My New Mural in NYC - Step by Step Process

My mural for the Welling Court Mural Project 2018 has been completed!

Time goes by too fast! Here is my process in a series of steps over the 2.5 days of super fun painting.

Step 1 - Yup, everyone has to buff the previous year's mural. In a lot of cases, it is usually your own. I love working in the same spot and how the other amazing artists on the same strip compliment each others work so well. This year, I hit the old mural with a roll out of primer and the intention of adding to the previous background clouds up top. I had to also recompose the barbed wire too...funny and not funny!

Step 2 - I like to first lay down a loose sketch of lines with a solid color. My murals are usually intuitive and unplanned in terms of subject matter. I may make a sketch on paper weeks before just to please my "what if ego-self" but I never follow it. I love making the process immediate, and a puzzle of figuring it out as I go.

Step 3 - The complete the sketch. I need to do this for scale, composition and an overall sense of how the fragmented pieces come together. In this case, this mural is a celebration of NYC B-Boy and B-Girl characters, hip hop and graffiti culture. I have been inspired by this art movement since 1982 and counting! I pay homage to what has inspired me with the intention of inspiring you back.

Step 4 - Start adding color to the highest point of the composition. In this case, I needed to resolve the background, clean it up and re-connect it. I filled it with more colorful clouds and bubble like forms that are common in graffiti pieces.

Step 5 - Continue to work down from the top and lay the color into place. Im working with primary and secondary colors again this year. It continues to inspire me and help the piece really pop once the final outline is applied. This is the most labor intensive aspect of the mural.

Step 6 - Chat with Charlie Ahearn and his class! As you know, Charlie is the creator of the hip hop American class graffiti film: Wild Style. Charlie brought his summer class from the School of Visual Arts to visit Welling Court while a lot of the artists were at work. This gives the students a first hand insight into the process while asking questions and snapping some picts. I am always super grateful to share my process and meet new people. This was a great group of warm and insightful artists!

Step 7 - Complete the color fills and mull over whether to leave it as is or add the traditional outline.. I added my tag/name as a bubble throwie and kept the interior of the letters white for contrast. What do you think of the piece with out the outline?

Step 8 - The artist and the mural. Hopefully the image gives a sense of scale in height and width. I laid down a black outline with both the spray can and a brush to fine tune some the detail. I used an external enamel paint for a longer lasting effect.

The murals are up and active for one full year! Get directions to Welling Court NYC - https://wellingcourtmuralproject.com/