The latest edition of the Mural Istanbul Festival ran from June 20th – July 8th. Since its founding in 2012, the organization’s focus has been to transform Kadıköy‘s (a neighborhood in Istanbul, Turkey) walls into vibrant urban canvases, courtesy of some pretty awesome street artists (think INTI, Fintan Magee, Deih). This year, Lonac and Artez were both invited to paint their own walls. Coincidentally, their central characters are both reading books – but that was a total fluke since the two artists didn’t consult each other before deciding what to paint.
Serbian artist, Artez‘s work is often viewed as photo-realism. That said, the artist continuously strives for ways to express himself, which has led him to work with various types/ styles of lettering and characters as well. Artez is inspired by everyday life: people, places, things, moments. It should be no surprise then, that his latest wall Beautiful Journey, is a portrayal of his friend reading a book. Coincidentally, the book is about a journey to Turkey and the mural depicts the content of his friend’s imagination. If you look more closely, you can also see a picture frame holding a photo of Artez’s dog Iuna, who passed away shortly before he left for Istanbul. This wall is an homage to Iuna, who obviously holds a very special place in Artez’s heart. He used acrylic house paint and completed the wall in 5 days.
Artez typically uses a photo as a starting point for his work, but improvisation quickly takes over as he tends to get inspired by his environment. He spent several months in India and this greatly influenced his color palette and the themes in his work. Not only this, but Indian culture also changed his perception of the way he views things around him. He developed an appreciation for things that he previously did not consider important. His hope is that his work inspires people otherwise what’s the point of painting?
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Lonac is a Croatian artist best known for large-scale photo-realistic murals that are often influenced by comics, movies, music and social issues. His work ranges from realistic to humorous and often features surrealist elements. Lonac’s latest mural, Intermission, portrays his friend Tina seated on a chair, holding a book. The mural is elegant, with clean lines. ‘Classy’ (or classic) is the word that comes to mind when I look at it. The wall was finished in 7 days using acrylic house paint + spray paint. This was the first time Lonac used brushes and rollers (with wall paint) and spray paint on a large scale.
Lonac learned pretty quickly how to paint using a spray can, but it took him several years to develop the techniques he uses to paint what we see today. He’s mastered the art of using a wall’s surroundings to compose and enhance his artwork, and he seamlessly incorporates existing graffiti into his murals. Lonac likes to improvise but has been working freehand more and more, lately. Typically, he has sketches and photo references on-hand for the photo-realistic portion(s) of his work. For Lonac, it’s important to remind people to express themselves creatively – to challenge themselves and to evoke a response.
Artez: website | facebook | instagram
Lonac: website | facebook | instagram
Mural Istanbul Festival: website | facebook | Instagram
