Whale Mural by SAGE Collective. Downtown Jersey City.

I hope everyone had a great holiday!

Last month, in November 2010, I organized a new mural creation from the New Jersey based SAGE Collective. The mural is painted on a 90 foot long old brick wall that sits at the entrance of a city parking lot on Newark Ave. in downtown Jersey City.

The owner of the property was very eager to cover up the old bricks with a colorful mural. I'd been talking to Luv 1 since I first met him when he participated in the Raw Power mural show in Jersey City the year before. I've been wanting to hook him up with a project, and the timing was right for him and the SAGE Collective to come and paint a big piece in Jersey City. See their murals and other projects at their site: http://sagecollective.blogspot.com/

Below are photos of the Whale Mural being created by Luv 1, Lank, Delve, and Kasso over the course of one weekend in early November. This is the first phase of the mural, as there are plans for the artists to come add some more creatures to the scene in the future.

I'd like to thank The Jersey City Department of Cultural Affairs, The Department of City Planning, the JCPA, and the property owner for ensuring that the creation of this mural took place safely and legally.

Please enjoy the photos below, and make sure to come to Jersey City and see the mural in person. If you are having trouble finding it, it's just across the street from Helen's Pizza.

I'm continuously looking for walls to put murals on. If you know of any, or own any property that would like to be a host wall for a mural, please get in touch with me. Thank You!

"Double Rooster" by Gaia in Journal Square

Just off of Kennedy Blvd. at the corner of Stuyvesant Ave. is a new piece of public artwork by Gaia.

The image of the rooster symbolizes strength, vigilance, and pride, which I feel is a reflection of the Journal Square neighborhood.

I'd like to thank the owner of the building, his sons, and the residents that are my neighbors for all allowing Gaia to paint this piece. Many of the neighbors did not know what was happening until we were setting up the projector. One of them watched as Gaia began working and perfectly expressed a sentiment that was one of my own initial motivations with this whole project...
"it's better than looking at a blank wall".

I'm looking forward to bringing more artists to Jersey City in the next few months.

If you know of any wall space, or would like to donate supplies, please do get in touch! I'd also like to read your comments!
Thank You!

New Gaia Public Art in Journal Square Neighborhood

Here is a sneak peek of Gaia at work, creating public art for Jersey City. He could only paint at night for this project, so for a few hours, a dark corner off of Kenndy Blvd. was illuminated by a giant rooster. It was quite the sight to see if you were driving past at 1am. (click on photo to enlarge)

Neighbors were curious and cops were concerned, as I had short notice to get all of the elements together to make this happen. I'm happy to say though that the piece was completed without any incident.

Daytime pics to follow shortly...

Nick Martin and the kids celebrate new mural!

I'm happy to announce that Nick Martin has completed his Dogs mural at the old YMCA center on Bergen Ave in Jersey City, NJ.
The center is now run by a local Police Activity League that offers after school programs for the neighborhood kids. After a couple of months of Saturday mornings, the mural was completed. The PAL put together a BBQ celebration for the new mural, which the kids got to see for the first time. The kids were super happy and many high-fives were exchanged!
You can see the mural in the YMCA courtyard on Monticello Ave between Fairview and Jewett Aves.
Thanks to the Sgt. and staff of the PAL, as well as Nick Martin, for making this mural happen.





(last photo by R. Reesa Sibayan for the Jersey Journal)

More photos from Raw Power

Some pics from opening weekend...

Sorry for the delay on the opening weekend pics! There is plenty of artwork to still be installed, so more surprises and photos will be coming! The Ron English, Dan Drabkin, Eyesor, and Vendri murals have all been installed, so check them out at the site if you are in downtown Jersey City. Pictures will be posted soon! I've also had a shirt created to commemorate the event, which features artwork from Bigfoot. It's 5 colors and looks even more awesome in person (the green is really bright!). If you are interested in a shirt, please leave me a comment. Enjoy the photos below...more to come!
Kid Zoom (from Australia)
Isaac Fortoul
Heather Gargon
Vendri

Raw Power, partially installed!

Thank you to those that came out to during Studio Tour weekend to see the mural installation at on the Morgan Building at 350 Warren Street in downtown Jersey City. It was a pleasure to meet all of you!

Installation ended up being a more labor and time intensive procedure than the developer had anticipated, so only a portion of the artwork was installed for the weekend, but it was still a wonderful sight to see. Many local residents and visitors expressed how great everything looked, and how happy they were to see such a unique art installation. I apologize for not posting photos just yet, but I've had a very busy week since the Studio Tour weekend of October 3rd and 4th. I also need to watermark before adding them. This should be done SOON...

For now, here's a sneak preview of Vendri's killer octopus, with some local residents having fun...