NYC Pride Announces Worldwide Mural Project Across Five Burroughs

STIK, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, Buff Monster, Nomad Clan, Kunle Martins, Gianni Lee to Create Murals

NEW YORK, NY – NYC Pride, the official host of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50, has announced the WorldPride Mural Project initiative, in collaboration with production and curation partner, LISA Project NYC, founding partner, HSBC Bank, and major supporter, Macy’s. Both local and international artists, 50 in total, were selected to create murals within the five boroughs of New York that reflect and honor the beauty, struggle, and strides of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Beginning May 1st, the initial set of murals will be on display in Manhattan, beginning at Arlo NoMad in Midtown. Over the course of May and mid-June, the complete set of murals will be unveiled, culminating before the WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50 season commences and remaining intact throughout the duration of the month's celebration. Macy's is set to reveal their murals on June 6th in the windows of Macy’s Herald Square and will remain throughout June.

“Art, in all its forms, has always been an integral means of expression in the LGBTQIA+ community, and particularly meaningful to the fabric of New York City’s culture,” said Chris Frederick, Executive Director of NYC Pride. “Street art is a poetic example of this expression and the 50 WorldPride muralists will, no doubt, combine beauty and poignant messaging at a time when our collective stories can be – and must be – told.”

Buff Monster,Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, Nomad Clan, Kunle Martinsaka Earsnot IRAK Crew, Gianni Leeand STIK are just a few of the artists whose work will be highlighted as part of the WorldPride Mural Project.

● Buff Monster is a New York City street artist who uses bright colors, bold lines and funny characters to make the world a better place. He names heavy metal music, ice cream, pop art, Japanese culture and graffiti as major influences. For over 15 years, he’s worked with leading curators to paint murals all over the world and is included in Banksy’s Oscar-nominated documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop.

● Tatyana Fazlalizadeh is a Black/Iranian visual artist and Oklahoma City native. A painter whose work ranges from the gallery to the streets, she uses visual art to address the daily oppressive experiences of marginalized people, through beautifully-drawn and painted portraits. Her street art series, Stop Telling Women to Smile, can be found on walls across the globe.

● NoMad Clan is the collective of Cbloxx and AYLO, an internationally-acclaimed, street art muralist duo based in Manchester UK and proudly sponsored by Kobra Spray Paint. When the pair collaborate, the fusion delivers an unmistakable style. Each mural has a strong significance to the environment in which it sits, combining playful scenes with detailed portraits of characters from some of the tales they hear in local public spaces – true acts of preserving heritage.

● KunleMartins is one of downtown New York’s most infamous characters: the graffiti artist known as Earsnot, who eventually found himself working in art studios, rather than city streets. His design clients include the likes of Nike, ALIFE, Fucking Awesome, Violette, and, of course, Supreme. Martins worked alongside Jesse Geller for Miami Art Basel, and even landed a cameo appearance in season two of HBO’s How To Make It In America.

● Gianni Blass Lee is a Visual Artist , Music Producer , International DJ and Fashion Designer who started gaining popularity through the viral successes of various mixtape series’ he curated. These garnered the attention of important industry voices such as Interview Magazine, Hypebeast, Pitchfork & L.A. Times. Lee uses painting as a language to tell the story of a people fighting for their home and their existence. While the self-made DJ/Producer finds many ways to manipulate sound, he also credits his fashion brand Babylon Cartel and his paintings for their influence on his unique style.

● Stik, is an artist from London whose simplified black and white figures have graced buildings from New York, to Jordan, to Norway, to Germany. As a firm believer in human rights and the freedom of speech, Stik has made his artworks both aesthetically appealing and socially relevant.

“It’s an honor for LISA to produce and curate the WorldPride Mural Project, working with the NYC Pride team and contributing to the celebration of these milestones in the LGBTQIA+ community,” said Wayne and Rey Rada, founders of LISA Project NYC. “We are a part of this community and so it’s truly momentous that we get the chance to share public art throughout the five boroughs, created by diverse artists from around the world.”

“Our support of this city-wide public art project is an expression of our global public support for WorldPride 2019,” said Patrick J. Burke, President and CEO, HSBC USA. “No one could have envisioned how much the world would change in the 50 years since Stonewall, but there’s still so much more to do. HSBC will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the LGBTQIA+ communityto encourage a better tomorrow where we all feel valued, respected and supported to express ourselves and fulfill our potential.”

“We are thrilled to expand our partnership with NYC Pride this year as together we bring the WorldPride Mural Project to our iconic Broadway windows at Macy’s Herald Square. Diversity and inclusion are core to Macy’s values and we join our LGBTQIA+ colleagues, customers and communities in celebration of WorldPride 2019 | Stonewall 50 and National Pride Month in New York and in cities across the nation,” said Jose Gamio, Macy’s senior director of Multicultural Community Engagement.

The full list of mural locations will be available for viewing in the weeks ahead at www.worldpridemuralproject.org.