purty garage April 26th, 2010
Bringing you a little ray of sunshine and hopefully a smile, on what is currently a pretty dreary Monday in DC.
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what was… April 12th, 2010
Once some colorful artwork or graffiti is now covered in white cover-up paint. It always seems like a cyclical process, until someone comes along and re-tags the wall. Or, a sign comes off (post-graffiti, but pre-white-paint-over) to reveal what once was there.
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Tags: DC, Exteriors, artwork, graffiti
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alley mural April 7th, 2010
How can you not enjoy walking through this colorful alleyway at 1344 U St. NW? On the left-hand side of the image we see part of artist Joel Bergner’s mural, “Afro-Colombian Mural: Currulao y Desplazamiento”, which pays tribute to the Afro-Colombian culture in DC (especially around the U Street area) and also around the world. Through this three-story painting, the artist hoped to educate the public about human rights issues and the displacement of people related to the armed Colombian conflict. Here’s another angle of this work. Bergner also coordinates Action Ashe, which, according to its website is a project whose mission is “to create social change and celebrate culture through public art.”
Below is a video of the mural inauguration, which “opened” on September 12, 2009.
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Tags: 14th Street, U Street, alley, artwork, mural
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The Bureau of Misdirected Destiny April 6th, 2010
Living in the city, you see a lot of “things that make you go… hmmm” (yes, in a C+C Music Factory sort of way) but this busted old sign at 14th and S NW, by Garden District, for “The Bureau of Misdirected Destiny” was one that really made me wonder. Thank goodness for Herb of DC for clearing it up — with lots of pictures of the original piece. According to his blog, this was formerly a work of art by Matthew McGuinness and Eliza Newman Saul as part of SiteProjects DC. A quick google search for this organization leads nowhere, so I can only assume it is now defunct and a shadow of its former self, just like this installation. Still, maybe it’s even more provocative in its current state?
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Tags: 14th Street, DC, artwork, signs
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a classic March 16th, 2010
Just one more of the many recognizable murals found on 18th Street in Adams Morgan. According to Cultural Tourism DC , this one was painted from a photo by restaurant owner André Neveux in 1980.
The figure is cabaret singer Aristide Bruant, as painted by the famous Parisian Toulouse-Lautrec.
This photograph was one in a set of “black-white-color” images that Matt created in his set of framed photography for the hallways of Union Row.
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Tags: DC, Exteriors, adams morgan, artwork, black + white, buildings, mural
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oh hey there frida March 11th, 2010
I like finding little bits of urban artwork in unexpected places. Usually though, it’s the work of an unknown or independent artist expressing themselves through graffiti, stencil, murals, stickers, or otherwise. In this case though, a homeowner (or apartment dweller perhaps) in Dupont Circle added their own little take to “urban artwork” by having Frida to watch over the alleyway. Try walking by that window at night without feeling a set of eyes watching you.
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Tags: DC, alley, artwork, dupont circle
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anyone coulrophobic? March 2nd, 2010
Some people think that the fear of clowns comes from not being able to distinguish their emotions. If a clown has a painted-on smile around their lips, how will you know if they are sad?? Isn’t this really just the fear of the unknown?
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Tags: DC, U Street, adams morgan, artwork, buildings
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your message for Thursday… February 4th, 2010
Reminds me of those word magnets that people get for their refrigerators, the ones you can rearrange to form funny or nonsensical sayings. What would you write if you had just two words to post on the back of a sign? I think mine would say, “Mmmm cheese”
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Tags: artwork, signs
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peep! January 28th, 2010
Another peep! from locally-based street artist diabetik, who you might remember from the candy cane street cones and gingerbread cookie people, as well. I wonder what will be the next seasonal treat that starts showing up around the city? My vote is for Pez, or gummy bears.
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Tags: DC, artwork
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7,000 soldiers January 14th, 2010
Last night we checked out the Terra Cotta Warriors exhibit at the National Geographic Museum. Though Matt already saw them in situ when he was in Xi’an last year, I decided that we should still go, since I probably wouldn’t get another chance. There was no photography allowed in the exhibit, so you’re stuck with a blurry iPhone shot of myself and a replica warrior. sweet!
There were many amazing parts to this exhibit, but I think the most mind-blowing would have to be the age and number of these warriors. They are over 2,000 years old! When most of the history we read about from the US only takes you back a few hundred years, it’s hard to correlate the two. As you stand right there next to them and look at them, it’s hard to imagine someone creating a work of art like that so long ago and that it was so well preserved in some cases. For the numbers, there were 15 soldiers for viewing last night, while there are about 1,000 that have been excavated since their discovery in 1974, they estimate that over 6,000 of them are still buried.
China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, thought of just about everything he would need for his afterlife. At age 13 (!!!!) he commissioned over 700,000 workers to begin creating the clay figures. There were different ranks of generals and soldiers (each with different weaponry), chariot drivers and archers, as well as “entertainment” soldiers like musicians, acrobats, and strongmen. The display takes you through the process by which they were created, as well as the varying details of their appearances and how no two were to be alike. They were buried to the east of his tomb to ward off any invasion in his afterlife. Can you imagine????