Beyond Walls (Lynn, MA)

Date Of Visit: July 29, 2017

Location: Lynn, MA

Cost: Free

Parking: There is street parking and some parking lots available throughout the city

Handicapped Accessible: Yes

Dog Friendly: Yes

Website: Beyond Walls

Map of Mural Locations: Beyond Malls Mural Map

Tips:

• A good landmark to enter into your GPS is The No Matter What Club (33 Spring St, Lynn). You can find parking in one of the lots near there or try to find street parking (I parked short term in the lot at 173 Oxford St)
• If you take public transportation, the Lynn stop on the commuter rail (aka Central Square-Lynn) on the Newburyport/Rockport line is located in the heart of the city where the murals are easy to find
• Most of the murals are on Munroe, Exchange, Oxford, Spring and Central streets

In an effort to revitalize their city and bring people to their city, Lynn decided to add some color to the city.

The Beyond Walls Festivals took place between July 13-23.  During this week and a half time frame, artists came from all over the world to post their art throughout Lynn.

There were 15 murals total  I found all of the murals except one that is located at the state house (#15 on the map) and I saw a few extra surprises along the way.

What struck me most about these murals is the vivid colors and how the creativity of their projects.  There’s something about being outside in the open doing something you love.  I would love to be able to do this.  If only I could paint.  I’ll stick to photography I guess.

The murals below are listed in the order that they correspond to on the map which I have attached the link to above for your convenience if you decide to look for them yourself.  (https://www.beyond-walls.org/)

1

This mural was hard to photograph without gaining special access to the building roof, this mural was painted by the team of Nicole Salgar and Chuck Berrett (NS/CB).  Nicole (from Florida) and Chuck (based in New York), have been working as a mural painting team for many years.    This mural can be found at 33 Central St.

2

This mural, at 27-31 Spring St, was painted by Marka27, a native of Juarez, Mexico.  He draws much of his inspiration from his Mexican heritage.

3

Some of the murals proved harder to see and access than others.  This mural by Chris Coulon (aka Tallboy) and Brian Denahy, both of the North Shore area, was not accessible from the street.  It is located at 31 Spring St.

4

David Zayas from Puerto Rico painted this mural at 33 Spring St.  He tends to show his work through portraits of women, children and animals.

5

Team Rekloos, three artists from Boston, painted this mural on the back of the building at 69 Exchange St.

6

This mural was painted by Angurria from the Dominican Republic.  It can be found at 516 Washington St.  I like the simplicity of this one.  It’s simple, yet it is makes you wonder: who is this mural based on?  Who is the person that inspired this mural?  What is her name and what makes her so special (besides her natural beauty)?

7

Don Remix, an artist from Miami, painted the mural at 129 Munroe St and 515 Washing St.  Don tries to make a connection between nature, city and being.  In this mural, the bricks represent the city, the wood represents nature and the combination of wood and brick symbolize the human and animal element.

8

Bruce Orr and Good To Go (both from Lynn) painted the mural below on the back of the building at 129 Munroe St and 515 Washington St (the second mural posted).

Bruce has worked as everything from an art teacher and art therapist to a puppeteer.  He also plays the drums in his spare time.

Good To Go is an all male public arts team based out of Lynn.

9

Look at that bone structure.  The mural at 114-120 Munroe St was painted by Cedric “Vise” Douglas and Julez Roth.

Cedric, an artist from Boston, is the founder and Creative Director of the Up Truck which is a mobile art lab designed to engage underserved Boston communities through art and creativity.

10

Georgia Hill, all the way from Australia, painted this mural at 79-87 Munroe St.  Georgia specializes in black and white lettering, as you can see by this mural.

11

This lovely mural at 65 Munroe St was painted by Cey Adams.  Cey, an artist  from New York City, draws much of his inspiration from pop culture, ’60’s pop art, comic books and social and cultural themes.

12

Cambridge, MA, native Caleb Neelon painted this mural at 33 Munroe St with help from Lena McCarthy.

Neelon enjoys a diverse range of activities.  In addition to street painting, Neelon, who has authored or collaborated on 2 dozen books, has worked as a curator at museums as well as working on documentaries.

Lena McCarthy is an accomplished visual artist.  She has an exhibit called, “In Search Of Open Spaces” that is currently on display in the atrium of the Joseph Moakley Courthouse (1 Courthouse Way, Boston, MA)

13

Fonki, an artist from Montreal, painted this mural at 18 Munroe St.  Originally from France, Fonki discovered graffiti at the age of 15.  Since then, he has mastered his craft and has been featured in exhibitions for such famous groups as the Christie’s auction house.  Anyone who can’t relate to this mural, specifically the heart being tossed in the air, has obviously never been in love.

14

This mural at 173 Oxford St was painted by Temp & Relm, both from Lynn.  The lettering is kind of faint.  But, the artists took an old, outdated, uncomplimentary phrase about Lynn; “Lynn, Lynn…city of sin” and put a new twist on it, “Lynn, Lynn…city of firsts.”

The last mural is located at City Hall Square (3 City Hall Square, Lynn, MA).  Unfortunately, I was not able to photograph this last mural.

Some of the murals and art work in Lynn were either not listed on the official website or were not part of the actual Beyond Walls Festival.  But, they are still worthy of being mentioned here.

This mural is one of my favorites.  It has so many parts to it.  For one, the artwork is beautiful.  But, there’s so much more to it.

From the many important historical figures who resided or had some connection to Lynn (such as Frederick Douglass, former Red Sox ball player Harry Agannis and Maria Mitchell, an American astronomer who discovered a comet which later became known as “Miss Mitchell’s Comet”) and the illustrations of the workers who made Lynn such a prosperous city, the mural gives a colorful history of the city.  The quotes from Vincent Ferrini and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (who both also have a connection to Lynn) are a nice touch also.

This is another mural or art work that I found in my travels.  The phrase says:  “Love Her Beauty.  Respect Her Body.”

Today’s featured New England link is to the link to Irish Se7en’s website.

Irish Se7en primarily shoots in the North Shore area north of Boston, specifically Lynn, Marblehead, Nahant and Swampscott.  But, he also photographs areas in and around the Boston area.   He also uses a drone to get photos from a different perspective. His photographs are amazing.

You can like his Facebook page here.

Please stop by and like my Facebook page.