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    An Ornate Stenciled Rug by Mateo Complements a Cultural Center’s Communal Rooftop in Dakar

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    All images courtesy of Mateo, shared with permission

    An Ornate Stenciled Rug by Mateo Complements a Cultural Center’s Communal Rooftop in Dakar

    August 1, 2025

    Art

    Kate Mothes

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    On the rooftop of TRAMES, an artistic and cultural center in Dakar, Senegal, a vibrant new installation by Mateo creates a welcoming atmosphere above the hustle and bustle of the city. Using paint and stencils, the artist incorporated motifs familiar in Senegal culture, like traditional wrestling, bird tracks, fish, and wax fabrics.

    Mateo was also inspired by teraanga, a word in the Wolof language that loosely translates to “hospitality” but is also characterized by a much more holistic philosophy of generosity and acceptance. For hundreds of years, teraanga has shaped communities’ openness and exchange with one another, continuing today as an integral and defining facet of the Senegalese way of life.

    Mateo was invited to TRAMES for a residency, where he initially planned to paint a mural. But he was inspired by the communal rooftop space of the center and conceived instead of a large patterned carpet that evokes the teraanga ethos and celebrates Senegalese culture.

    “Rather than painting a wall, I chose to work on the rooftop terrace, a vibrant space used for gatherings, celebrations, and dance rituals,” the artist says. Painting on the carpet directly onto the ground facilitated, he adds, “a symbolic, open-air space for connection and ritual.”

    Find more on the artist’s website and Instagram.

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      Wild Scavengers and Mythological Wonder Converge in Hera’s Dreamy Mixed-Media Works

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      Art

      #acrylic
      #animals
      #charcoal
      #mixed media
      #spray paint

      October 28, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      “Taking a Break From Dancing to Their Tunes,” acrylic paint, spray paint, charcoal on canvas, 35.4 x 23.6 inches. All images © Hera, courtesy of Corey Helford Gallery, shared with permission
      In a poetic new series of works on canvas, German-Pakistani artist Jasmin Siddiqui, aka Hera, nods to her background in street art with sweeping, spray-painted marks, chaotic drips and splatters, and snippets of text. The gestural pieces are rooted in narrative and feature wide-eyed characters who wear headdresses of long-nosed rats, wolves, and strange, hairless creatures. In each imaginative rendering, Hera positions the possibility and wonder of adolescence alongside wild animals often deemed nuisances to human society, with “I’m fine really” displayed next to a child whose finger is snapped in a mousetrap and the title of another work, “Love Her But Leave Her Wild,” accompanying a contorted figure.
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      “You Live and Learn,” acrylic paint, spray paint, charcoal on canvas, 35.4 x 23.6 inches
      “Smart Rats Have a Thousand Lives,” acrylic paint, spray paint, charcoal on canvas, 39.4 x 19.7 inches
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      “Love Her but Leave Her Wild,” acrylic paint, spray paint, charcoal on canvas, 35.4 x 23.6 inches
      “Poetry Written in Fairy Language,” acrylic paint, spray paint, charcoal on canvas, 27.6 x 19.7 inches

      #acrylic
      #animals
      #charcoal
      #mixed media
      #spray paint

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    • 175 Shares199 Views

      in Art

      Poignant New Works by Pejac Confront the Urgency of Global Crises in Disquieting Detail

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      Art

      #acrylic
      #activism
      #capitalism
      #climate crisis
      #oil painting
      #painting
      #spray paint

      October 20, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      “Counterweight” (2021), oil, acrylic, and spray paint on paper mounted on a wooden stretcher, 190 x 135 x 4.3 centimeters. All images © Pejac, shared with permission
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      “Drain I” (2021), oil on artist’s palette, 50 x 40 x .4 centimeters
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      Detail of “Sweet World” (2021), acrylic on honeycomb cardboard, 145 x 200 centimeters
      “The Boss” (2021)
      Detail of “The Boss” (2021)
      “Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
      Detail of “Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
      Detail of “Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
      

      #acrylic
      #activism
      #capitalism
      #climate crisis
      #oil painting
      #painting
      #spray paint

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    • 150 Shares159 Views

      in Art

      Trompe L’oeil Textiles Billow Across Murals by Rosie Woods in Iridescent Ripples

      by

      
      Art

      #fabric
      #murals
      #public art
      #spray paint
      #street art
      #trompe l’oeil

      April 29, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      “Veils of Knowledge” at Grenoble Street Art Festival in France. Photo by Andrea Berlese. All images © Rosie Woods, shared with permission
      As if lifted by a breeze, oversized ribbons and bunches of fabric float across the trompe l’oeil murals by London-based artist Rosie Woods. The gleaming, prismatic textiles sway and subtly twist into folds and ripples in the spray-painted works. Through the flowing movements, Woods explores the fluid, ever-changing nature of the human experience by synthesizing abstraction and realism. She explains:
      I often wonder what my soul would look like if it manifested itself as an object I could see and touch on this earth.  My artwork today looks to express the depth, growth, and complexity of the mind as well as its ability to encompass both light and dark spaces emotionally. I’d like to think you can “feel” my artwork with your eyes.
      Woods translates her massive, lustrous textiles to smaller canvases, which she sells in her shop. Although she’s sold-out at the moment, you can watch for upcoming releases on Instagram, where she shares a variety of process shots and news on where she’s headed next.

      “Veils of Knowledge” at Grenoble Street Art Festival in France. Photo by Andrea Berlese
      “Veils of Knowledge” at Grenoble Street Art Festival in France. Photo by Andrea Berlese
      “Veils of Knowledge” at Grenoble Street Art Festival in France. Photo by Andrea Berlese
      Woods working at Grenoble Street Art Festival in France. Photo by Andrea Berlese
      Photo by Daniel Vaughan
      Photo by Daniel Vaughan

      #fabric
      #murals
      #public art
      #spray paint
      #street art
      #trompe l’oeil

      Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

       
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