Art

Amanda Soriano

Art Final

7/21/2021

ART IN THE CITY

The art piece that I choose to do my paper on can be found on the 1600 block of west

North Avenue. There you will see a larger than life moral of a Chicago photographer name

Vivian Maire. This mural was created by a street artist named Koba. This piece caught my eye

and digging into this piece was even more interesting. Vivian was born in New York but moved

and did most of her photography in Chicago. Her work was not recognized until two years later

after her death. She was a working woman living the struggle of day-to-day income. For me

when I think of the city of Chicago that is what I see, every person working and going to work

for a paycheck. Everything in the city is about the hustle and bustle. At first glance the first thing

you will notice is the pop of color and the black and white background. I believe by doing this it

gives the viewer their own way to interpret its meaning and emotion it is trying to convey.

The artist who created this piece is known for his line work in the art and being able to

use shapes to make his murals stand out. In this mural you can see hoe Koba using rectangles

and squares in the background creating the city look. At the top of the building’s lines are used to

give Vivian a closer feel to the painting, sort of like a 3D effect. The colors used are vibrant and

cause your eyes to flow with the mural. If you look at the photo of the beginning of the mural

you can see that the artist sketches the main focus first and giving it shadows and leaving room

for highlights in the mural. The principals of design that is being used is contrast, with the

background being black and white and the center of the mural having the pop of colors. Another

one would be balance and alignment, with Vivian being in the center both sides of her having

buildings and seem to use an even amount of space. Lastly, I would say it uses movement, if you

pay close attention around Vivian’s body there seems to be an outline of her silhouette. For me it

gives me a feeling of her moving forward or shedding her old self and coming into a new.

In my point of view the artist is trying to show how someone with talent or someone who

is different can get lost in the big city. No one truly knew of Vivian until she passed, and her art

was auctioned off. She is colorful in the mural because she was able to photograph and capture

the beauty in whatever she caught through her lines. The artist of this mural was known for his

ability to achieve photorealism while maintaining his playful, color theme, making for a striking

contrast against the setting. He wanted his work to give the viewers a sense of nostalgia when

looking at it. Although Vivian’s photographs were black and white, Koba wanted to bring her

work to life and give a new meaning to them using color.

Artwork is so much more than just painting or drawings, Art can bring communities

together and gives messages of hope and love for communities. In this art piece I believe it fits in

with city living in Chicago. The world around us can be black and white in the sense of routine

of live and with Vivian being colorful, I believe that represent what each of us has inside.

Everyone is unique and add color to their surroundings.

Works Cited

(1)"25 Must-See Street Art Murals That Prove Chicago’s Art Scene Is Legendary."

Secret Chicago, 9 July 2021, secretchicago.com/chicago-street-art-murals/.

(2)"Conserving a Chicago Landmark: Vivian Maier — The Conservation Center."

The Conservation Center, 26 Apr. 2021,