First City Project
There is a funhouse of urban art inside the historic Coles House, in Glen Cove, Long Island. This unique interior mural project, turned outdoor gallery, boasts an impressive collective of many New York's street and graffiti artists who have been decorating these walls and more with their signature art.
…The goal of the First City Project is to introduce the residents of the City of Glen Cove and surrounding communities to the next generation of urban themed artists through the transformation of a 9000 square foot historic structure. The Coles House as a designated city landmark structure has architecture details dating back to 1810 with additional portions that could be traced back as far as 1690. It was the home to one of the original five founding families of the City of Glen Cove. Although chronologically historic, this building has long been neglected and essentially abandoned for years until local businessman Joe LaPadula had a vision to infuse new life into the structure through an ambitious art program. The essence of FCP is to use Coles House as a platform to introduce the community of Glen Cove to a new genre of art and showcase the rising local area talents with numerous NY area street art professionals. FCP aims to start a dialogue with the community where a balance can be achieved through a new art medium and a new spirit of creativity that can rise alongside the traditional values within the first city on Long Island. Future projects at Coles House include live art events, mural projects, student art classes, artisanal food events and street art themed boutiques. The City of Glen Cove is now poised to move forward as a leader in the arts community and FCP is the ideal platform to initiate the conversation of how art and urban renewal can be successfully partnered. @FirstCityProject #ArtofMac
Prior to beginning I was given a tour of this unique space. It was reminiscent of the former graffiti and street art mecca known as "5 Pointz" (LIC, Queens) and the 5PTZ Spanish counterpart in Madrid, "La Tabacalara". I found a nice little nook where I could add my approach to the interior design. The two children I painted, the boy and girl holding hands, were the children from my Table Series Logo and surrounded them in a colorful design pattern. I began late at night, around 11pm and by 4am my area was filled with an arcade of vivid colors, lighting up the room with good-energy that I wanted the viewer to feel. A big thank you to Martino Auto Concepts for this creation built on pure imagination which opens up to the public today, March 2nd, be sure to visit the spectacular project.
