive into five or six decades of subcultural and counter-cultural movements. It highlights a diverse range of self-published works, including gossip magazines, graffiti newspapers (a nod to David Schmidlapp and Phase 2), and expressions from queercore to hardcore. The exhibit is an eclectic mix of self-aware conceptual art, original fashion, explorations of sexual desire and confusion, comix, handmade collage, and expressions of nihilism, ennui, satire, humor, and lamentation. It’s a vivid reflection of art and expression – and inspirational to any artist who wants to have a voice.

We’re going back for a second helping.

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Stikman, Cosbe, Below Key, No Sleep, Huetek, Optimo NYC, Jay Shells, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, OH!, Muebon, Humble, Jappy Agoncillo, Jeff Roseking, Hu, Manual Alejando, Deter, Jason Shelowitz, and KIR.

Jappy Agoncillo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Optimo NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Detail from the exhibition at Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Cosbe (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key and Muebon. Detail. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Below Key (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jeff Roseking (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Any job is possible if you have the right kicks. KIR (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Old dogs like those old stogies. Manuel Alejandro (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Humble (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Poems (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Deter (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Huetek (photo © Jaime Rojo)
OH! (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jason Shelowitz AKA Jay Shells at “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
A painting of his father, Bill Lee, by Tatyana Fazlalizadeh at “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition is currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Tatyana Fazlalizadeh. Detail. At “Spike Lee: Creative Sources” exhibition currently on view at the Brooklyn Museum. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Street Color on the sidewalks of NYC. Fall 2023. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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Stikman “SIGNS” Show Slides into Skewville

Stikman “SIGNS” Show Slides into Skewville

Stikman always appears to lurk in New York on street signs, slapped on mailboxes, and stuck into doorways. A Gotham stalwart for two decades or so, his stiff amulet self is true to form, an image of sticks awkwardly compiled, sometimes in 2D, sometimes in 3. He appears in scenes where everyone else is fully formed and buxom, where space travel requires a bubble helmut and silver jumper, where jumbled graphics almost erase him, where nothing else is happening except this somewhat lonely guy quietly existing in the dirty chaos of NY street culture. Stikman.

Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)

Over the weekend the always festive Skewville in Bushwick opened the garage gallery and invited old fans and new to see the street artists new show, primarily focused on the hundreds of street signs that he often regards as clients on the street. In an upside-down political, social, and economic environment that gives rather confusing directions, these signs may not provide the route you need to go, but it appears you will be accompanied. In an effort to diversify offerings, there are all manner of products hand-made by the artist here, verging on craft and crazy, and even a simplified mask, if you so desire.

Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)

Never one to stand still, except when standing still, Stikman’s wide range expresses his magpie magic; a virtual machine of never-ending iterations – sculptural, comical, cryptical (?). It was cold, but there were heatlamps to warm the fingers, and an on-point dj duo, and tequila. The artist himself was on the lamb, shy as ever. But his artworks had plenty to say.

Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Steven P. Harrington)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Skewville Presents. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 11.12.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 11.12.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

A Chagall painting is stolen from a midtown gallery, Fab Five Freddy is in Vanity Fair, Carlo McCormick opened his curated “Wild Style” show at Deitch, the Christmas tree is going up in Rockefeller Center, the mayor’s phones have been seized in a mystery investigation, students are walking out of class and people are hitting the streets at Columbus Circle, Grand Central, and the Brooklyn Bridge to demand a ceasefire in Israel/Gaza. The frenetic muse is you, trying to make it make sense.

Here is our weekly interview with the street: this week featuring Faile, Stikman, Elle, Queen Andrea, CRKSHNK, Shiro, Espo, Homesick, DeGrupo, Michael Alan, Dark Clouds, Gats, Manik, Drones, ICU463, El Chalvo Del Ocho, Saxgraf, Smart RIS, Bianca Does New York, Uloang, and Chespirito.

Steve ESPO Powers (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CRKSHNK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ULOANG’s portrait of Chespirito as El Chavo del 8. A beloved character from one of the most popular shows on Latin American television ever. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Drones (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Saxgraf and Shiro collaboration. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
SMART RIS (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bianca Does New York (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Elle and Queen Andrea collaboration (photo © Jaime Rojo)
GATS for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Dark Clouds (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
HOMESICK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
HOMESICK, Degrupo, Manik and KimSHT. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ICU453 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ICU453 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
ICU453 (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist’s portrait of David Bowie. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Last Sunday’s edition of BSA Images Of The Week included a WIP photo of Michael Alan’s new mural. Here’s the completed version. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 04.02.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 04.02.23

64% of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck, China and Russia are buddying up, BRICs countries are looking for new members, and the Bankers in your life are again looking toward their gilded escape bunkers.

We are transfixed by the first indicted US president, and gloating about having a system of democracy and justice. Now he is positioning himself as an “outsider,” a martyr. A billionaire outsider. We’re just waiting for these crowds outside Trump Tower to materialize. Where are they? Honestly, Fifth Avenue is more interested in the Easter Bonnet Parade that is coming.

But it’s a circus on the national tabloid news, which is unfortunately all of the news now. Our best minds are being entertained by 24 hour sports channels, Netflix and Tic Toc, and it’s not an accident. People are chided into fighting each other over trans-woke-snowflake-abortion-race-laptop-AR15-centered-drag-readings. Look! A squirrel!

Meanwhile, the daffodils are blooming everywhere in anticipation of Easter Week. People were cramming subways, buses, and sidewalks yesterday because of the warm sunny spring weather – and Smorgasborg opened this weekend in Brooklyn. NYTimes calls it “the Woodstock of eating,” due to its variety of incredible food choices – but of course, you can have just as much fun with a bag of chips or a slice of pizza sitting on a stoop watching the parade of New Yorkers march/sashay/stride by.

We had a great time at the Bronx Museum yesterday, catching the John Ahearn/ Rigoberto Torres retrospective and seeing both the artists in person during a panel discussion with artist Abigail DeVille – with fans rushing the stage for an autographed exhibition book afterward. These guys have championed everyday New Yorkers through their painted sculptures for four decades. It is revelatory and heartwarming to see this very large collection of works never shown together before. Make sure to check out “Swagger and Tenderness: The South Bronx Portraits” until April 30.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: Stikman, Zimer, Subway Doodle, A Lucky Rabbit, Qzar, Optimo NYC, Sekt, AMMO, CEYNYC, Toeflop, Early Riser NYC, Julia Cocuzza, and Miki Mu.

Miki Mu for Underhill Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
QZAR (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Julia Cocuzza (photo © Jaime Rojo)
This might be the work of A Lucky Rabbit…not sure. We’re also not sure if the work has been completed. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Subway Doodle (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Zimer NYC (photo © Jime Rojo)
Zimer NYC (photo © Jime Rojo)
Zimer NYC (photo © Jime Rojo)
LL Cool J is Bad forever. Zimer NYC (photo © Jime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Optimo NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Early Riser NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Toeflop (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CEYNYC lying down…not sure who did the buble…but sure it burns. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
SEKT. AMMO. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Memorial bench in Manhattan. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 03.05.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 03.05.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: Adriana Vila, Stikman, City Kitty, Raddington Falls, Miyok, Neon Savage, Vegas, Clone, Samva, SEO Panic, Miki Mu23, and 2Won.

Watching the snow falling. This mural painted years ago in Williamsburg by professional painters for Sky High Murals gets a makeover from mother nature. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentifed artist telling us to look, listen and talk about it. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
That’s right. It’s been commodified, defanged, and marginalized, but it is not dead. Miki MU23 for NYC Thrive. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Samva. Smoe. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentifed artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
2WON (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Adriana Vila (photo © Jaime Rojo)
SEO PANIC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Raddington Falls (photo © Jaime Rojo)
4,6,3. Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
EOW. VEGAS. CLONE. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Miyok (photo © Jaime Rojo)
City Kitty. Neon Savage (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Winter 2023. NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 02.12.23

BSA Images Of The Week: 02.12.23

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

How are you feeling, friends? This month “Beyond the Streets” is opening at Saatchi Gallery in London, Risk is receiving a lifetime achievement award in Miami, and yet another Banksy show is opening in New York. Also, there will be a lot of kissing on Tuesday, so you may want to prepare yourself to pucker up.

Some kind of big game today we guess. Happens every year about this time – the streets will be empty this afternoon as people will be inside their homes, gathered around their screens, eating buffalo wings, pigs-in-a-blanket and tater tots with family and friends. Happy World Series everybody!

Meanwhile, the Chinese are flying balloons over the US, spying. Shocking. Who else does this remind you of?

New York street art is heavy with pop icons, pop psychology, and popular culture in this week’s collection.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: SacSix, Sara Lynne Leo, Degrupo, Eye Sticker, Stickman, Ollin, Jorit, Steve the Bum, and Kir One.

Sara Lynne-Leo is completely fed up with your s**t…(photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sara Lynne-Leo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jorit tribute to Malcolm X. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jorit (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jorit tribute to KRS-One American Rapper, Hip Hop master, and Bronx native. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jorit (photo © Jaime Rojo)
SacSix again hi-jacks an image from popular culture and reworks it with some color, spatters, and drips. Here we have the Lone Ranger, with a face like Alec Baldwin – a reference to his gun troubles. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist. Poor Francis’s been left in the cold by those nasty backstabbers in The Vatican. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Steve The Bum (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Steve The Bum (photo © Jaime Rojo)
You have been put on notice girls… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist. Mushrooms keep popping up on the streets, just like mushrooms… (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Eye Sticker (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Kir One (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Degrupo features Andrew Tate as a spotted pink panther on New York streets. Alleged to be a misogynistic influencer and social pariah, he and his brother are currently cooling their heels behind bars for “organized crime, human trafficking, and rape“. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ollin (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 09.11.22

BSA Images Of The Week: 09.11.22

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

21 years since the Twin Towers came down here in New York City. We remember today in our hearts.

Reliably, street art plays a role in bringing up the socio-political topics that are in the public realm. This week we see artists addressing gun violence, the ongoing battle for/against legal abortion, and LGBT rights. Also, there are just a lot of fun, colorful exhortations that we may or may not understand but which tell us all that the streets of New York are alive and well.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: Stikman, City Kitty, Praxis, Sinned, Miyok, Trap, Spite, Tea, Goomba, John Domine, WoWi, and Helaenable.

Raddington Falls (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Eternal Possesions (photo © Jaime Rojo)
GOOG (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Trap (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Spite (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Tea (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Goomba for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Raddington Falls (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentifed artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
City Kitty in a collab with John Domine. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Praxis (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sinned and Ria for Welling Court Mural Project NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
WoWi (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Miyok (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Helaenable (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Summer 2022. Chihuahua, Mexico (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 07.31.22

BSA Images Of The Week: 07.31.22

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Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

The city is now under a Monkeypox state of emergency thanks to a declaration by our state governor as of yesterday. Also jujitsu triumphs over random public punching, New York City children would still want to play Nintendo and Gameboy in the event of a nuclear attack, and we actually have a lower crime rate than the 80s/90s – contrary to narratives of bedlam and hoopla in the streets of Gotham.

However, there do appear to be more sharks around this summer – and not just your cousin Melvin and his buddies at the pool hall. Ah, New York, your grizzled, gritty exterior hides such a fascinating crushed-velvet heart beating inside…

We’re mainly happy that it’s not a thousand degrees on the streets this weekend, a welcome relief to the heatwave. Ice cream, anyone?

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring: Faile, Stikman, Sticker Maul, Degrupo, Homesick, Cone, and Ked.

Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Faile (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Homesick (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Houston/Bowery Wall continues its organic summer show… definitely not on a hiatus folks. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Beavis Trump with a little splash of self-tanner by Degrupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Rapper Birdman is transforming into the superhero by Degrupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Degrupo goes geometric. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Degrupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Cone (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Mr. Met and the Ked (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ked (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ked (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Ked (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stickermaul (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stop All Wars ~please! (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Summer 2022. NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 08.15.21

BSA Images Of The Week: 08.15.21

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week!

Here we are, precisely on the 50th anniversary of Nixon’s shocking removal of the dollar from the gold standard. Seems like everything is going well with fiat currency and the banking system, right?

Ah, never mind, there’s gold in these here streets.

Here’s our weekly interview with the street, this week featuring 4sakn, Adrian Wilson, Against Dgrams, Billy Barnacles, Captain Eyeliner, Corn Queen, De Grupo, DLove, Eye Sticker, Goblin, Mister Alek, Moka, More Less Eveything, Plannedalism, Sara Lynne Leo, Stikman, Sule, The Art of Will Power, Trace1, Werd Smoker, and Winston Tseng .

Goblin (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Midnight Cowboy’s Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman. Goblin (photo © Jaime Rojo)
The beloved Biz Markie, who passed in July. The Art of Will Power (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Biz Markie gets his wings. The Art of Will Power (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sule Cant Cook (photo © Jaime Rojo)
De Grupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Corn Queen (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Corn Queen (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Corn Queen (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Moka (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Against Dgrams. Mister Alek. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Adrian Wilson in collaboration with The LISA Project NYC. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Billy Barnacles (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sara Lynne-Leo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
4sakn CBS. Trace1. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
More Less Everything (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Winston Tseng (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Winston Tseng (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Werd Smoker (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Collaboration between Eye Sticker & Billy Barnacles. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Collaboration between Eye Sticker & Billy Barnacles. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DLove (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner. Some rascal edited the text by adding and subtracting letters. The original text read: “Oh no I look incredible”. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Still life with Queen Anne Lace & Sunflowers. Summer 2021. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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BSA Images Of The Week: 05.23.21

BSA Images Of The Week: 05.23.21

Welcome to BSA Images of the Week, where we are keeping our minds expanded and eyes wide open as the transformation of society and its fabric is happening right before us. We’re living in a bubble, or on one – an everything bubble at the end of a boomer age that will pop. Institutions compromised, media compromised, social net torn, leaders purchased and adrift. Late spring romanticism buoys us, as does the removal of masks out doors and sometimes inside them. New York is back, but its not sure.

And Jerome Powell finally announced that the dollar is in the gallows – or will rather be once he has successfully inflated to its ultimate death. No, we have no advice – No one is listening anyway.


So here’s our weekly interview with the street, this time featuring: Aaron Hauck, Bastard Bot, Goog, Matt Siren, Mel, Mort Art, Neckface, Royce Bannon, Sac Sic, Samantha French, Stay Busy, Stikman, TNAW, and Winston Tseng.

Royce Bannon and Mat Siren. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman and an unidentified artist above. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Winston Tseng (photo © Jaime Rojo)

These two images are part of Winston’s new series, we’ll talk about this new series later on BSA.

Winston Tseng (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Goog (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Mort Art (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sac Six (photo © Jaime Rojo)
TNAW (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stay Busy! (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bastard Bot (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Neck Face (photo © Jaime Rojo)
MEL for East Village Walls. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Aaron Hauck and Samantha French for O+ Festival. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
This spot previously had a Banksy inspired “Stop Asian Hate” mural. The mural has now morphed into this. We aren’t sure if Adrian Wilson, the artist who made the original mural has anything to do with this new concept. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Saver (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untiled. Trees. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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COVID-19 365 Days Later; Art in the Streets That Narrated a Pandemic

COVID-19 365 Days Later; Art in the Streets That Narrated a Pandemic

What the hell just happened? Has it been a year? Or has it been 10 years? Or just one long nightmare/daymare? Or has it been 10 years? Did we already ask that?

In March 2020 we awoke to a world that was transforming before all of our eyes, yet we felt so cut-off from it and each other. The first days seem so long ago as we mark the first anniversary of the pandemic. Still, the initial shock of those days resonates in our chests so strongly that we confidently talk about a collective global trauma that has indelibly marked a generation.

Pobel. Stavanger, Norway. March 14, 2020. (photo © Tore Stale Moen)

From Stockholm to Mexico City to Barcelona to Bethlehem to New York to LA, BSA brought you street art that was responding with fear, derision, critique, hope, and humor to the never-static, always evolving barrage of Covid news. Stuck inside and afraid to expose ourselves to each other, we New Yorkers became accustomed to experiencing the outdoors only through our windows, connecting with neighbors we’ve never met who were also banging pots and pans or clapping and waving and yelling.

We listened to ambulances screaming past our windows every half hour or so during those first weeks, imagining the torn families, the terrified fellow New Yorkers now being rushed to the hospital and separated from their loved ones without a goodbye, gasping for air. We wondered if we would be next.

Jilly Ballistic and Sack Six. Manhattan, NYC. March 23, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

When we did go to the streets, they were empty – or nearly. In New York this was unheard of. In this bustling, noisy metropolis, we experienced a daily disconcerting quiet. That is, until the killing of George Floyd by cops finally pushed the anger/anxiety into the streets all summer.

The deadly hotspot of New York quelled, but the fires of Covid spread west, grabbing communities who thought they would avoid impact. At the same time, local, state, and national leaders fumbled and argued or famously callously ignored the desperation of citizens, occasionally admirably filling the shoes they were elected to occupy, often misstepping through no fault of their own.

Pure Genius. Manhattan, NYC. March 23, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

We have no particular wisdom to offer you today beyond the obvious; this pandemic laid bare inequity, social and racial and class fault-lines, the shredded social net, the effect of institutional negligence, the ravages of 40 years of corporate privatization, and the power of community rising to the occasion to be in service to one another in ways that made us all more than proud.

Here are some of our favorite Covid-themed street art pieces from over the last year, a mere sampling of the artistic responses. Interspersed we paste screenshots of the daily events (via Wikipedia) in 2020 that shaped our lives, and our society.

We mourn the losses of family and friends and the broken hearts and minds in all of our communities. And we still believe in the power of art to heal and the power of love to balance our asymmetries.

Trusto Corp. Los Angeles, CA. March 26, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Lapiz. Hamburg, Germany. March 30th, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Tag Street Art. Tel-Aviv, Israel. March 31, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Phlegm. April 6, 2020. London, UK. (photo courtesy of the artist) Phlegm created a visual diary of his experience with the Pandemic. We published his diary HERE
Don Langrend for USA Today Network. On April 13, 2020, we published a compilation of political cartoons with views on the Pandemic. Click HERE to see the whole collection.
Alessio-B. Padua, Italy. April 15, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Banksy. London, UK. April 19, 2020. (photo Instagram)
Shepard Fairey. Los Angeles, CA. April 20, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Banksy “The Girl with a Pierced Eardrum” Bristol, UK. April 23, 2020. (photo © Reuters/Rebecca Naden)
Cake Stencils. Bethlehem, Israel. May 10, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Almost Over Keep Smiling. Manhattan, NY. May 15, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captain Eyeliner. Manhattan, NY. May 15, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
SacSix. Manhattan, NY. May 15, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Oliver Rios. May 15, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Teo Vazquez. Barcelona, Spain. May 25, 2020. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Adam Fujita. Brooklyn, NYC. May 25, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Jorge Rodriguez-Gerada. Queens, NYC. June 2nd. 2020. (photo © Just A Spectator)
Russian Doll NY. Manhattan, NYC. June 6, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Gianni Lee. Manhattan, NYC. June 13, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Various & Gould. Berlin, Germany. June 19, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artists)
Sara Lynne-Leo. Manhatttan, NYC. June 27, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Stikman. Manhatttan, NYC. June 27, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentifed artist. Brooklyn, NYC. July 18, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
De Grupo. Manhattan, NYC. August 1, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sticker Maul. Manhatttan, NYC. August 6, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Fintan Magee. Queensland, Australia. August 16, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Persak. San Miguel De Allende, Mexico. August 23, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
Novy. Manhatttan, NYC. August 29, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Asbestos. Cork, Ireland. September 8, 2020. (photo courtesy of the artist)
1111 Army. Brooklyn, NYC. September 12, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist. Brooklyn, NYC. September 12, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Raddington Falls. Manhattan, NYC. September 26, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Faust. Manhattan, NYC. September 26, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Pure Genius. Manhattan, NYC. October 31, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
I Heart Graffiti. Manhattan, NYC. November 14, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
UFO 907 in collab with MUK 123. Manhattan, NYC. December 15, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
The Creator. Manhattan, NYC. December 28, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
City Kitty. Manhattan, NYC. December 28, 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Karma. Barcelona, Spain. January 4, 2020. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)
Pobel. Stavanger, Norway. February 11, 2021. (photo © Tore Stale Moen)
Aya Brown. Brooklyn, NYC. February 27, 2021. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Manhattan, NYC. March 06, 2021 (photo @ Jaime Rojo)
Paolo Tolentino. Manhattan, NYC. March 07, 2021 (photo @ Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist. Manhattan, NYC. March 07, 2021 (photo @ Jaime Rojo)

As NYC went on complete lock-down and New Yorkers were ordered to remain in their homes in complete isolation the city’s residents organically joined together in a collective 7:00 pm ritual in support to the first responders. To the nurses, doctors, paramedics, trash collectors, public transportation, police, fire fighters, supermarkets workers etc…with their services and sacrifices we, the residents of this megalopolis were able to keep out hopes for brighter days to come.

Video of four former presidents urging people to “roll up your sleeve and do your part” and get the vaccine.

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BSA Images Of The Week: 01.03.2021

BSA Images Of The Week: 01.03.2021

Welcome to the first BSA Images of the Week of 2021 !

We start our collection this week with an image of Christ crucified on a Facebook logo. If this is the level of subtlety that we can expect from the new year…gurl, we in trubble.

In fact, we have found that much of the organic street art that we find today has become increasingly strident in opinions expressed, especially around themes of social justice and political skullduggery. It’s all mixed in with favorites like pop figures, sports figures, cats. In a way, the artists are ahead of us, so we consider these images as the tea leaves for what is coming.

How will you interpret these messages from the street? Will you become emboldened? Scared? Or will they not have any impact on passersby?

Here is our weekly interview with the streets, this week featuring 7 Line Arts Studio, Bastard Bot, Calicho Art, Captain Eyeliner, Calisi Maultra, City Kity, CRKSHNK, David F Barthold, Degrupo, Elle, Jeff Roseking, Joseph Grazi, NohJColey, Poi Everywhere, Sickid, Sticker Maul, and Stikman.

Joseph Grazi (photo © Jaime Rojo)
NohJColey made an appearance in 2020 after a long absence from the streets of NYC. This wall hanging was repurposed by a construction crew as a bridge flooring- giving it a new patterned patina. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Elle in collaboration with The L.I.S.A. Project NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Elle in collaboration with The L.I.S.A. Project NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Elle in collaboration with The L.I.S.A. Project NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Elle in collaboration with The L.I.S.A. Project NYC (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sitkman with a gone over portrait of the Notorious RBG by Captain Eyeliner. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sitkman (photo © Jaime Rojo)
City Kitty (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sticker Maul (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CRKSHNK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Unidentified artist (photo © Jaime Rojo)
CRKSHNK (photo © Jaime Rojo)
David F Barthold (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Captian Eyeliner (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bastard Bot (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Bastard Bot (photo © Jaime Rojo)
7 Line Arts Studio (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Sickid (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DeGrupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DeGrupo. Bezos for Mr. Bezos (photo © Jaime Rojo)
DeGrupo (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Carlisi Maultra (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Poi Everywhere (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Calicho Art with Jeff Roseking (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Calicho Art with Jeff Roseking (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Calicho Art with Jeff Roseking (photo © Jaime Rojo)
Untitled. Hudson River, NYC. December 2020. (photo © Jaime Rojo)
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