This post is a brief follow-up to the earlier one crammed with images, links, and quotes about the mural in progress during June 2022.* The focus here is on how and why Rob “Problak” Gibbs incorporated gold and purple within the mostly black, gray, and white range of the main images. Photos and links also connect with earlier murals in the “Breathe Life” series. *the current mural commissioned by the nonprofit Greenway Conservancy
“The gold gleams in the top left portion of the mural, a halo of sorts around the head of the mural’s subject — Gibbs’ 4-year-old daughter. Gibbs based the mural on a portrait taken by photographer Gabriel Ortiz for her third birthday. In it, she crouches down, eyes level with the camera, dressed in a Kangol hat and Adidas tracksuit, flanked by a large boombox. The gold is absent in the photo but it was important for Gibbs to incorporate the color in the mural. “Whatever is dipped or mixed inside of it or whatever it touches is literally liquid gold,” he says. “It may not have the value of the element, but [it has] the visible effect of it.”“( quote from Arielle Gray in WBUR Arts and Culture June 2022)
Problak Artist Website images of other murals, artist bio, statement, art, and projects
Breathe Life Together, 2022, The Greenway Information about the mural, artist, crew, and context
ART OUTDOORS posts with images and info for earlier “Breathe Life” murals:
ROB “PROBLAK” GIBBS’ NEW ‘BREATHE LIFE’ MURAL LOOKS WONDERFULLY ALIVE AT MADISON PARK HIGH SCHOOL
ROB “PROBLAK” GIBBS GAVE MOMENTUM TO HIS MURAL, ‘BREATHE LIFE 3’
Art Outdoors 