Fifth Ward Council Member Bobby Burns joined artists Dustin Harris and Lea Pinsky, founders of the Evanston Mural Arts Program, to discuss the possibility of “permission walls” for spray paint art in Evanston.
These walls would allow a space for anyone to spray paint without repercussions.
“Growing up in Evanston, I did graffiti myself, illicitly,” Burns said at Tuesday’s Arts Council meeting. “There were some really talented, incredible artists that I met along the way, and these are now people who have since graduated from art school and have went on to open up their own galleries.”
Much like the new skate park, Burns hopes to have a dedicated space where spray paint artists can work to their full potential.
“The thing that actually shows up on your garage is is not the full capability of these artists,” he said.
According to Arts Council member Toby Sachs, this is the first time in six years that a City Council member has attended one of their meetings.
“I think the council finds this a very exciting idea, and we want to help you move forward with this,” incoming Arts Council chair Richard Cándida-Smith said.
Unmet precedent
Evanston used to have several private permission walls for spray painting that have been demolished or painted over, according to Pinksy and Harris. These walls included the space behind Prairie Moon and Dave’s Kitchen.
The two hope to find suitable walls in the future for more free expression with spray paint, or to create a dedicated space.
“We have a little bit of decision-making to deal with,” Pinksy said. “Let’s reach out to building property owners, see if anyone wants to donate that space, or think about whether we like to fabricate something.”
Pinksy and Harris also pitched this idea at an eighth ward meeting last summer.
They’re still formulating ideas, like how the walls will be regulated, what they plan to bring to business owners to discuss the idea and how they might approach it with City Council.
“Before council discusses it to a great degree, we really thought the most appropriate place for it to start was at this committee and with this group,” Burns said.
The Arts Council showed support for the idea, and had a few suggestions themselves.
“Maybe it’s a series of panels that are on display and they go into some collection of some sort, as opposed to just being permanently tagged or permanently painted murals,” said Arts Council member Angela Williams.
Cándida-Smith also suggested that the pair could bring a formal proposal to the Arts Council first, before bringing it to City Council.
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