St. Petersburg Residents Gain Free Access to 13 New Murals This Week
Local and international artists will transform public buildings from Nov. 6 to Nov. 15, with free community events marking the start and end of the festival.
By Megan Greco ·
St. Petersburg residents will see 13 new public murals appear on local buildings between Nov. 6 and Nov. 15. The 12th annual SHINE Mural Festival brings professional artists to the city to paint large scale works on assigned walls. The event is organized by the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance.
The group of artists includes five local painters from the Tampa Bay area. Two artists are from Miami. One is from San Antonio, Texas. One is from Roanoke, Virginia. One is from Key West. One is from Charlotte, North Carolina. One is from Durham, England. One is from St. Petersburg. One is from the St. Petersburg area.
Osiris Rain, an Italian artist living in Charlotte, will work on the Skyline Building at 2600 Dr. MLK Jr. Street N. He stated that his training is rooted in classical painting. He said he approaches figures with a concern for structure, light, and human presence. He noted that he is interested in what happens when representation breaks apart into atmosphere, pattern, memory, or symbol.
Reiver, also known as Lewis Hobson, will also paint on the Skyline Building. He is from Durham, England. He is a member of the Collective Durham Spray Paints. He serves as the project manager for the Spennymoor Mural Festival. Alyssa Marie will work on the same building. She is coordinating a community produced mural called Happy Mural Project. That specific project runs from Nov. 6 to Nov. 8. It is free for participants with no painting experience required.
Hiero Veiga will paint at Viv, located at 1000 1st Avenue N. He was born in Brockton, Massachusetts. His bio describes his work as evolving from graffiti to hyper realistic pieces. Jon Murrill will also work at Viv. He is a former art teacher from Roanoke, Virginia. He describes himself as a full time Appalachian muralist and storyteller.
Starve, also known as Eddie Rivera, will paint at Bright Spot at the Looking Glass Initiative, 938 Dr. MLK Street N. He was born in Florida to Cuban parents. He is a veteran graffiti and tattoo artist. Artist ESH, also known as Eric Hornsby, will work at the same location. He is from the Tampa Bay area.
Regan McCreight, also known as Chroma Creature, will paint on the USF St. Petersburg Harbor Hall at 1000 3rd Street S. She is from St. Petersburg. Whitney Holbourn from Tampa will work at Jeeves Law Group, 2100 1st Avenue S. Michele De Campo from Miami will paint at Lucky Cup in The Factory St. Pete, 2606 Fairfield Avenue S. Building 5. She holds degrees in Illustration and Printmaking from the University of Dundee and in Fine Arts from Universidad Complutense Madrid.
Ashley Cassuns from Tampa will paint at the souvenir shop entrance in Building 5 of The Factory St. Pete. Jacksun Benavidez from San Antonio, Texas, will work at the Duncan McClellan Gallery, 2342 Emerson Avenue S.
The festival begins with a kickoff celebration on Thursday, Nov. 5, from 5 to 8 p.m. at FloridaRAMA Impact Gallery. The event is free. It features live portrait painting by Danielle Cruit, DJ Cue, and the Bay Breaks breaking crew. A food truck will be present. Chad Mize curated the opening of a piece titled Untitled.
The festival ends with a closing reception on Saturday, Nov. 14, from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Morean Arts Center. This event is also free. It coincides with the Morean annual holiday show and sale. Attendees can meet the muralists. Artists will work during daylight hours at their assigned sites. They are expected to answer questions from the public. Some may be working at height on hydraulic lifts.
Source: St. Pete Catalyst
