Sometimes it’s a quick illustration that works best. A white chalk tulip under a crescent moon and clouds. No need to overthink it. It works as it is and the core idea stands on it’s own.

West Side, Manhattan.

A real unique and beautiful color palette in this large piece. There’s also no fear in just painting over the smoke stain on the wall. I’ve no idea what the lettering says, but using white and having the lightening coming out from below creates an immediate cloud effect in my mind. The silhouette is a bit menacing, but the color choices lift the mood a bit and give it a more magical feel.

West Side, Manhattan.

A couple of lovely stencils found on the sidewalk from @go4tart. Having cut and painted many stencils myself, the detail here is really impressive. Plus anytime you’re using multiple colors, you’re increasing the difficulty in getting a good final image. The character choices and message are also guaranteed to make a New Yorker smile. There are also more stencils in the series for you to seek out.

West Side, Manhattan.

A classic mural and instantly recognizable to any New Yorker who’s been stuck in northbound traffic on the West Side highway. It’s tricky to get a good photo of it as it sits behind some trees and billboards, but it’s been on my list for years. Finally, I found myself walking by and managed to get right under it for this shot. The multi color shading on CP30’s surface is a really interesting choice. It defies the movie canon and aligns it with the artist’s own aesthetic. Perhaps it also frees it from copyright claims? Sadly it seems, the “stop wars” message still goes unheard. Painted by the muralist Eduardo Kobra.

West Side, Manhattan.

Such a nice little bit of street art. Simple lines which take advantage of the shapes in our environment to make an immediately relatable statement. I see the left and it makes me smile.

Hell’s Kitchen, Manhattan

Just a solitary heart graffiti left for us to find.

West Side, Manhattan.

A really nice illustration. It may take a few extra seconds to figure out what’s going on though. The color is simple and bold. The killer part for me is the halftone shading. It’s amazing and gives all the depth the piece needs.

West Side, Manhattan.