Toronto artists "Paint the City Black" as tribute to George Floyd, anti-racism movement
Over 30 graffiti artists came together in Toronto’s Graffiti Alley to take part in the “Paint The City Black” event on Saturday.
The event was a “pieceful” protest where artists created multiple murals to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.
One of the murals illustrates the words “I Can’t Breathe,” which were some of the last words said by George Floyd, a Black man who died after he was heard repeatedly saying that he cannot breathe while being held down by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
Another says “Breonna Taylor,” an EMT from Louisville who was shot and killed in her apartment in March.
The event was organized by Jessey James, Nick Sweetman, and two other artists known as @blazeworks and @_________moises on Instagram.
Some of the artists took to social media – prior to the event – to explain exactly what the event was for.
“As graffiti artists, writers, and muralists working in the public realm, let us come together and rock a black piece in solidarity with Black lives and against the ongoing injustice that this community continues to face. If you want to be involved, paint a legal spot, re-do a spot, or offer space to an artist of colour,” said one of the artists on Instagram.
It was encouraged by artists to donate to bail funds or support systems and to use personal protective equipment while painting.
Adriano Clark, known as @freetherevolution on Instagram, attended the event to provide music for artists as they created their pieces.
Nick Sweetman took to social media to showcase the murals that were created and provide more information on why the event took place.
“The last two weeks have been agony as we have watched more Black people in the US get murdered by police and an increasingly militarized response to legitimate protests against the brutality, with the president doing all he can to fan the flames. In the face of this kind of pain, it is not always easy to see how art can make a real substantive difference. I hope that by showing we care about this, myself and the other artists who painted the city black this weekend have helped inspire the changes we need, though obviously the systemic racism that pervades every layer of society will require much more than murals,” he said.
Paint the City Black took place on the same day as crowds marched through the city of Toronto to protest anti-black racism.
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