Artists from Around the World
One of the aims of POW! WOW! Worldwide is to bring artists together across borders. In April, a POW! WOW! festival took place in Nepal where artists from near and far worked to beautify an aging school building. Ten of this year’s twenty POW! WOW! DC Mural Festival artists were from out of town, including several who flew in from other countries.
Cyril Vouilloz, an artist who goes by “Rylsee”, is originally from Geneva, Switzerland but has been based in Berlin for the last six years. He says one of the appeals of Berlin is how accepting and supportive it is of professional artists like him. As a member of the Berlin art venue Urban Spree, Rylsee’s works often incorporate innovative lettering and witty messaging. He painted two murals for the 2018 POW! WOW! DC festival. The pixelated lettering of “Greetings From Nowhere” can now be seen along the Metropolitan Branch Bike Trail, just north of the NoMa metro stop. The wavy lettering of “Seizure” can now be seen on Third Street NE just south of Florida Avenue.
Next to Rylsee’s “Seizure” is a mural of stunning colors by Taj Francis, also known as Taj Tenfold, who came to the festival from his hometown of Kingston, Jamaica. Less than two blocks away at M and Fourth Streets NE, Johan Moorman of the Netherlands painted his first ever United States mural, a large work of bright colors he calls “Discovery.” Cross through NoMa to K Street NE near North Capital Street, and you can find a fantastically detailed piece by the artist Richt from Bristol, England that he calls, “If you hit anything, call it the target!”
Mike Maguire is a Washington, D.C. photographer and writer. His photos have appeared in The Washington City Paper, The Baltimore Sun, USA Today, and Thrasher Magazine. A native of the D.C. area, he loves photographing the city's nightlife and street art.
Follow Mike on Instagram.
Cyril Vouilloz, an artist who goes by “Rylsee”, is originally from Geneva, Switzerland but has been based in Berlin for the last six years. He says one of the appeals of Berlin is how accepting and supportive it is of professional artists like him. As a member of the Berlin art venue Urban Spree, Rylsee’s works often incorporate innovative lettering and witty messaging. He painted two murals for the 2018 POW! WOW! DC festival. The pixelated lettering of “Greetings From Nowhere” can now be seen along the Metropolitan Branch Bike Trail, just north of the NoMa metro stop. The wavy lettering of “Seizure” can now be seen on Third Street NE just south of Florida Avenue.
Next to Rylsee’s “Seizure” is a mural of stunning colors by Taj Francis, also known as Taj Tenfold, who came to the festival from his hometown of Kingston, Jamaica. Less than two blocks away at M and Fourth Streets NE, Johan Moorman of the Netherlands painted his first ever United States mural, a large work of bright colors he calls “Discovery.” Cross through NoMa to K Street NE near North Capital Street, and you can find a fantastically detailed piece by the artist Richt from Bristol, England that he calls, “If you hit anything, call it the target!”
Author
Mike Maguire is a Washington, D.C. photographer and writer. His photos have appeared in The Washington City Paper, The Baltimore Sun, USA Today, and Thrasher Magazine. A native of the D.C. area, he loves photographing the city's nightlife and street art.
Follow Mike on Instagram.