Perching high above the bustle and noise of Allen Street is this magnificent and regal lion by Sonny. It really is an outstanding piece and one of my favourites from my trip to New York.
Sonny, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
This is the second piece by Sonny I have featured from this trip, the first was a tiger in SoHo. His work in both these pieces has woven in patterns and colour to a quarter of the portrait that looks so natural and part of the animal itself.
Sonny, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
This piece, and indeed this street, should be on any street art hunter’s wish list.
Oooh, I love New York, and so it seems does Invader. Deep in the heart of Little Italy in SoHo this magnificent pixelated mosaic by the great French artist resides above a clam restaurant. The piece was given a helping hand by the LISA (Little Italy Street Art) project.
Invader, Mulberry Street, New York, October 2017
I have only ever seen a handful of Invader pieces in the flesh, and this one is quite the largest. A magnificent present for those who like to keep their eyes open.
Very close to where we were staying in New York was this large and imposing piece by the fabulous Shepard Fairey. The style is austere and seems to bear a resemblance to totalitarian state propaganda branding or dystopian future movie motifs such as in ‘the hunger games. The sentiment though is for the people.
Shepard Fairey, Bowery, New York, October 2018
I rather like this highly designed corporate look, and it certainly is a striking piece that yells out at passers by.
When I took the picture of this door last October, I was simply capturing an interesting image of street art on a door, nothing more nothing less.
It turns out that there is a lot more to this door that I had thought, which I only found out about when researching for this post. The door is the entrance to Clayton Patterson’s gallery on 161 Essex Street on the lower East Side of NYC.
This is Portal number 7 of an interactive street art experience combining technology, art, urban space and community called ‘13 Portals‘. The project team have created an incredible ‘gamified’ experience that encourages participants to complete tasks and unlock the knowledge of the ancients. The door used to have a QR code in the white space at the bottom that linked up to the experience website.
I’m not sure when all this took place, possibly 2017, but it all looks rather complicated to me. I was just interested in the door.
The artwork itself appears to have ‘borrowed’ a little bit from the Terminator films and combines a skull with features relating to the number seven. This is what the website has to say about this door:
‘The number 7 is Saturn. It is death and transcendence. It is the seven colors of the rainbow, the seven western notes and the seven days of the week. 7. Seven is an exceptionally powerful number and also one of the biggest keys to the mystery. Each color, note or planet, represents a different perspective that we can seek to achieve awareness, clarity and enlightenment. It is the metaphor for the different races and the conflicts before they ultimately find harmony.’
So there you have it, perhaps we shouldn’t simply take things at face value, even a door.
One of the wildest pieces of Upfest 2017 was this great work from the Goopmassta, who himself was one of the most colourful characters. A visitor from the United States who came over to Bristol with a loose posse of other artists.
Goopmassta, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Unfortunately, as with many pieces in Ashton Gate, I didn’t get a clean shot of the finished piece, but even from the featured image you can get a feel for this free and happy piece.
Goopmassta, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The style of the piece is really rather seductive and eyecatching, and I can almost imagine the character being some kind of central figure in a children’s book…with a little bit of edge. Really nice work.
I cannot for the life of me remember exactly where in East Village this door was. I had been walking for a long while hunting down street art and had little idea of where I was.
No 300, a door in East Village, New York
The outstanding feature of this door is the beautiful cast iron panels either side of the entrance. Somehow these panels have survived, but appear to have been forgotten. A reminder of a bygone era. The graffiti is in itself rather unremarkable but adds to the overall appearance of the door. It is interesting that none of the graffiti or tags seem to stray beyond the border of the door, which appears to act as a kind of frame. An interesting doorway.
Allen Street is unofficially known as the ‘avenue of the immigrants’ and this remarkable seven story high piece by Stik represents “A timid giant peering out from behind a column, hoping to make his home in the big new city.” The mural is even more poignant for being very close to the Tenement Museum…so completely recommended if you are spending a few days in New York.
Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
I am a big fan of Stik’s…it is very difficult not to be. The simplicity of his characters hides a deep emotional connection it is possible to have with them. Maybe it is their simplicity that makes them easy to read and empathise with.
Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
Stik began his long and successful journey in a squat in Hackney, London and appears to have a strong connection with those less fortunate in society. He has been consistently telling his wonderful story through his art in cities all over the world. Long may it last. An interesting thing about this piece is that if you look on Google images, you will notice that he started with a white wall, then added the outline, then added the red background. I guess this is what gives the character a brilliant white body.
