this post was submitted on 05 Aug 2024
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Thanks for sharing these!
I live in a place where murals aren't common and there's some pretty standardized ways most stuff is apparently 'supposed' to look. Whenever I see graffiti or buildings painted in some elaborate pattern or image, I'm kinda delighted. I love the idea of a society that makes art everywhere for its own sake and I'd hope a solarpunk society would abandon some of the home owner association-type standardization and would decorate everything from buildings to machines, in all kinds of styles. That might mean folk art with historical roots, like the zapista murals, it might mean carved panels on cabinets, or etchings on tools, metal sculpture, or who knows what. Embellishment not for commercial value but as self expression and messaging. So the topics and content would vary a lot.
I think there's a bit of punk in that, in refusing to paint or decorate with an eye on the resale value, like your house is a product for others rather than your own home.
I try to include murals, carvings, and other decorations in my solarpunk photobash art. (And when I refinish furniture and work on tools IRL, I try to add embellishments that weren't there when whatever it was left the factory floor.)
Unfortunately I've also found that in my postcards, where the buildings are usually part of a complicated background, murals can kind of act like dazzle camouflage, making it hard to tell what exactly is happening. So I'm still figuring out what works and what doesn't. (Ideally, you want the contents of the mural to be clear while also allowing for the building and the assorted stuff attached to it (plants, solar panels, other tech) to be easily recognized and understood. It's challenging.
All that said, I wanted to share some of my favorite murals found while trying to figure out what works and what to imitate:
I think my current favorite is the Belgian Antwerp-based street artist DZIA who paints these beautiful murals full of scribbly black lines and vibrant colors:
It's hard to pick favorites from his work.
http://www.myowlbarn.com/2018/01/animal-murals-in-pop-colors-and-bold.html
Lately I'm also really digging street art by L7M
These are really amazing.
I'm very fortunate, because my town -- Oakland, California -- is somewhat known for the abundance and qualities of our murals.
Oakland is really an inspiration to me. It's a city with a strong sense of solarpunk and afrofuturist culture (it's no coincidence that it produced Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, along with the Black Panther Party itself!).
The murals definitely communicate the sensibilities you've described. The styles are really diverse, too. Some examples:
Downtown has a lot of classically artful ones:
There are also plenty of graffiti style ones, like this one:
Here is an underpass, capturing the vibrant feel of the city, with great use of the lighting:
This is a great example of the current style, with portraits and lots of warm colors and shapes:
And then there's this one, which is unusual for its use of photorealism, but it's dazzling. I initially assumed it had to have used computer control to paint or something, but nope. It was painted by hand.
Sources: https://www.reddit.com/r/oakland/comments/hoozfm/my_favorite_mural_in_oakland_love_the_incredible/ https://oaklandside.org/2022/06/27/a-second-love-letter-to-oakland-mural-graces-a-wall-in-temescal/ https://www.kqed.org/arts/13934676/souls-of-mischief-mural-oakland
These are really cool! Thanks for taking me on a tour. I'm jealous of your city's artistic streak.
Let me know if you ever come to the Bay! I'd be delighted to show you around.
Count on it!