North American Cities Have Gone Mural Mad

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North America and, most likely, the entire world have gone mural mad.

There are no official statistics, but the total number of murals in North American cities has undoubtedly skyrocketed in recent years. From New York to San Francisco and numerous cities in between, street art has fully emerged from its controversial beginnings as graffiti to a brilliant art form that delights tourists and locals.

Last week, Vancouver, Canada concluded a five-day mural festival. Two months ago, Birmingham, Alabama unveiled a Willie Mays mural one day after he died, and Cincinnati was named America’s No. 1 street art city by USA Today earlier this year.

The Vancouver Mural Festival, an independent, nonprofit arts organization, was formed in 2016 and has created more than 400 murals in the Vancouver area. The group’s festival this month unveiled a dozen new works and showcased the talents of more than 40 visual artists.

“We’re bringing people together through the power of public art, amplifying voices and creating platforms for artists,” the organization states on its website.

In June in downtown Birmingham, artist Chuck Styles presented his mural of Mays wearing a Birmingham Black Barons jersey. At age 17, Mays played for that team in the Negro Leagues before his legendary career with the New York and, later, San Francisco Giants.

ArtWorks Cincinnati, a nonprofit group that has trained and employed more than 3,500 professional artists, has created more than 300 permanent murals. The group provides free maps for self-guided mural tours and sells tickets for guided tours.

In Richmond, Virginia, there are 150 murals that were created in seven years, according to the nonprofit group Venture Richmond, which aims to improve the city. “What started as a way to bring people together has turned into one of Richmond’s main (and largest) attractions,” the group states on its website.

The website offers a link to purchase a 222-page coffee table book Murals of Richmond, edited by Cincinnati muralist Mickael Broth. The book, Venture Richmond says, includes “nearly 300 full-color photographs and nearly 70 interviews with artists from around the world who have painted in Richmond” and “is a testament to the transformative power of publicly accessible art.

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