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    Phlegm’s Monochromatic Comic Book Characters Explode Onto Walls Across Europe

    
    Art
    Illustration

    #comics
    #murals
    #street art

    August 19, 2021
    Christopher Jobson

    All images © Phlegm, shared with permission
    If there’s one theme that ties the epic stories unfolding in works by Sheffield-based Phlegm (previously), it’s a sense of action, toil, and perseverance. The otherworldly characters that appear in the Welsh artist’s murals, prints, paintings, and comic books are often unceasingly busy and cause mischief or wage battles using unusual crafts and weaponry. Each piece is a brilliant balance between his crisp monochromatic painting style born from the pages of his earlier comic books and the folk-ish narratives that often draw from historical artworks, leaving every piece open to interpretation by the viewer. Each piece can seem comical or tragic all at once.
    Phlegm recently completed a mural in Sweden and contributed to a sprawling collaboration with artists Sweet Toof, Teddy Baden, Run, and Mighty Mo on a single wall in London’s Hackney Wick neighborhood. You can follow more of his work on Instagram.

    Across the U

    #comics
    #murals
    #street art

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    ‘A Great British Spraycation’: New Works by Banksy Cheekily Interpret Summer Vacation

    
    Art

    #humor
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

    August 16, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images courtesy of Banksy
    In what’s dubbed A Great British Spraycation, ten new artworks by Banksy (previously) recently popped up across coastal towns in England in witty interpretations of quintessential summertime fun. A short film posted to Instagram shows the anonymous artist driving around Norfolk and Suffolk in an aging camper as he paints his signature stenciled murals of children imagining an adventure at sea, the metal claw of an arcade game descending over a bench, and a couple dancing atop of a bus stop.
    A Great British Spraycation satirizes the idea of “staycations,” a necessary alternative to traditional holidays in the wake of COVID-19 and restrictions placed on international travel following Brexit. Coincidentally or perhaps intentionally, three of the cities the artist worked in—Great Yarmouth, Gorleston, and Lowestoft—are competing to become the next UK City of Culture in 2025.
    This glimpse into Banksy’s process follows a wave of similarly revealing footage from the artist, who’s increasingly documented his works-in-progress, like in  “Create Escape” or in another video of his trademark rats causing havoc on the London Underground.

    #humor
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

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    Flying Ospreys, Herons, and Terns Comprise a 35-Meter Water Tower Mural by Taquen

    
    Art

    #birds
    #murals
    #public art

    July 20, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Eau de Loire” (2021), Gien, France. All images courtesy of Taquen, by Fabe Collage
    A 35-meter tower looming over Gien, France, is the site of a new mural by Taquen that celebrates the inherent life-giving properties of water. Set against a deep blue backdrop, the massive artwork titled “Eau de Loire” features a flock of ospreys, herons, and common terns, which often are spotted near the banks of the Loire River that runs through the area, as they fly around the tank in an endless loop. “Water has always been synonymous with life,” the Madrid-based artist says, noting that the source is as vital to the city’s inhabitants as it is the region’s wildlife.
    Broadly focused on change, Taquen’s works explore the complex relationships species have with each other and the larger environment, a recurring theme that manifests in this recent project through the birds’ perpetual motion. “For me, movement is a basic form of knowledge, to get to know myself and my environment and learn to respect it,” he says. “Birds are great symbols of freedom, animals that migrate thousands of kilometers each year with no one who can stop them.”
    Taquen just completed a piece in Vigo, Galicia and is headed to Camprovin, La Rioja, Spain next. In September, he’ll be at Mostar Street Art Festival in Bosnia and Eternelles Crapules at Briançon, France, before heading to a residency in Saint Palais and later to Bayona. Follow along his travels on Instagram. (via Street Art News)

    #birds
    #murals
    #public art

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    Lush Tropical Plants Sprout from Brightly Colored Murals by Thiago Mazza

    
    Art

    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

    July 19, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Lisbon. All images © Thiago Mazza, shared with permission
    In his brilliantly hued murals, Brazilian artist Thiago Mazza recreates the dense foliage and thick, fleshy petals he encounters in tropical forests and other verdant areas. Prickly thistles, striped leaves, and seemingly endless varieties of flowers spring up in wild masses that crawl down sidewalks and engulf entire buildings.
    In a note to Colossal, Mazza shares that all of his large-scale projects start with a carefully arranged photograph of the flora he finds during his forest excursions. “When I photograph the compositions with real plants, I do under a strong natural light so I can capture the light and the shadow, the contrast that I search in my compositions,” he says. The resulting works bring the otherwise remote plants to urban areas, transforming stark facades into lush gardens celebrating nature’s diversity.
    Based in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, Mazza is currently painting an installation in the middle of a field as part of a residency at Campidarte in Sardinia, which rounds out a months-long expedition around Europe where he completed murals in Sintra, Lisbon, and Civitacampomarano. Keep an eye on his Instagram for his upcoming works, which are slated for Foz do Iguaçu, Tbilsi, and Madrid this fall. (via Street Art News)

    Lisbon
    Bertioga, Brazil, with the help of Drin Cortes
    Poços de Caldas, Brazil, with the help of Drin Cortes
    Belo Horizonte, Brazil, with the help of Drin Cortes
    Vukovar, Croatia, with the help of David Arranhado

    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

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    Erik Burke Shows Us His ‘Top 20’ in Reno, Nevada

    Is there any better combination than art and music? Yes there is…Art, music, AND a cold adult beverage!We’re impressed with Erik Burke’s new piece which he’s been calling “Top 20” in collaboration with Reno Nevada’s Record Street Brewing Co.The idea began with Record Street Brewery‘s Jesse Corletto bringing some pre-selected albums to Reno’s own Erik Burke aka OU. From there the project came to life on a wall outside the brewery/pizza restaurant/live music venue.The painted spines are shown a little worn and tattered, as real vinyl lovers know the music is to be played and not just appreciated as decor. Some great musical choices went into this piece, with classics from so many genres honored in paint. We appreciate the nod to The Velvet Underground & Nico’s classic LP with album artwork and production by iconic Andy Warhol.Erik lives in Reno, NV and creates place-specific murals throughout the world. His latest work can be seen in Bosnia and Herzegovina, S. Korea, Italy, and closer to home in Reno. His work has been published in the book ‘Street Art; The Best Urban Art from Around the World’, ‘Outdoor Gallery’, The Huffington Post, & The NYTimes.The artist’s previous works have included making a 40 acre ground drawing in the USA, creating a body of work while bicycling from Portugal to the exhibition gallery in Copenhagen, Denmark , becoming the de facto resident Artist of Lassen County Jail while serving time for graffiti, and seeking out decommissioned spaces for wheat pastes. Throughout that time he have continually returned to the inspiration of geography and identifying a sense of place.Keep up with the talented Erik Burke via his website & InstagramWritten by @jreich More

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    A Mythical Stencil Mural by MonkeyBird Is a Monumental Homage to Burgos Cathedral

    
    Art

    #murals
    #public art
    #stencils
    #street art

    June 21, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images © MonkeyBird, shared with permission
    A guardian angel in the form of a grey heron watches over an allegorical mural at Burgos Cathedral in Spain. Painted by Louis Boidron and Edouard Egea, who work as MonkeyBird (previously), “Mymesis, beings and places” is an homage to the artworks and design of the church, which UNESCO designated a World Heritage site back in 1984 in part because it captures the evolution of gothic architecture: construction on the building began in 1221 and wasn’t complete until 1567, meaning it showcases the entire history of the style.
    Translating many of the religious symbols and motifs found inside, the duo combines the cathedral’s profound history with its signature stenciled aesthetic and recurring monkey and bird creatures. The resulting mural is a dense display of ornate structural elements, airborne birds called papamoscas cerrojillo that typically nest in the building, and a gilded clock from the 18th Century. “Our intention was to offer an effect of complex depth and monumentalism, combining some of the most spectacular references of the temple, such as the main altarpiece, with its many details, the Golden Staircase, or the circular oculus in the center of Santa María façade,” MonkeyBird says.
    Head to Instagram to see more of “Mymesis, begins and places” and to follow the duo’s projects and occasional print releases.

    #murals
    #public art
    #stencils
    #street art

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    An Oversized and Eclectic Stack of Well-Loved Vinyl Slides into a Corner of a Reno Brewery

    
    Art
    Music

    #murals
    #records

    June 10, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images © Erik Burke, shared with permission
    Flip through a treasured record collection and you’re likely to find tattered covers and faded, bent corners on the most played albums. Artist Erik Burke displays these signs of a well-loved LPs in a new mural that amplifies music’s outsized impact to a monumental scale. Tucked into a corner at Reno’s Record Street Brewing, the towering artwork gathers a vintage collection—The Notorious B.I.G.’s Ready to Die is slotted next to The Velvet Underground & Nico and Johnny Cash’s Live At Folsom Prison is side-by-side with Give ‘Em Enough Rope by The Clash—that’s an eclectic mishmash spanning genres and decades. “A large part of it was sourcing the original vinyl and choosing the most worn-and-torn covers to show how these records are a big part of our life and tell unique stories,” the artist tells Colossal.
    Burke is known for his stylized portraits and floral murals, which you can see more of on his site and Instagram. He also has a few prints available in his shop.

    #murals
    #records

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    Abstract Clusters of Feathers Ruffle Across Vibrant New Murals by Adele Renault

    
    Art

    #birds
    #feathers
    #murals
    #painting
    #public art
    #street art

    June 4, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Artscape, Sweden. All images © Adele Renault, shared with permission
    Belgian artist Adele Renault (previously) has an unparalleled ability to turn an urban nuisance into an extraordinarily beautiful creature. Her oversized pigeons grace walls in cities around the world, creating public artworks that celebrate her favored subjects in the exact locations they’re often overlooked and disregarded.
    A few years ago, Renault began what she calls “wandering in the macro world,” a venture that shifted her focus to the individual feathers she’s always found most alluring. “The texture is more dazzling and intriguing than showing the whole thing,” she says. “The feathers have become my own language in a way. I now create them without photo reference, more like a meditative practice that creates textures and softness as a result.” Her murals have since strayed from portraying full birds to focusing instead on clusters of plumes and the individual barbs that sprout in layers and tufts.
    Although Renault is dedicated to realistic forms, her more recent artworks play with color, injecting bright rainbow hues where she previously focused on naturally occurring blues and purples. The vibrant feathers radiate with an oily, iridescent sheen and appear to ruffle on the wall, a trompe-l’œil effect she achieves by meticulously coating either oil or spray paint to create depth and shadow.
    A few of Renault’s smaller works on canvas are on view at Moberg Gallery in Des Moines through the end of June, and she’s currently preparing for a solo show in Belgium that’ll feature her Plantasia series, which similarly extracts minuscule details from leaves. You can find out more about her practice in Gutter Paradise, which was published late last year, and follow her on Instagram to stay up-to-date with her latest projects.

    New Brighton, UK (2021)
    Northwest Walls, Werchter (2019). Photo by Dan Verbruggen-Ausilio
    “Gutter Paradise 11” (2019)
    Right: Silverlake (2019). Photo by Asato Iida
    Urban Art Fair Paris. Photo by Alex Geoffrey
    London, Maryland. Photo by Marian Medic

    La Brea, Los Angeles (2021)

    #birds
    #feathers
    #murals
    #painting
    #public art
    #street art

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