5 Pointz! - "Hope is the power that creates gardens"

After several weeks of pleading, we figured out how to connect a trip to 5 Pointz (in Long Island City, visible from the 7 train) with the activities and actions for the summer...
Ironically, TRCS took a trip to the graffiti-muraled factory Wednesday morning, but GUiQ arrived early in the afternoon in order to see Eder Muniz finish his newest mural at 5 Pointz. As we explored the painted walls and awaited Meres and the LAIC SYEP youth, the surreal garden image was being sprayed into place. The interactions from the previous day inspired Eder to produce a work that encapsulates the idea,
"Hope is the power that creates gardens" (loosely translated).
Our time was running short, but we still got a chance to practice tagging after Meres gave us a tour of the artwork at 5 Pointz. He highlighted the evolution of graffiti through tagging and explained how to read his tag. As the manager of 5 Pointz, Meres explained the history of the long-standing murals on the walls that double as an American Apparel t-shirt factory. Graffiteiros from around the world have left their styles at 5 Pointz. Despite the respect that artists and taggers have for each other's work, the walls of 5 Pointz accumulate so much paint that the pieces begin to chip away. In addition, parts of some walls are set aside for practice for groups like LAIC (only to soon be repainted).
The trip to 5 Pointz reiterated the message that graffiti is art and can be valued by the community when it's message is deemed appropriate enough to remain.

Graffiti (pichação) workshop

The GUiQ program is drawing ever closer to its final action for the summer. In order to begin organizing a graffiti mural, we have been searching for contacts in the community. (A later post will discuss the Junction Blvd. store, All the Right.) As a step in this direction, we were visited by Eder Muniz, from the Brazilian Projeto Salvador Graffita. He was one of 43 graffiti artists hired by the mayor of Salvador, Bahia, in order to transform graffiti in public spaces to inspirational murals.

The afternoon's activities consisted in a video explanation of his work in Salvador, a drawing/graffiti workshop and a GUiQ-led neighborhood tour. The youth shared last year's mural that depicts the history of Jackson Heights. They also expressed their concern with the lack of youth space, despite numerous private apartment gardens. These activities were followed up with a visit to 5 Pointz (Long Island City), where Eder was painting a mural inspired by yesterday's interactions.

Fotos of Eder's work - http://www.flickr.com/photos/calangosderua/