Onward Ho! We are Bioneers of the brave new world!
The “Art of Beeing” Tour has made it to San Francisco, and London muralist and Street Artist Louis Masai has met some bee keepers, painted some Island Foxes, and talked at the Bioneer Conference. He also held a “Bee Hotel and Seed Bomb Workshop”, as you do…
Louis Masai The Art Of Beeing. Honey Bee. Painted for Ko the beekeeper at Oakland. San Francisco, CA. October 2016. (photo © @lmnotree)
“It was amazing for the opportunity to meet really interesting powerful and provocative thinkers,” he tells us. That news is not surprising considering the conference website says that organizers are interested in “growing this movement of movements for ecological restoration, justice and social transformation to turn them into lasting systemic change.”
If this sounds somewhat ethereal, euphoric, suspiciously emotionally touching and outlandishly possible, that’s because you have landed in San Francisco, people, so relax. There’s still “hippie” DNA here, it’s just small-batch brewed and slow dripped and costs 3 times what it should.
Louis Masai The Art Of Beeing. Honey Bee. Painted for Ko the beekeeper at Oakland. San Francisco, CA. October 2016. (photo © @lmnotree)
“We learned a lot at this conference about how fragile the environment really is and the power that my images can have as a way to communicate with a whole demographic of people that might not be so willing to accept information from scientists,” Louis says. We agree. Art has the power to transform situations, people, and lives and art on the street is having a big impact on communities – including the illegal stuff.
Although not all of his previously agreed on walls came through, he did get to paint a few bees and some Island Foxes. These foxes, as you may have guessed, are facing extinction. Good news is their numbers have been increasing due to human efforts, so that is something to cheer for. Check out Friends of the Island Fox to learn more.
Overall, San Francisco appears to have blown Louis’ mind a little bit, which is reassuring to know.
Louis Masai The Art Of Beeing. Honey Bee. Ko the beekeeper at Oakland. San Francisco, CA. October 2016. (photo © @lmnotree)
“We met some amazing beekeepers in San Francisco that really opened up this idea that nature and the engagement with nature can definitely start to generate a sense of love for oneself and the environment,” he says.
“Bees really are the planets’ little helpers, maybe they can cure depression too, who knows?”