BLACK LIVES MATTER HARLEM STREET MURAL

Team: Harlem Park to Park, VALINC PR, LeRone Wilson (mural artist curator), Got to Stop LLC, Thomas Heath, Omo Misha McGlown, Guy Stanley Philoche, Joyous Pierce, Dianne Smith, Jason Wallace, LeRone Wilson (northbound mural artists), and more than 300 Harlem community members (southbound mural artists) (United States); Collaborators: Advantage Repro (stencil painting), City of New York Department of Transportation (pavement-marking plan), David Rockwell Group (letter and stencil design), United Scenic Artists, Local US 829 (letter and stencil application) (United States); Location: New York, New York, USA; Year: 2020

Sparked by the Washington, DC, mayor’s decision to mark a street with “BLACK LIVES MATTER” during the summer of 2020 racial justice protests, dozens of murals were created in small towns and large cities across the US. The Black Lives Matter Harlem street mural was one of eight painted in New York City. Artists designed and painted the northbound mural and, in as much a historic event as a work of art itself, more than 300 community members completed the southbound side over two days. The murals have provided a platform to reframe the conversation about public space, identifying the need for safe spaces for people of color to gather, create, and heal.

Image: Volunteers paint the word BLACK on the community-designed southbound mural, Harlem, 2020; Credit: Mark Claudio for New Kingston Media