Photos Of BSA #13 Golden Sunsets on the Cityscape

December 18, 2022 Artists

Happy Holidays! We’re celebrating the end of one year and the beginning of the next by thanking BSA readers, friends, and family for all of your support in 2022. We have selected some of our favorite shots by our Editor of Photography, Jaime Rojo, and we’re sharing a new one every day to celebrate all our good times together, our hope for the future, and our love for the street.

When the sun hits the city’s skyline and bathes it in shades of red and gold, you are suddenly lifted a foot off the ground, almost levitating in its hypnotic trance. If you are lucky to be in a highrise gazing at the crown of the Chrysler Building at that moment, you are lifted toward someplace more heavenly.

Chrysler Building. Manhattan, New York City. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Photos Of BSA #14: Women and Children First

December 17, 2022 Artists

“Women and children first” is an axiom used to infer we are chivalrous, caring, and considerate. When disaster strikes, as in a capsizing ship, we imagine men helping women and children to the available lifeboats.

When we look at the disbelief and despair depicted in this mural by Berlin’s DEVITA, we think of the fact that, with little exception, in actual terms, women and children are usually the first to suffer in man-made and natural disasters and that suffering is profound and systemic.

This spring, a series of murals made for the “Equality Jam” in a Berlin park impressed us and we think of them as we end the year. Organized by Emily Strange 202 and Graffiti Lobby Berlin, the 30 or so murals employed many styles of painting to illustrate how very far away we are in terms of human rights and gender equality in global societies.

Let’s recommit ourselves to these goals in the new year.

DeVita. Berlin, Germany. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Heightened gender-based violence in conflict and post-conflict zones

Militarization, women’s labor force participation, and gender inequality: Evidence from global data

How conflict disproportionately targets women

Photos Of BSA #15: Holiness of Bubble Tags and Skate Ramps to Heaven in Chinatown

December 16, 2022 Artists

New York has a number of holy spots for street culture, and none of them should ever be regarded as permanent. Here the bubble tags pile up, levitating over the skaters who bring an energy of competition, camaraderie, constant movement, and shifting scales of athletic mastery.

They say that all the legends and masters eventually end up here at the Chinatown Skatepark directly under the roaring Manhattan Bridge. Whatever pipe you are hitting, there are cheap dumplings around the corner to fortify more tricks for hours.

Call it an altar, call it a hallowed hall; when you swerve into a place like this, you will be changed.

Tags. Chinatown, New York City. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Photos Of BSA #16: Sweetly Sharp Agave and Museum Design in San Luis Potosi

December 15, 2022 Artists

Not exactly a Christmas tree, but these agave plants were as exuberant and festive as you can imagine this May at the impressively designed former prison in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Now converted into the Centro de las Artes, the grounds and architecture of this severely geometric compound are centered around a panopticon that reminds you of its former us. Fortunately, its function today is dedicated to the preservation of Mexican history, modern art, and design – and starkly sharp external groundwork like this.

Agave. San Luis Potosi, Mexico. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

Have a look at our five visual diaries from that stately Mexican city in 2022.

Photos Of BSA #17: Brother Can You Spare Wi-Fi?

December 14, 2022 Artists

We’re celebrating the end of one year and the beginning of the next by thanking BSA Readers, Friends, and Family for your support in 2022. We have selected some of our favorite shots by our Editor of Photography, Jaime Rojo, and we’re sharing a new one every day to celebrate all our good times together, our hope for the future, and our love for the street.

So we begin with a witty take on the similarities between the US depression of a hundred years ago and the startling similarities forecast for it shortly. It’s good to remember that we’ve been through this before – or at least our grandparents did.

Hijack. Lower East Side, New York City. (photo © Jaime Rojo)

“Above Ground” : How Martin Wong Preserved the Underground Soul of Graffiti
November 21, 2024
Museum of the City of New York PresentsAbove Ground: Art from the Martin Wong Graffiti Collection In the heart of …Read More »
ELFO: Don’t Use This Wall!
November 19, 2024
Elfo is a graffiti writer and social commentator whose work intentionally sidesteps traditional notions of style or technical lettering. This …Read More »
BSA Images Of The Week: 11.17.24
November 17, 2024
Right out of the gate, Pres-elect Trump is telling us that one must destroy the government to save it, just …Read More »
SpY’s “ORB” Lands in Montreal: A Mirror of Street Art’s Evolution
November 14, 2024
SpY, a prominent public artist hailing from Madrid, has unveiled his latest sculptural work titled “ORB” in Montreal’s renowned Place …Read More »
Birch Bark, Rosehips, and a Family Affair: Faring Purth’s New Chapter in Mural Form
November 12, 2024
In her latest mural, Faring Purth delivers a powerful reflection on connection, continuity, and the complexity of evolving relationships—a true …Read More »
BSA Images Of The Week: 11.10.24
November 10, 2024
Well, the world ended this week—again. Yet here we are, still standing, and so are you. It turns out Donald …Read More »
Réunion Island’s Evolution: Eko and the Graffiti/Street Art Festival That’s Making Waves
November 7, 2024
A place you may not have heard of, Réunion Island has quickly become a remarkable hotspot for urban art, largely …Read More »