Arizona-based artist Matt Minetta, 44, poses for a portrait in front of his mural titled “SAD” on Friday along a Mississippi Riverfront floodwall. Minetta and hundreds of artists will participate in this year's Paint Louis music and graffiti festival in downtown St. Louis.
Hundreds of artists from across the United States have made their annual pilgrimage to St. Louis for the city's graffiti festival along the Mississippi Riverfront.
Paint Louis was founded in 1997 as an annual graffiti and music festival, attracting artists to display their work using both spray and liquid paint.
Matt Minetta, a 44-year-old artist who made the over 20-hour trek to Missouri for the event, stood triumphantly on a cherry red platform as he outlined portions of his mural titled "SAD." He said he started on his creative endeavors more seriously while in prison, but now he sees art as a "free form of self-expression" along with his career as a tattoo artist.
Jason "Killer Napkins" Spencer is a St. Louis-based artist also participating in the festival. After studying fine art at a local college, Spencer explains he has worked in mixed media with the goal of "combining the cute and the horrific." Spencer said he wanted to take a lighthearted approach to his mural this year and is working on a piece that answers the question: "What would a monster look like if they went on vacation?"
Paint Louis runs on the Mississippi River through Sunday. A full schedule of the weekend's festivities can be found on the organization's social media.
See photographs below by St. Louis Public Radio's Sophie Proe:
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Spray paint and stencils are laid on in the sun on Friday along the Mississippi River in downtown St. Louis.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Artists create murals on the Mississippi River floodwall on Friday in downtown St. Louis.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Jason "Killer Napkins” Spencer paints a mural for the annual Paint Louis festival on Friday along the Mississippi River.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
St. Louis-based artist Peat Eyez spray paints over his stencils along the Mississippi River. Eyez has been displaying his art since 2000. “A lot of my work is about having a symbol of people being seen," Eyez said.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Carlos Barboza, 35, of Oklahoma City, Okla., spray paints the teeth of the skull on Friday along the Mississippi River. This is Barboza's first time participating in Paint Louis.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
An Iowa-based artist who goes by “Sense" sits on top of scaffolding while painting a mural along the Mississippi River on Friday.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
An artist who goes by Sase 1 WST, 52, from Albuquerque, asks her friend Zone for feedback along the Mississippi River on Friday. This is Sase’s third time coming and showing her work.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Arizona-based artist Matt Minetta, 44, spray paints a mural on the Mississippi River floodwall on Friday.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Arizona-based artist Matt Minetta, 44, spray paints his mural during Paint Louis on Friday in downtown St. Louis.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Peeled paint from St. Louis' "graffiti wall" sits on the ground near where new works will go up on Friday.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
A California-based artist who goes by "Max Presur," 34, creates a mural with spray paint during Paint Louis on Friday along the Mississippi Riverfront.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
St. Louis-based artist Peat Eyez spray paints over stencils of eyeballs along the Mississippi River on Friday.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Jason "Killer Napkins” Spencer paints a mural for the annual Paint Louis festival on Friday along the Mississippi River.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Eddie Rivera, 50, of Key West, Fla., spray paints over his outline during the annual Paint Louis festival along the Mississippi Riverfront.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
An artist who goes by Sase 1 WST, 52, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, looks out to the other artists on Friday along the Mississippi River. Hundreds of artists will participate in the annual Paint Louis graffiti festival in downtown St. Louis.
Sophie Proe
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St. Louis Public Radio
Jason "Killer Napkins” Spencer descends from a ladder while painting a monster holding a hot dog on Friday during the annual Paint Louis festival along the Mississippi River.
