My-city
Mariusz Waras is another accomplished mural artist, who signs his urban works with "my-city project". Born 1978 in Gdynia, Waras is a graphic artist, outdoor painter, traveller, and amateur architect. His several hundred murals are scattered across the streets of Warsaw, Gdańsk, Berlin, Paris, Budapest, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Bolzano, London and Prague.
A National Treasure
Gdańsk, the northernmost harbour city of Poland seems to hold the record with 45 murals. Warsaw has more than 30, Poznań - 24, and Łódź boasts 21 mural pieces.
A map of murals in Łódź, www.urbanforms.org
Dozens more are scattered across even the littlest towns in Poland. The Eastern city of Lubartów, for example, has recently announced an official competition for the design of a city mural.
The apartment block in Lubartów which is going to be painted over with a winning mural project www.lubartow24.pl
The main page of the CNN website on the 18th of November, 2013 roku, www.edition.cnn.com. This article received 28 thousand likes over a period of six weeks
Polish mural pieces have also spread to other countries and continents. Both Etam Cru and My City have adorned the cityscapes of Bucharest, Sofia, Kishynev, Stuttgart, Saint Nicolas, Cork, Barcelona, Berlin, Paris, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo.
Etam Crew, "Moonshine", mural in Richmond, USA, photo: www.etamcru.com
An Internet Lascaux
Murals have become an important element of the city’s new iconography and they have a growing circle of enthusiasts. Numerous internet galleries and catalogues have been created over the past few years. Perhapst the most noteworthy is the one created by the Urban Forms Foundation, which updates their growing archive regularly. Created in 2009, the organisation focuses on urban culture and aims to organise and support independent artistic initiatives in public spaces. Based in Łódź, the foundation strives to animate life on the city streets and use artistic activities as a means of social revitalization.
Author: Dagmara Staga, translated with edits by Paulina Schlosser, 4.01.2014