Here is some imagery of a mural project I helped organize at 1900 North and Broadway in Baltimore outside of Diakon Kidz Center. It was a small summer project that has evolved into a year long project that has extended over 200 feet and continues to develop. Artists involved in the process were Kerry Cesen, Nick Illuzada, Cam Floyd, Gaia, Shana Hoehn and myself. I just received a France Merrick Fellowship from MICA to continue to produce similar work throughout Baltimore. More or less I am taking advantage of the open space of the city bringing beautiful imagery to parts of the city which at times appear to be desolate. The engagement with the community and the urban environment in general has been very beneficial for everyone involved with the mural. The space of the city as it currently exists in Baltimore is definitely an asset to the artist community.

The six paintings directly below were part of a series in which I attempted to use systematic grid-like compositions to create overlapping details in a manner that echoed a metropolitan landscape. Imagery based off of maps of Baltimore was worked into the pieces to create a convoluted architectural understanding of my everyday space. The birds’ eye perspective of the space in which I travel on a day-to-day basis was used as a gesture to track movement within the city at particular times. The physicality of the surfaces created by building up different layers and textures through a combination of drawing and painting materials such as graphite, charcoal, oil and acrylic paint was used as a method to capture both the conflict/chaos as well as the harmony of the urban environment. A separate layer of string was placed over top the paintings to represent a network of movement throughout the city.

(detail image)

(detail image)