Wall Dogs: The Midair Muralists Who Paint New York
It’s 8am in Soho, the thermometer reads just above freezing, and the sky is bleak. Taxis splash down the streets; New Yorkers stride with their heads down, leaping over puddles, carelessly bumping into each other. Everyone wants to get out of the cold, out of the rain, into the warmth.
Ten stories above — on a long, skinny platform hanging from the facade of a building at Canal and Mercer in downtown Manhattan — it’s a different story. Climbers’ ropes secured around their torsos, Jason Coatney and Armando Balmaceda stand in a melange of open paint cans and brushes. These two muralists of Colossal Media, the largest hand-painted advertising company in America, are heavily layered in sweatshirts and raincoats. But in this industry, c’est la vie. Paintbrushes in their fingerless-gloved hands, earbuds in their ears — “I like to start out with Miles Davis in the morning,” Coatney smiles, his breath visible in the frigid air — they begin yet another workday in the sky.
A while back I got to shoot with Brian for the Flint for 12ozProphet collaboration. You can now purchase the t-shirts online here.
Click here for more info.
Found this gem while I was back home visiting for the holidays. It’s a photo my Dad took of his old boss 27 stories high in Milwaukee.
I haven’t had a chance to update this site lately, but what better way to start posting again by kicking it off with new updates by some of the best dudes in New York!
This past week, Steady Zine, a bi-monthly magazine founded by Brian Kelley, Dan Zvereff, and Justin Hogan launched their first issue, Subways. It will be available for download soon, but I highly recommend picking up a free copy at one of these locations!
(Interview with Steve “ESPO” Powers at his studio in downtown Brooklyn.)
Get hyped! It’s been seven years since Steven Powers had a solo exhibition in New York. If you’re around the city for the month of September be sure to swing by Joshua Liner Gallery and check out his current exhibition, A Word is Worth A Thousand Pictures. In his new exhibition, Powers presents a panoramic assemblage of enamel on aluminum paintings that occupy both gallery rooms with a pop of colorful sign painting and good vibes.
Steve’s show will run from Sep. 6 through 29 and is located at 548 W. 28th St. 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10003.
My folks moved out of our old house in Arroyo Grande, Ca in 2009. We started renting it, and I certainly miss partying there. It was the perfect party house. Big yard, pool, great bbq, and lots of trees.
The renters will be gone in August, so we’re making the most of it and throwing a huge party. If you are in or around the central coast August 25th, I hope you can make it.
I used Blue Danube china as the inspiration for this lettering, as it was what I grew up with, and something that always makes me think of home.
My Etsy store is finally open!!
I’ll be adding new items every week or two so keep checking for new hand crafted goods!
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