WALL\THERAPY artists and staff have arrived in Berlin! The crew spent its first 24 hours exploring neighborhoods, checking out murals and catching up with local alumni artists and friends Addison Karl and David Walker.
WALL\THERAPY crew at Urban Nation Berlin
Monday marked the crew’s first day at Urban Nation. The artists quickly oriented to their new home base, grabbed their cans and brushes and headed out to spend the first half of their week on the outdoor portion of the BELIEVE/BECOME exhibit.
Brittany Williams and LNY
Faring Purth
Shawnee Hill
Cern and Mr. Prvrt
The artists will continue to rock out their murals today. Later tonight, they’ll take part in the WALL\THERAPY x Urban Nation Artist Talk. If you’re in the area, be sure to swing by Urban Nation at 7 p.m. to check it out!
WALL\THERAPY x URBAN NATION Artist Talk
Tuesday, April 12, 7-9pm
Urban Nation Production Office
Bülowstraße 97 // 10738 Berlin-Schöneberg
Join the visiting artists for a conversation about muralism and community, speaking from their experiences with WALL\THERAPY and other localized projects as well as the impact Street Art has had on their home towns and own lives. We’ll also discuss the importance of cultural exchanges, and offer a glimpse into their personal work that will be exhibited at the opening reception this Saturday.
The talk will be lead by Erich Lehman, co-curator of WALL \ THERAPY, introducing these wonderful artists to the Berlin community:
This spring, WALL\THERAPY will pack up its cans, brushes and paints and head across the pond to a city that has seen a flowering of street art and graffiti, and echoes the project’s guiding principle of the transformative power of art in our communities.
Following Urban Nation’s guest co-curation of our 2015 festival, WALL\THERAPY will bring the spirit of its five-year project to Berlin, Germany, spending a week creating an indoor/outdoor exhibit with Urban Nation.
The event, entitled BELIEVE/BECOME, is the 10th edition of Urban Nation’s UNITE & IGNITE International Exchange Program. Named in part for WALL\THERAPY’s very first mural, BELIEVE/BECOME showcases the talents of a subset of WALL\THERAPY muralists, using their work to bring light to issues close to them, from those with global impact to those affecting their own local communities.
For the week of April 10-17, 2016, the artists will immerse themselves in Urban Nation’s Schoeneberg-Berlin neighborhood, starting their visit by working on a series of “human-scale” murals surrounding the Urban Nation offices, offering the artists a chance to interact with the adjacent community. WALL\THERAPY and Urban Nation will host a community discussion on the evening of Tuesday, April 12, examining the role of art in the public sphere as well as the evolving roles of mural festivals and institutions in the Street Art movement. These discussions will then be reflected in the group’s installation within the Urban Nation offices, culminating in an exhibit that will open on Saturday, April 16.
The project will serve as the second half of the international exchange program between Rochester and Berlin, launched in July 2015 in Rochester. Eight artists, who have all participated in past WALL\THERAPY events, have been invited to contribute to the program, curated by Ian Wilson (founder, co-curator) and Erich Lehman (co-curator, lead organizer).
Click on any of the images to open a larger version in a new window.
Community members can get updates and track the artists’ progress by visiting this site and following the WALL\THERAPY social media channels:
Facebook: facebook.com/walltherapyny
Instagram: @walltherapyny
Twitter: @walltherapyny
Learn more about Urban Nation by visiting their site or following them on their social media channels:
July, August and the beginning of September were busy months for us, and as the dust settles on another amazing WALLTHERAPY season, we wanted to share some of the amazing words and coverage that we got this year! From videos to photo essays, we are honored that so many folks have turned their attention to our project here in Rochester.
We’ll be adding more and more photos to the site here as well, but in the meantime, you can check out some of our images on our Facebook page:
We are still hard at work at the documentary about WALLTHERAPY, and here are a few clips for your viewing pleasure! Thank you for a great year, 2012, and we look forward to an exciting 2013!
Martha Cooper and one of our many new friends we met during WALL\THERAPY
As the dust settles on this year’s WALLTHERAPY event, it’s always good to take a moment and reflect. It’s very easy to miss some really cool details when you are trying to make sure the artists get the right type of cap for their paint or keep everyone hydrated (it was a scorcher that week!)
A few quick stats (we’ll add more here as we find them!)
+ WALLTHERAPY consisted of some of the top street artists working today from countries as internationally diverse as Spain, Germany, South Africa, China, Belgium, and nationally from New York City, San Francisco, and our own beloved Rochester, NY.
+ These 8 internationally-known artists and 3 local artists completed a total of 16 murals throughout the city this year.
+ The artists used several hundred cans of spray paint to complete the murals in addition to several dozen gallons of paint.
+ We lost track of the gallons of water and gatorade we drank during those hot days!
+ We were incredibly fortunate to have renowned photographer Martha Cooper join us for almost the entire week, documenting our event and the work of the artists. She gave us high marks on the event, and even collaborated with Case on a loving tribute to her beloved Kodak Girl (Did you know she recently released a book showcasing her amazing collection dedicated to Women Photographers?)
+ Almost every local media outlet covered the event, from CITY, to the front page of the Democrat & Chronicle, to a number of local news channels.
+ Scores of folks were sharing images via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
+ Speaking of Facebook, we averaged a reach of 30,000 to 50,000 people per week through shared stories and images.
+ This site alone drew unique visitors from from over 85 countries around the world.
+ Thanks to our handy PDF downloadable map, we ran into countless folks, art lovers and curious locals alike, who were visiting all of the murals and discovering new areas of the city they had never been to before. Some traveled by car, while others turned it into reason for a family bike tour. We’ve also been seeing an influx of visitors from outside Rochester who want to see these murals for themselves.
All of our visiting artists (including Martha!) all left incredibly impressed by our city and the people they got to meet and interact with and we look forward to having them come back!
From those of us who worked to put on this event, we want to wholeheartedly thank everyone who came out to see the art, talk with the artists, or just see what all the fuss was about. We have met so many new wonderful people thanks to being out in the streets, interacting with you all, and the positive feedback you gave us made it all worth it.
