After years in the works, 'Loisaida Walls' takes shape on Avenue A

Photos by Stacie Joy 

The oft-tagged walls of the Con Ed substation on Avenue A continued to receive a colorful makeover. 

On Saturday, local artists took part in the Loisaida Walls community painting day between Fifth and Sixth streets. The project, a collaboration between Con Edison and ArtBridge, brought artists and neighbors together for an afternoon of live painting along the substation walls.

The participating artists are TOOFLY, Andre Trenier, Indie184, Chino BYI, Cekis, Hiphopismyreligion, Jappy Agoncillo, Minha Fofa, Optimo NYC and Ski Mystress Therapy. (CRAMCEPT was here too.)

Among the artists stopping by on Saturday was Al Diaz, who grew up in the Jacob Riis Houses on Avenue D and, as a teenager, created SAMO© with his friend Jean-Michel Basquiat.

City Councilmember Harvey Epstein said the project was eight years in the making, following years of discussions with Con Ed about the graffiti and the company's repeated efforts to clean the wall. 

"We've been working with Con Ed for years around the graffiti issues and getting this mural up," Epstein told EVG. "I'm very excited that it's really come to fruition after all these years." 

Epstein said the Avenue A facility had become Con Ed's most expensive site in the city to power wash because of the recurring graffiti. 

"We partnered with ArtBridge and Con Ed to make this a beautiful wall," he said. "This is really going to change things for this block and really help our neighborhood. I love the project." 

For their part, Con Ed had reps out along Avenue A on Saturday...

Meanwhile, work will continue on the murals along Avenue A... as well as on the Fifth Street and Sixth Street side...

ArtBridge is a nonprofit that produces public art projects across the five boroughs.

Sunday's opening shot

A new arrival on Third Street at Second Avenue outside the Bean... mural by Claudio Picasso...

Pride outside the 2nd Avenue F stop

Here's a look at the Pride Month mural outside the Second Avenue F stop... art by Ricky Sencion. 

This is the ninth Pride mural here curated by photographer-filmmaker Daniel "Dusty" Albanese. (Dusty has more about the work on Instagram.)

And read about Sencion's pink sheep art at the Los Angeles Times.

A look at 'Loisaida Thrives' on Avenue C and 6th Street

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

The new mural on the southwest corner of Avenue C and Sixth Street was officially unveiled last Sunday during the 39th edition of the Loisaida Festival.

The project, led by Thrive Collective's Murals Art Director Marissa Molina, is described as a "celebration of the neighborhood" in the piece titled "Loisaida Thrives." 

Here's Molina and Thrive Collective Executive Director Jeremy R. Del Rio from last Sunday...

We went back a few days later for a better look at the mural...

The wall previously featured the long-running "Alphabet City" mural, which lasted nearly 11 years before falling into disrepair and being repeatedly tagged. It was painted over last summer. The building wall has been a frequent target of vandalism in recent years. 

The new mural is part of a 2026 Public Realm grant awarded by the city's Department of Small Business Services to Thrive Collective. Last November, organizers hosted a community gathering at the Lower East Side/Chinatown Family Enrichment Center to help inform the mural's design.

Thrive originated in 1996 on the Lower East Side as a youth center in NYC Public Housing serving primarily Hispanic youth. Today, Thrive Collective partners with schools and communities across the city on mural and arts education projects, connecting artists with students and local residents. 

Read more about their work here. 

Also helping with the mural — NYC-based artist OuterSource. 

Below are the various credits for making this happen...

Tuesday's parting shot

Here's a late-afternoon look at the southwest corner of Ninth Street and Avenue A.

As we reported on Friday, the newish landlord here has decided not to paint over the 13-year-old "Liberty" mural here created by the UK artist STIK. A rep told EVG's Stacie Joy that the landlord was surprised by the outpouring of support for the 13-year-old, four-floor-tall artwork. 

"The importance to the community is what did it," the rep said. "We will paint around it in some form." 

We asked the landlord whether the background around the mural will remain as is or if there are plans to frame it. We'll see what they say.

Landlord: STIK’s 'Liberty' mural will remain on 9th Street and Avenue A

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Workers have been painting the building at the southwest corner of Ninth Street and Avenue A, prompting concern about the "Liberty" mural's fate.

A member of the building's management team, on-site yesterday, said the north-facing mural by UK street artist STIK was likely to remain. The rep contacted us later to confirm the news.

The rep also admitted that the landlord was surprised by the outpouring of support on social media for the 13-year-old, four-floor-tall artwork. 

"The importance to the community is what did it," the rep said. "We will paint around it in some form."

In an Instagram Story, STIK also confirmed the news that the mural would be spared from the paint-over... and thanked everyone who spoke out about it.

The piece arrived in September 2013, a gift from the now-closed Dorian Grey Gallery on Ninth Street, and was meant to honor the history of Tompkins Square Park.

The rep said the building has been in contact with the artist and had been "exploring options," adding: "We're doing our best to speak to the community and we're taking into consideration the neighborhood."

He also noted that the building is in disrepair, pointing to recently refreshed details: "You can see how nice and sharp the cornices look now."

As previously reported, in December 2022, entities tied to landlord Nuchem Obstfeld purchased a five-building East Village portfolio for $29 million, including 413, 438 and 440 E. Ninth St., as well as 141 and 153 Avenue A. 

Chico's long-standing Doc Holliday's mural was not part of the building painting project, the rep said.

Art returns to a familiar wall on Avenue C

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Work continues on a new mural on the southwest corner of Avenue C and Sixth Street, where art is returning to this single-level structure. 

The project, led by Thrive Collective's Murals Art Director, Marissa Molina, is described as a "celebration of the neighborhood."

Also contributing is NYC-based artist OuterSource (below left)... with Molina and Thrive Collective Executive Director Jeremy R. Del Rio.

The mural is part of a 2026 Public Realm grant awarded by the city's Department of Small Business Services to Thrive Collective. Last November, organizers hosted a community gathering at the Lower East Side/Chinatown Family Enrichment Center to help inform the mural's design.

The wall previously featured the long-running "Alphabet City" mural, which lasted nearly 11 years before falling into disrepair and being repeatedly tagged. It was painted over last summer. The building wall has been a frequent target of vandalism in recent years.

Thrive originated in 1996 on the Lower East Side as a youth center in NYC Public Housing serving primarily Hispanic youth. Today, Thrive Collective partners with schools and communities across the city on mural and arts education projects, connecting artists with students and local residents. Read more about their work here. 

Here's an in-progress look... work will continue for the next few weeks, weather permitting...

The work will officially be unveiled during the Loisaida Festival on May 24.

The group is also creating a mural celebrating Earth Day at Bracetti Plaza on the corner of Avenue C and Third Street.

Monday's parting shot

Here's a 5 p.m. look at the SW corner of Avenue A and Ninth Street... where two workers have been painting the building. 

One of the workers today confirmed they would be painting over the 13-year-old mural by UK street artist STIK titled "Liberty."

Today, they focused primarily on the cornice atop the north-facing wall. 

We're told there has been some dialogue with the landlord, although it's unclear what, if anything, might transpire. TBD. 

The mural arrived in September 2013... a gift from the former Dorian Grey Gallery on Ninth Street... the work was to honor the history of Tompkins Square Park.

The end of 'Liberty' on 9th and A?

Workers are painting the building on the SW corner of Ninth Street and Avenue A. 

Will they paint around the "Liberty" mural by the UK street artist STIK? (Suuure!)

The mural arrived in September 2013... a gift from the long-closed Dorian Grey Gallery on Ninth Street... the work was to honor the history of Tompkins Square Park. 

Also, what does the paint job mean for Chico's "Tombstone" mural outside Doc Holliday's? It is pretty nicked up... 

Updated: 

The crew packed it up by 4:30 with the north-facing wall left to do... or not to do?

Wall prep on 6th and C

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

Work continues on the SW corner of Avenue C and Sixth Street, where the wall is being prepped for a new mural by Thrive Collective's Marissa Molina — described as a "celebration of the neighborhood," per Jonathan Neville (below) of First Street Green Art Park.

He was joined by NYC-based artist OuterSource...

The wall previously featured the long-running "Alphabet City" mural, which lasted nearly 11 years before falling into disrepair and being relentlessly tagged. It was painted over last summer.

This one-story windowless structure — as mysterious as it is nondescript — is said to be used now by Astound Broadband, an American telecommunications holding company.

Saturday's opening shot

A view of the February mural up outside the Second Avenue F stop... swan art by Ben Keller.

Signs of Valentine’s Day (pizza) in the East Village

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Earlier today, we spotted artist Peach Tao painting Valentine's Day scenes on the windows at East Village Pizza on the southwest corner of First Avenue and Ninth Street.

Since 2019, East Village Pizza has offered heart-shaped Margherita, Pepperoni and White pies for the holiday — a tradition that returns again this month...

Invader's Lou Reed mosaic was stolen — an East Village resident brought it back as a wheatpaste

New Lou Reed "mosaics" have been popping up around the East Village in recent days — wheatpasted prints that match the scale and design of the Space Invader tile piece that once overlooked St. Mark's Place.

An East Village resident tells us they created the print to memorialize the original mosaic, which was stolen in September. They wheatpasted one in the exact spot where the Lou Reed Invader once lived, along with a few others on plywood around the neighborhood.

"I saw this morning that some people already tried to take some of the printed images," the resident told us. "But unlike the tile pieces, these will truly have zero value and are a testament to how much people love that image of Lou Reed."

Back in September, we reported that two men used a ladder early one morning to pry away Invader's nearly 10-year-old mosaic from the upper floor of 110 St. Mark's Place between Avenue A and First Avenue. Residents called 911 and later contacted the 9th Precinct. (The suspects actually returned to the scene of the crime.) 

Neighbors also linked one of the suspects to a similar Invader theft above Ralph's Famous Italian Ices on Avenue A and Ninth Street in the summer of 2024. 

Invader condemned the rip-offs at the time, noting that once removed from the wall, the tiles are essentially worthless. His mosaics first appeared around NYC — including in the East Village — in 2015, some in collaboration with the LISA Project. 

There is some good news for fans: after being contacted by the local resident, Space Invader confirmed he intends to reinstall the Lou Reed piece in the future. 

Previously on EV Grieve: 

• The Lou Reed Mosaic Bandit of St. Mark's returns 

Noted

An updated look at the new mural outside the Second Avenue F stop... someone has covered the ICE on the uniforms and added a misspelled "Comunist Democrats" message... (H/T to the commenter for pointing this out...)

Saturday's opening shots

Photos by Stacie Joy 

Here's a look at the new mural outside the Second Avenue F stop at Houston... the work by Doug Groupp (@clown_soldier2021) shows three ICE agents subduing the Statue of Liberty...

Wednesday's parting shot

As seen early this morning on Astor Place — a clean-up crew wiping off the "No Men" stencils left by an artist and activist on the Keith Haring sculpture. 

Thanks to EVG reader Brian Carroll for the photo.

Spider-Man takes a wall on Avenue A

Over the weekend, a new Spider-Man mural arrived outside 50 Avenue A between Third Street and Fourth Street. 

The work is by French artist Cyril Valade, who has a new show at Krause Gallery, 149 Orchard St. between Stanton and Rivington. 

Here is a nighttime view (via Stacie Joy)...

The wall here is curated by the Lisa Project.