This month has seen lots of fresh artistic activity facilitated by The L.I.S.A. Project NYC on Mulberry Street in the heart of NYC’s historic Little Italy. I mentioned some of that the other day. Additionally, Italian muralist Ozmo and NYC’s FoxxFace have recently joined the ranks of Tristan Eaton, Beau Stanton and many others with site-specific public art on Mulberry Street. There’s still more to come (thanks L’Amour), but for now, Ozmo and FoxxFace…
For a few months, FoxxFace had been quietly researching at the Italian American Museum in Little Italy. That research has led to the creation of 17 small painted works on wood, each one inspired by a photograph of an Italian-American immigrant. The finished works were installed on street signs throughout Little Italy in early June. There’s no map of where each piece is, so visitors will just have come to Little Italy, walk the street, and discover the artworks for themselves.
When we heard that the Italian muralist Ozmo would be visiting New York this month, it was a bit last minute, but we scrambled to find a spot for him to paint. Actually, a mutual friend insisted on it, threatening that he would lose a lot of respect for our program if we did not work with Ozmo, and we wholeheartedly agreed. It was an opportunity we did not want to miss.
Ozmo’s piece, entitled Lisa, the Half Naked Princess, is a sort of portrait of The L.I.S.A. Project NYC and Little Italy. It encapsulates many of the complexities that make our work unique among mural programs. We aim to bring fresh energy to Little Italy through public art rooted in street art and graffiti, but still acknowledge the neighborhood’s historic identity. In the mural, a beauty from the Renaissance sits atop references to contemporary Little Italy and street art, and small pieces of text scattered throughout the piece reference contemporary Little Italy’s multifaceted identity as a home for a diverse group of New Yorkers, a popular tourist attraction, and a spiritual home for Italian-Americans across the country.
More photos of work by Ozmo and FoxxFace after the jump…
Photos by Rey Rosa for The L.I.S.A. Project NYC