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Charlotte Shout! is back and better than ever! On today's show we caught up with Artist Sydney Duarte. “I am so excited to be a part of Charlotte Shout again” says Duarte. Charlotte SHOUT!, presented by Atrium Health and Bank of America, is an aspirational multi-week festival designed to showcase our community by celebrating Charlotte's creativity and innovation through art, music, food, and ideas. Located in Uptown Charlotte, SHOUT! features programming from around the corner and around the world. The 2024 edition of SHOUT! runs through April 14.
“Coming off the huge success of Luminous Lane the city of Charlotte was thrilled to welcome Spray Jam to the Queen City’s collection” says Duarte. Luminous Lane is an alleyway located half a block away from Tryon Street, connecting 3rd Street and 4th Street, covered with murals, paste-ups, fiber art, and more.
We learned Spray Jam - began as part of Charlotte SHOUT! 2023 with the theme “Bringing Light to Dark Places”. “It was and curated by me and Treazy Treaz” says Duarte. She adds: “we were able to transform a forgotten, unappealing space into a vibrant, contemporary arts destination to showcase the talent of the local creative community.” The alleyway has been fully transformed and is now referred to as Luminous Lane. "This year's event theme is Piece for Peace and the Spray Jam venue is set for 141 East 4th Street" says Duarte.
To sum it up Duarte describes the creation this way:
Spray Jam as an immersive work of art, with unique style, created by kind-hearted humans, all making magic before your eyes. Over three weekends, people can experience local and international art from a variety of backgrounds, in a space where they've all come to collaborate to bring this blank space to life. Filling the wall with color to take you on an adventure. Duarte and Charlotte Shout! invite you to hang out, talk with creatives, support local art, and be inspired. The Mural is always able to be seen and you can watch its' progress unfold day by day.
Here is a list of the local Artists:
Treazy Treaz, the co-creator, is an artist from Brisbane, Australia. Treazy’s roots are connected deep in the underground, and like all trees, he is constantly growing towards the light and into a greater expression of creativity. With 25+ years in the game, graffiti has played a pinnacle role in his life, teaching him priceless gems about the values of freedom, friendships, and keeping an out-of-the-box state of mind.
Darion Fleming with no classical training his process comes entirely from trial and error. He enjoys being outside of my comfort zone - attempting new levels of detail, style, and larger scale. This helps maintain variance in my work and keeps me excited for each new project.”
Russell Fenn, better known as Sofles, is an Australian graffiti artist originating from Brisbane. Self-taught, he has been honing his skills for over 20 years, exploring various mediums such as spray paint, acrylic, drawing and brush painting, as well as digital and illustration works. Sofles’ large scale murals have taken him around the world ten times over and now grace many of the world’s largest cities, including Berlin, Copenhagen, Oslo, Las Vegas, and LA.
Joey Obso is a graffiti artist and muralist born and raised in Charlotte, NC. He has played a large role in pioneering the local public art scene. A student of the craft, he studied in the streets and abandoned buildings around the region. Lessons were learned through experimenting with all available spray paint techniques, in a relentless effort to steadily improve upon his past. While his work today is rarely contained within one specific style, his shapes and colors are infused with a youthful energy and sense of exploration, bright, bold and full of expression.
Duarte sharing: "we are excited to bring this outstanding project to the city of Charlotte. My work with art and yoga go hand in hand, bringing community together to spark inspiration and ignite healing within everyone that I come in contact with; I love guiding others in self-discovery, creating, mindfulness, connection and experiential learning practice. Come and enjoy the beautiful Art Charlotte Shout! has to offer. It will not only transform the City but the individual as well."
Spray Jam is just heating up. For more information visit CharlotteShout.com.