Propelled from its success last year, the Boom! Salina Street Art & Mural Festival is back for a second year and organizers vow it will be even bigger and better. The event begins Thursday.
In the days leading up to October 5-7th the streets of downtown Salina, KS will be transforming into a vibrant canvas of art. This event will feature a variety of world-class muralists from around the globe, each bringing their own unique style of art to the area.
“This is an amazing opportunity for our community to experience something truly special,” said festival organizer Eric Montoy. “We’ll have 7 artists painting at 7 different locations scattered around downtown Salina This festival is truly unique in the fact that it is an invite only event for the artists. They are hand selected by our curator, Joe Iurato, based on their style, portfolio of work and relevance in today’s mural scene. And let’s not forget we will be welcoming back legendary photographer Martha Cooper for her second year at Boom.”
Organizers say the inaugural Boom! Salina Street Art & Mural Festival was held last year and was a huge success. Attendees were able to witness stunning murals being created by a diverse group of artists that are still visible throughout Salina downtown today. This year’s festival promises even more exciting eye candy that you won’t want to miss out on.
Timeline of events:
October 5th – Artists will be painting at various locations in downtown Salina, and the murals will be in full swing.
Cheap Trick will be performing at the Stiefel Theatre starting from 7:00 pm. To enjoy this electrifying performance, you can secure your tickets at stiefeltheatre.org.
October 6th – Join us at 6:30 PM at the Salina Art Center for ‘First Friday’. The highlight of the day will be the 2023 BOOM! Salina Artist Panel Discussion and the Photography Show featuring the 2022 BOOM! Salina works of Martha Cooper and Tanner Colvin.
First Friday by Salina Downtown will also feature other live music and art galleries.
October 7th – Wrap up the festival with a day full of live music at the Love Salina Stage in Campbell Plaza next to the Prickly Pear. Bands will be performing continuously from 12 pm to 10 pm to keep the festive energy flowing.
Mark these dates and be a part of the 2023 Boom! Salina Street Art & Mural Festival to experience the magic of art, music, and community spirit! Everyone is invited to this free event held in downtown Salina so, join us for what promises to be an incredible event.
You can learn more about our 2023 lineup of artists here: www.boomsalina.art
2023 Lineup:
Featured Artist: PICHIAVO
PichiAvo (Pichi, b. 1977; Avo, b. 1985) is a duo of artists from Valencia, Spain. Recognized for their skill at creating connections between painting and sculpture in urban settings, they adopt a thoroughly innovative approach in their artistic fusions. A balanced combination of classical art and the most contemporary urban art can be identified in their work. From the outset PichiAvo shunned artistic individuality, joining forces to create an absolutely unique body of work using a conceptually urban idiom, both in the street and studio.
Featured Artist: ADD FUEL
ADD FUEL (Diogo Machado) is a Portuguese visual artist born in 1980 with a degree in Graphic Design from Lisbon’s IADE – Creative University. He spent several years working in design studios in Portugal and Munich, until he started focusing on his artistic work in 2007. ADD FUEL is known for combining traditional tile designs with contemporary visual elements to create original and emotional motifs, playing with the viewer’s perception and possibilities of interpretation. He has exhibited his art in galleries and museums worldwide and has also created several public art interventions. ADD FUEL currently resides and works in Cascais, Portugal.
Featured Artist: EL MAC
EL MAC (Miles MacGregor) is an urban artist known for his striking visual aesthetic and unique style. Born in Los Angeles, he began developing his artistic skills at an early age. He is famous for his large-scale murals that incorporate photorealistic portraiture and Chicano art traditions, showing a deep appreciation for his cultural heritage. EL MAC has explored a myriad of themes in his work, such as spirituality, identity, and social justice. He has been commissioned for high-profile mural projects all over the world, including the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in the United States and the Mesa Contemporary Arts Center in Arizona. EL MAC’s artistic philosophy prioritizes creating work that communicates a sense of connection and authenticity to its viewers. His focus on creating art that reflects a diverse range of cultures and experiences has cemented his reputation as one of the most influential urban artists working today.
Featured Artist: MAD C
MadC (Claudia Walde) is a German urban contemporary artist born in the 1980s. She began her artistic journey with a spray can as a teenager and has since become a famous name in the world of street art and urban contemporary art. MadC holds two graphic design degrees and has authored multiple books on street art. Her exhibitions have been held in galleries worldwide, and she has painted numerous murals globally, showcasing her unique style that draws its roots in graffiti and deploys vividly colored, dynamic calligraphy with layers to depict energy and emotions. Her notable commissioned works include the permanent glass installations in the Museum Reinhard Ernst in Germany, opening in 2023. MadC’s work has been featured in prominent media outlets such as National Geographic, The Guardian, and Der Spiegel. She continues to redefine urban art globally, leaving her colorful mark wherever she goes.
Featured Artist: PAT PERRY
Pat Perry (b. Michigan, 1991) is an American artist primarily painting, drawing, photographing, and implementing large-scale outdoor murals around the world. Many of Pat’s projects have supported various social causes including cooperative projects with the Beehive Design Collective, Apt Arts, the UN Commissioner for Refugees, and No More Deaths. Recent solo exhibitions include shows at Hashimoto Contemporary NYC, Takashi Murakami’s Hidari Zingaro Gallery in Tokyo, and a museum show at UICA in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Pat lives and works in Detroit.
Featured Artist: QUEEN ANDREA
Andrea von Bujdoss, known as Queen Andrea, is a NYC-based artist celebrated for her work as a muralist, graffiti artist, typographer, and graphic designer. She began her artistic journey as a graffiti writer in the early 1990s, developing her skills to become a significant influence in the street art space. Her work uses a bold mix of color and design, and she has created notable works everywhere from the walls of NYC’s urban landscape to collaborations with major brands internationally. Her artwork has been shown in exhibitions around the world, cementing her reputation as one of the most influential artists in the graffiti, streetwear, and urban culture arenas. Her most recent paintings are intricate and intense explorations of geometry, color, and form that create fantastical, bright worlds of abstraction. Through her art, Queen Andrea continues to challenge norms and inspire others in the urban art scene.
Featured Artist: CHRIS STAIN
American Born. 1972. I was raised in the working-class neighborhood of Highlandtown in Baltimore, MD. My interest in art began with NYC subway graffiti in the mid-1980s. Having learned printmaking methods in high school, I eventually shifted my technique toward stenciling. In 2000 I began exhibiting my work. Adapting images from photographs and working with spray paint, stencils, and paper to create interior/exterior works, I seek to convey an authentic contemporary document that illustrates the triumph of the human spirit as experienced by those in underrepresented urban and rural environments. I work and live in Queens, New York with my wife and two children.
Featured Photographer: MARTHA COOPER
Martha Cooper is a documentary photographer who has specialized in shooting urban vernacular art and architecture for over forty years. In 1977, Martha moved from Rhode Island to New York City and worked as a staff photographer at the NY Post for three years. During that time, she began to document graffiti and B-Boying, subjects which led to her extensive coverage of early Hip Hop as it emerged from the Bronx. These photos, published worldwide, helped make Hip Hop the predominant international youth movement it is today.
