Paint Louis
St. Louis, Missouri | 2025
Aerosol on concrete
This was my first time going to Paint Louis, and honestly, I was not even expecting to paint.
I was really just planning to tag along with a friend who was part of CBS crew, experience the festival, see the walls, meet people, and take everything in.
Paint Louis has been around since the 1990s and has grown into a major gathering for graffiti writers and artists from all over. The festival takes place along the flood wall near the Gateway Arch, a massive stretch of wall that has become a destination of its own.
With something that big, I figured that if I somehow got lucky enough to paint, I would probably end up with a small section somewhere off to the side.
Instead, CBS gave me some space alongside them.
And we were up close near the front.
Man, I felt blessed to be amongst them.
Once I had the wall, I just got down and painted whatever I was feeling in that moment.
I created a religious inspired portrait of a woman wearing a white veil and crown. Over the portrait, I added metalcore inspired lettering that moved across portions of her face without completely covering the image saying “VNICE.”
I wanted the two elements to work against each other a little.
The portrait had a more traditional and almost sacred feeling, while the lettering brought in something heavier, louder, and more aggressive.
And somehow, once again, green found its way into the piece.
I do not know how it keeps happening, but apparently green has decided it is part of my work whether I planned for it or not.
There was not a long design process behind this one.
No client brief. No complicated concept. No expectation going into the weekend that I would even be painting.
I just had an opportunity, a wall, and a feeling I wanted to put down.
Sometimes that is when painting feels the best.
Being surrounded by writers and artists from different places, seeing work stretch down what felt like an endless wall, and then getting the chance to contribute something of my own made the experience special.
It was one of those moments where I had to stop and appreciate where art had taken me.
I went to St. Louis expecting to watch.
I ended up painting.
Shout out to CBS crew for making space for me and giving me the opportunity to paint alongside them.
Definitely a trip and experience I will remember.
