WALLTHERAPY 2017: Notes from the weekend

WALL\THERAPY
over the weekend announced
its 2017 mural locations, which span a swath of Rochester on both sides of the river.

A
brief recap of the weekend’s progress follows, and stay tuned for individual
artist spotlights and interviews coming this week. See the slideshow below for
some visuals, and follow CITY on Instagram @roccitynews for more pictures and videos.

This
is a female-centric year for WALL\THERAPY. Seven of the 10 muralists are women,
and every mural that has been started so far features women.

SARAH C RUTHERFORDhas made quite a dent in the
work on her massive mural at 548
West Main Street, which features a woman holding a small child, surrounded
by Art Nouveau flourishes and colorful flora and fauna. In addition to joining
WALL\THERAPY’s lineup this year, Rutherford’s mural is part of her series, “Her
Voice Carries.”

LUCINDA YRENE (aka La Morena)began work Sunday on her wall at 1112 East Main Street, on the west side
of Minges Alley. The painting includes a portrait of her daughter holding a
sage smudge stick, and an owl floating aloft.

AUBREY ROEMER, working on a huge wall at 936 Exchange Street, is creating a
vibrant, mixed-media painting featuring a central woman holding a child, with
three figures in the background, all surrounded by vibrant plant-life.

TODD STAHL also began working Sunday
at 59 Pennsylvania Avenue, next
to Thievin’ Stephen’s “Stock Lives” mural. A teacher
at Webster Thomas High School, Stahl has six students assisting him this
week. His mural, featuring a young Syrian girl amid loads of symbolism and
patterns, is inspired by international politics and the refugee crisis.

JESS X SNOWworked into the wee hours of
Monday morning, projecting her sketch for her portrait of a transwoman poet at 936 Exchange Street (located to the
right of Aubrey Roemer’s wall). It can be tricky to design around windows, but
the leading of the window on this wall lines up perfectly with the wing
markings of a butterfly in the subject’s hair.

Given
the rain in the forecast, it’s uncertain how much painting the muralists will
accomplish on Monday. Barring weather issues, IAN KUALI’Iis set to begin
painting at 40 Greenleaf Street,
and ROC PAINT DIVISION(featuring Nzinga Muhammad, Etana
Browne, and Kaori-Mei
Stephens) will begin
work at the Flying Squirrel, 285
Clarissa Street.

SEAN 9 LUGOwill arrive in Rochester Tuesday
night and begin painting on Wednesday, July 26. Instead of one wall, Lugo will
create a series of wheatpaste murals to form a story
throughout the city. CITY will update you with locations as they are available.