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.

Outdoor advertising has always had an issue with staying current. In this case, the billboard is covered in large panels of black fabric. An interesting choice as it seems to impart a “world in grieving” kind of moment as if we’ve lost one of America’s great ads. Of course, I’m glad to see some enterprising artist has taken advantage of all that great empty space. As to what the image is or represents, as it often the case, I have no idea. Quite possibly, it’s a representation of knowledge as the enemy of religion, but using religious symbolism. Maybe? Instead of the tree of knowledge, we’re given a book with an odd symbol on the front. The text on the spine isn’t quite legible. The book is sprouting the snake who is menacing the apple which in turn has some illegible text in the white circle. On a technical level, it doesn’t look to be sprayed on, but hand painted. Given the location, climbing up scaffolding or out a window with paint buckets is very impressive. Sometimes with art, you may not know what’s going on, but you can still appreciate (and interpret for yourself), the impression, the detail and the meaning it impacts on you personally.

West Side, Manhattan.

A somewhat obligatory Halloween post this time around which is really just a coincidence. I shoot what I find and sometimes it’s topical. But I digress. I have no idea what this piece is about, but it is quite large. It might be a tag, but it might not given the “MT” in the top left corner. It’s a bit rough, but that can be forgiven as it was probably rushed due to the location. The typography is great and the details in the skele-bat (?) are also well done. Happy Halloween!

West Side, Manhattan.

A giant wall piece of lettering notably for the type style and the coloring. You rarely see a blackletter inspired piece these days and gold and purple isn’t common either. Don’t get me wrong — I love blackletter and the coloring works — they’re just not in fashion right now. As for the content, I have no idea. The “a” in “deal” is the real winner here though. It’s both a reverse “s” and a two-story “a” even though there’s a a standard two-story “a” in the next word. A deliberate artistic choice or perhaps just an initial experiment that was rejected by the time they reached the second word. It’s all a bit haphazard, yet still somewhat technical.

West Side, Manhattan.

Found this sticker in the parking lot outside a small town supermarket. It’s big at about four inches square. There’s a disconnect between the professional vinyl color printing and the childlike illustration and type. I have no idea what it means beyond the obvious video game reference, but I do love the pencil scribbled response. When graffiti causes a response, it transforms into a conversation and eventually into a historical timeline.

Saranac, New York

Found this sticker posted up on the west side last week. Really vibrant colors and gradients in the illustration. Still not sure it’s a cat. Maybe an owl? Or a viper? For scale, it was about 3″ x 3″.

Manhattan, New York

There’s a lot to unpack in this piece — loose brushwork, layer upon layer, a frantic somewhat anxious details and an unusual color palette. There’s a pulsing radiating energy to the brain and even the whole piece. I’m not even sure it’s by a single artist or just a various people adding to the mix. I snapped this photo In December, so perhaps it’s serving as a metaphor for the last year representing our collective dread. Let’s hope we can shake it off and regain a bit of our self health in 2023.

Chinatown, New York