EDITOR’S NOTE: For preview coverage of the 49th Utah Arts Festival, which runs June 19-22, The Utah Review is presenting individual or group profiles of artists, performers, entertainers and some newcomers to the event. Visitors will also see the first significant change of the last 15 years in the festival map. There are several new features this year: Voodoo Productions’ street theater will include roaming graffiti stilt walkers, contortionists and living master works of art. Salt Lake Acting Company will appear for the first time at the festival, offering a sample from its upcoming summer show, The Secret Lives of the Real Wives in the Salt Lake Hive. Urban Arts is offering its largest live graffiti mural installation, while a row of several other artists will be demonstrating their creative process in real time. For kids, as admission for those 12 and under will be free, there will be plenty of make-and-take art options in Frozen Spaces in the Art Yard. The City Library auditorium will be the home to the 22nd edition of the international Fear No Film program, with the strongest slate of narrative short films in the event’s history. Of course, dance, who wears the empress jewels in performing arts, will be represented by Repertory Dance Theatre, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, Echoing Spirit Dancers and, of course, the ever-popular 1520 Arts, at The Round. For tickets and more information, see the Utah Arts Festival website.
BRODYIZM
BrodyIZM (Brody Froelich) will be part of the outstanding lineup of graffiti and street art muralists who will be participating at the festival’s Urban Arts venue.
BRODYIZM: As BrodyIZM, my creative persona is basically a chaotic blend of graffiti rat, tech nerd, and occasional mural monk. So when a space like Urban Arts actually welcomes that mashup instead of asking me to tone it down or “pick a direction,” it’s kind of a miracle.
Graffiti and street art have always been legit – Urban Arts just gave folks permission to finally admit it out loud in Utah. Suddenly spray paint isn’t just vandalism, it’s “visual communication.” And I’m here for that glow-up.
My work reflects me best when it’s dancing on the line between polished and punk, mixing in some advanced techniques with a bit of “did they mean to do that?” energy. Even when I sneak in a few nerdy influences—like clean symmetry, projection mapped surfaces, easter eggs and hidden codes – I still want it to feel alive, messy, and unapologetically me. Honestly, Urban Arts lets me be my full chaotic self – spray cans, code, color theory and all – and the fact that people now see that as “art” instead of “property damage” is progress I can get behind.
TUR: The presence of the Urban Arts venue has contributed to coalescing the community’s acceptance and perceptions of graffiti and many forms of street art as legitimate, worthy of the same merit and acknowledgment as any other form of visual arts. I would like your opinions and perspectives on how you have seen your work best represent your own creative persona?
BRODYIZM: I’ve been learning by doing since I was a kid—no formal art school path, just a lot of walls, sketchbooks, and trial-and-error with spray cans and bucket paint. My “training” came from being obsessed with how art shows up in public space—how it disrupts, questions, or just exists loudly.
I pull a lot from the Dada movement, Surrealism, and artists like Michael Heizer and Banksy. I’m especially drawn to the tension between permanence and ephemerality—big land art, absurd gestures, or anonymous social commentary. Street art is activism by design, and I’ve always been into that.
My influences definitely shift as I do. The older I get, the more I care about impact over ego—and I think my work reflects that. I’m still down to paint something wild just because it feels good, but I also want it to mean something when the moment calls for it.
TUR: What is your training as a street, graffiti and public mural artist? Who do you consider your most significant influences and inspirations? Do these influences shift as you progress both in your work and life?
BRODYIZM: I wear a lot of hats – artist, filmmaker, designer, animator, fabricator – but it all feeds the same creative engine. I don’t just make art full-time; I live inside a creative practice that spans murals, media production, and experimental design.
Sometimes that means painting a public wall, sometimes it means editing a music video at 2am, or managing some adventurous companies’ social media channels. I run a small creative studio called Really BAD Media, which lets me blend client work with personal projects and keep the lights on without compromising the weird stuff I love to make.
TUR: What do you see as the trends, challenges and opportunities forthcoming in the next few years with regard to street, public and graffiti art?
BRODYIZM: One of the biggest challenges ahead is sustainability – for the artists and the culture. It’s getting harder and harder to be a full-time artist in the city, especially if you’re trying to support a small family. There need to be more pathways for younger artists to get involved—more funding, more mentorship, and definitely more walls that are actually available to paint.
The opportunity is huge if cities are willing to invest in their local creative communities. Public art has the power to bring people together, tell local stories, and transform bland spaces into something alive. But we need public spaces that celebrate local voices – not just big out-of-town commissions or “safe” art. Give us the walls. We’ll handle the rest.
TUR: With regard to participating in the Utah Arts Festival, please share your feelings about being a part of this enterprise? Have you been in other festivals and do you plan to explore other festival venues?
BRODYIZM: I’ve painted at festivals from Costa Rica to Canada, but Utah is home—and the Utah Arts Festival holds a special place for me. There’s something unique about how it brings together such a wide range of people and gives space for live, in-the-moment creation. I love being part of that energy.
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