Street Markings as Art

Recently there was an article in the NY Times entitled "Behind the Mysterious Symbols Spray-Painted on Our Streets," with the subtitle "All over New York’s sidewalks and sewers, colored markings hide in plain sight, telling construction crews where to dig and creating accidental art."

I was so excited to read it because I have been curious about the symbols and colors for a very long time, and even made a few small paintings about the markings I saw on my walks when I was working for a nearby city, and as I walk in my neighborhood.

Below is a screenshot from the NYT times, and below that three of the paintings I created in 2021.

There are new markings in my neighborhood now, and I am considering a new larger painting that incorporates my old and new photos of them.

Screenshot from the NYT times

 
Future AT&T Work #1, mixed media on 6” x 6" board, created in 2021

Future Utility Work #2, mixed media on 6” x 6" board, created in 2021

Future Utility Work #1, mixed media on 6” x 6" board, created in 2021

Micro Gallery 01760 Exhibit Ending soon

Saturday is the last full day to see my exhibit of eight small paintings at the Micro Gallery 01760 in Natick, MA. The gallery is outdoors on the wall on Adams St, in Natick Center, close to a lot of public art. The interior dimensions are 12” high, 29” long and 13” deep, which is perfect to exhibit eight of my nine Sewer Covers and the Sealed Crack Lines Around Them. 

The paintings incorporate photos of sewer covers in my neighborhood and the sealed crack lines around them. The sealing of cracks is meant to help prevent further damage on the street.

Some neighbors described the process of crack sealing as loud and as less than desirable to look at. I see it as mark making and find them inspiring.

The paintings include acrylic skins of the photographs collaged on monoprinted, painted and stitched construction fence fabric, painting, stamped dots, and more stitching on 6” x 6” board, created in 2021.

Electrical Boxes and Smart Meters

I painted this electrical box and a second one a foot or so behind it in May 2016. Now that they have new Smart Meters, and I have a lot more free time, I think I may give both boxes a good cleaning and try to remove years of dirt and the stickers people put on them.

 

Last New Work in Progress for 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026

This is my last new work in progress post for my 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026 painting. I have some more work to do, but as I am close to finishing it, my next post about it will be when it's complete.

More New Work in Progress: 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026

After sketching different ideas for next steps in Photoshop last week, I painted the green lines around the large "squares" from the construction fence pattern for my 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026 painting, and then I trimmed it down to 12" square. I could call it finished but I am going to do more painting. It'll be finished sometime before the end of the month.

More New Work in Progress: Dates in a Life Walking Project 2026

 

In July, I retired from my day job, and changed how I document the number of steps I walk each day on my Dates in a Life Walking Project 2026 year-long painting. Starting then, the background color behind all icons for the rest of this year is now Light Ultramarine Blue. Each month, I am pre-painting the days of each month, month by month ahead of time, and each week I collage on the icons for each day walked.

During the brief time I stopped working but was still on the payroll, the background was Light Phthalo Blue. Up until my last day in the office, I was painting Florescent Magenta on the days I was off such as weekends, vacation, personal, and sick days.

In this picture, you can see the August 1st icon is already in place, a little section of July to the left of August, a little of the Light Phthalo Blue in the diagonal upper right of August. and the Florescent Magenta background paint before that.

More Ideas For New Work in Progress: 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026

Yesterday I coated what I had done so far on my monthly 12” square painting, 12 x 12 x 12 August 2026, with 50/50 watered-down matt medium. When wet, the bottom row was very badly puckered and I was considering cutting it off and replacing it with a different piece of fabric. 

While it is a fabric painting, and fabric does pucker, the amount was really bothering me. Thankfully it's reasonably flat today after drying overnight.

While it was drying, I played with a few ideas about next steps in Photoshop. Here are two sketches. I think I'm going to use the idea in the first photo and do more after that.

While I like the idea in the second photo, and might try that in a different piece, it wasn't the right thing to do with this one.