Phoenix is a unique city with several areas containing street art and murals, especially in the Roosevelt Row area of the town. This is a trend that cities are utilizing to enhance areas within a city with beautiful murals painted by local talented artists, especially talent that might otherwise be painting or tagging illegally or not where wanted.
This is Darrell and Erin on Travel with D and E. Join us as we check out the Phoenix street art scene in the Roosevelt Row, Oak Street Alley, and take a look at some extra special murals including David Bowie and Prince, and why you should explore Phoenix’s beautiful street art scene.
Roosevelt Row Arts District
The Roosevelt Row Community Development Corporation is a group that for more than 15 years has been dedicated to advancing creative spaces, focus, and opportunities creating a sustainable arts district for local artists in the Roosevelt Row neighborhood, benefiting artists, entrepreneurs, and residents alike.
Through their efforts, the Roosevelt Row Arts District is now downtown Phoenix’s walkable arts district, with numerous art galleries, eateries and bars, along with various boutique shops, and street art scattered throughout the area. An art museum is now available in the area.
Calvin Goode Mural
In 2021, Isaac Caruso and Jesse Yazzie produced a collaborative mural to commemorate Calvin Goode. Calvin Goode was a Phoenix City Councilman from 1972 to 1994 and a Vice Mayor in 1974 and 1984. This mural features programs he helped champion including affordable housing and being an underserved youth advocate. “The Conscious of the Council” on the mural represents respect.
1-½ Street Mural Project
Murals on 1-½ Street, commonly referred to as “Mural Alley” is a short section of a back alley around on the back of the Churchhill building. A collaborative team of artists painted the murals on “Mural Alley”. The artists include:
Isaac Caruso, Gabriel “Leter” Pecina, Nyla Lee, Volar, Tato Caraveo, Lucinda Y Hinojos, Josh “BASK” Brizuela, Thomas “Breeze” Marcus, Lalo Cota, Jane Goat, JJ Horner, and Jesse Perry.
Oak Street Alley Murals
Now this part of the Phoenix area is the Oak Street Alley murals. It’s really a cool attraction to explore. Artists painted numerous murals up and down the streets and the alleyways. What’s really interesting, from one mural to the next, it shows everything from the city, its history, and its people, along with popular culture, whimsical designs, and just whatever the artist’s creative direction happened to be on that day.
These murals with bright colors were painted by dozens of artists and cover the entire length of the alley. Artists are continually refreshing or replacing the mural. Every time you go, you can see different murals.
Let’s go ahead and take a look at some more of these murals in the Oak Street neighborhood and alleys.
Prince
On West Roosevelt Street, next to Rodriguez’s Boxing Club, Maggie Keane made a massive mural paying homage to Prince. Prince Fans must drive by and check out this very creative mural located in the Grand Avenue Arts District.
David Bowie
A mural to pay homage to David Bowie was painted by Phoenix artist Maggie Keane, the same as the Prince mural. She painted the colorful murals, which the mural features are based on 6 distinctly different photographs of David Bowie throughout his career, in the summer of 2016. In 2020, she refreshed the murals after the paint had started to fade a bit, and it was tagged as well. The mural is located on 7th Street north of McDowell Road. Just pull into the parking lot there and you can takes some good pictures of the David Bowie murals.
The Churchill
Located in the heart of Roosevelt Row’s public art scene, the Churchill is a locally focused community gathering space that combines food, beverage, and retail with arts, music, and community. The structure is formed using reclaimed shipping containers as part of their commitment to sustainability. It had a really fun vibe to it.
Erin and I stopped and got some food, so we had a good time there. Check it out if you’re in that area.
Other Murals in Phoenix
Conclusion
When we visit cities, we really love to go and check out the great murals that are painted all throughout the town. And, of course, Phoenix was no exception, as you could tell from this post. The murals of phoenix includes a lot of great mural artwork, and we really love to see the talent. Remember, street art is always changing so you can expect to see new art next time you explore these areas.
Take a look at my other posts with murals including Pensacola Graffiti Bridge (17th Avenue), the abandoned Anasazi Inn Gray Mountain near Flagstaff, Arizona, and the Two Guns Graffiti Gas Station and KOA Pool near Flagstaff, Arizona.
And look, if you like this content, you will want to check out our other videos covering Phoenix and its surrounding attractions including Dobbins Lookout in the South of the city in the mountains, along with the Wesley Bolin Memorial Park downtown. This is very underrated. Check out all our other posts and videos on our epic Arizona trip.
Also, check out all our other posts and videos covering the many fun and historical attractions on our Travel With D & E channel. Do us a favor and subscribe. Remember to put a comment below if you have visited the murals over in Roosevelt Row, Prince, or even David Bowie’s murals.
Check out the YouTube version of this post:
Leave a Reply