“Kingston Street Art Reigns”
An Ulster County Vision
Content and images by: Caressa Losier
Kingston murals are a perfect example of what happens when small town comfort meets high-energy street art . This Ulster County town in New York is diverse in nature with sophisticated taste in art galleries and in mural art. Several well-known artists have been drawn to Kingston to create murals for the annual O Positive Festival (O+). The Midtown Arts District (MAD) also helps cultivate a stronger artistic presence in town by breathing life into more art programs for local artists and promoting more art tourism and culture in the area.
Step into this town’s emerging art scene and view some of the best Kingston murals.
Aňos de Soledad
Años de Soledad is one of the largest, most lively murals in Kingston. This Mata Ruda, Nanook and Layqa Nuna Yawar street art collaboration is centered around a portrait of Nina Gualinga – native Ecuadorian environmental and indigenous rights activist who has been fighting to protect the Amazon and her tribe, the Kichwa people, since she was 8 years old. The left side of the mural features an Inti Incan golden medallion over coal and marble – key resources that helped build cities and capitals.
>>See More Layqa Nuna Yawar Street Art
Flight Sequence
Pronkstilleven
Gaia street art contributed to the collective of Kingston murals created for the O Positive Festival (O+) and one of his standout pieces was Pronkstilleven. In this mural, he made sure to include the town’s painter, John Vanderlyn and next to him, he painted the activist Sojourner Truth. He then garnished the two figures with flowers alongside the town’s old Stuyvesant building, located in Kingston’s Stockade District. The term Pronkstilleven is a Dutch term meaning “still life”, that also describes a traditional 17th century painting style.
Artemis Emerging from the Quarry
Between Realms We Grow Roots
Several Kingston murals explore migration from an in-depth perspective that toggles between their current homeland and true cultural identity. The mural on the side of Kingston’s Redwood Restaurant focuses on the colorful story of Jess X Snow – a Chinese-American LGBTQ artist and poet with roots outside of her current homeland.
Matt
Moving Mountains
Brooklyn-based street artist Vince Ballentine’s Moving Mountains is a beautiful mural that was created to honor indigenous heritage and generational wisdom. Two copper-colored figures stand tall garbed in traditional native clothing and headdresses on the side of Kingston’s YMCA building. But everyone in Kingston wasn’t fond of the mural’s undertones. During a conversation with Hudson Valley One, New York Republican candidate Jean Jacobs made controversial statements about the mural, fortunately, the city refused to take it down.
Bops & Tottoms
Pretty Nose
Lmnopi street art as compelling as this mural on Kingston’s Keegan Ales building, has a unique story to tell. “Pretty Nose” is the name of this mural that connects this female figure to the Northern Cheyenne tribe and places her in Fort Kegoh. This is where she fought for their freedom with her tribe in Southern Montana during the Battle of Wolf Mountain. This stellar Lmnopi mural is dedicated to all of the women who contributed to history, but their stories have yet to be told.
Fishbone
O Wind, Take Me to My Country
O Wind, Take Me to My Country is one of the Kingston murals created for O+ Festival. It was created by Jess x Snow and depicts Sudanese-American poet Safia Elhillo with a deep, nostalgic yearning in her eyes. This 3-story mural was inspired by an Arabic poem by Elhillo and was created to celebrate the many women who have fled the only homes they knew to build in a whole new world.
Bilancia
Native Americans Discover Columbus
Native Americans Discover Columbus is one of the brightest Kingston murals and it decorates the parking lot of grocery store Express Latinos. The artist Lady Pink , a graffiti-writer turned street artist, created this mural for the O Positive Festival (O+) and it was inspired the historical first encounter between the Taino people and Christopher Columbus.
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