When our photographer, Jamey Price, arrived the day the Black Lives Matter mural was being added to the streets of Charlotte, he says he was struck first by the scale of the project and the turnout: Hundreds of people working together to make art and to fight for social justice, plus hundreds more offering their support as they looked on and spoke out.
This was June 9, 2020, when a team of 22 mural artists and countless helpers painted a huge mural, meant to speak to a moment and to a generation, on the 200 block of S. Tryon Street in Uptown Charlotte.
What has now become known as the Charlotte Black Lives Matter mural first came together when Brand the Moth and BLKMRKTCLT partnered with Charlotte Is Creative and the City of Charlotte to respond using bold colors in art to the cries for equity and social justice sounding from every corner of the globe.
According to the organizing teams, the coalition of creatives came together quickly to conceive of and execute this project. All told, it was less than four days from start to finish.
A few days after the mural was complete, Charlotte Is Creative wrote,
Charlotte’s creative community is strong… infused with artists and creatives who love each other, who love this city, and who are willing to invest their blood, sweat, tears, and considerable talents to prove that.
GIVE TO THE ARTISTS WHO HAVE GIVEN TO CHARLOTTE
It’s also a good time to recognize the power and importance of our local creative community.
If their work moved you, use this link to give them a digital tip and find more information on each artist and his or her body of work: charlotteiscreative.com/black-lives-matter-mural-artists
You can also show love and appreciation to each one by doing the following:
- Follow the artists on social media
- Share their work
- Tip them
- Buy their art
- Hire them and pay them fairly
- Provide access to affordable workspace
- Advocate for them
All photos here by Jamey Price
