Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Street Art in D.C. #10

In our travels around D.C., we often spot street art.  In D.C., street art comes in many forms and sizes--from small stickers on lamp posts and parking meters to large painted murals on building walls.

Recently, we spotted two murals not far from where we live.  One mural (pictured below) is an original work by D.C.-based artist Aniekan Udofia.  (You might remember the artist from an earlier post about a Duke Ellington tribute mural.)   We like Aniekan Udofia's murals.  They are colorful and filled with motion and they tell a story.  

Mural by Aniekan Udofia (on 24th Street near George Washington University)
In Georgetown, we spotted another mural (pictured below) that has been there since at least the early 1980's.  (Greg remembers seeing it when he attended college there.)   The mural, by artist J. McConnell, recreates the famous woodblock print The Great Wave of Kanagawa  by 19th century Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.

The Great Wave Off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai (1830-1832) (woodblock print) (mural by J. McConnell)
One of the surviving Great Wave prints can be viewed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art: "The clawlike structure of the enormous wave that threatens to crash down upon the three fishing boats conjures up images of mythical dragons and other dangerous beasts. The drama of the print is enhanced by the placement of Fuji in the hollow of the wave's angry crest. Like the helpless boats, Fuji too appears on the verge of obliteration."


Thanks for viewing more street art with us.

P.S.  The original Great Wave inspired not only the mural in Georgetown but also other works of art, including two modern works.

Sea is for Cookie

Drowning Girl by Roy Lichtenstein (1963)

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