Grove Street Neighborhood Mural Project: Steven Speir + Soloman Sanders

From Feb. 12 through 19 of this year, Steven Speir and Soloman Sanders collaborated on a wall mural together as a part of the Grove Street Neighborhoods Mural Project. The mural project began as an initiative with aims to beautify and revitalize the historic, inner city Grove Street Neighborhood in Gainesville.

We had the chance to sit down with the artist duo and speak with them about the mural’s meaning and the process of it’s creation. 

In your own words regarding the mural, what is it?

Steven Speir: It’s a collaboration between Solomon and myself. It’s got some commentary to it but it’s a narrative that we built up naturally over time. Solomon has a lot of stylized imagery that he’s brought forth and I have more of a grasp on color fields. He painted his images first and I just worked around them. We just kind of let the story write itself and put it on the wall.

Soloman Sanders: Yeah, and how I do my work usually – it’s a collection of images that I’ve drawn at separate times. I organize them into something else, like a story that could prompt someone to think a certain way and try to get their own feeling from it. I have a folder of little images I’ve drawn and I collect them together to form an idea. If they have something in common I’ll put them together.

 

It’s for the people, passers by— those special characters who would walk through a parking lot and behind buildings just to see some art.

When was it painted?

February 12 to 19. It took about three days to paint.

Who would you say that this piece is for?

Steven Speir: For us, just kidding. It’s for anybody that sees it, it gives em something to look at.

Soloman Sanders: It’s for the people, passers by— those special characters who would walk through a parking lot and behind buildings just to see some art.

Would you say the piece has any cultural significance, or alternatively, is it referencing any cultural figures or events?

Steven Speir: It’s a reference of community, for sure— LGBTQ commentary, bringing things full circle and shedding light on topics like water conservation, being anti-big business, the dirty laundry that comes with big business. It’s meant to be open to interpretation. There shouldn’t be one single read of it; people should be able to draw their own conclusions from the work with their imagination and the symbolism and imagery provided.

Keep Gainesville weird.

Soloman Sanders: There could be commentary on drinking culture, drinking and driving, college towns, sexuality, temptations—it’s kind of endless. Just depends on the person that sees it and what they like.

Have people said anything out of the ordinary or particularly interesting to you about what they think of the mural?

Steven Speir: A couple of people have approached me about how Solomon’s style is kind of referencing a Keith Hering style at times. Initially, they can relate to that since that’s somewhat familiar. Obviously a different take and aesthetic, but it’s something that’s somewhat more approachable in the art world.

What role do you think this mural and the mural project as a whole play in Gainesville?

Steven Speir: Creative growth, trying to make Gainesville a little more of a vibrant— give it like an Austin, Texas vibe— Gainesville kind of has that for Florida. Keep Gainesville weird.

Soloman Sanders: Just opening people up to art and the art world. Exposure.

Besides painting, do you explore any other artistic mediums?

Soloman Sanders: I do videos, a lot of digital illustration, collage and clothing. I’m working on a little skateboard company.

Steven Speir: I think we have a lot of similarities. I like film, I like photography and screenprinting. Screenprinting posters and shirts— just honestly anything that I can find a creative outlet within I jump on.

Did anything interesting happen to you while you were painting the mural?

Steven Speir: We had this guy right behind us taking photos periodically who would stand right behind us and take photos and smile and give us thumbs up. We both got a little red behind the ears. It was super chill back there, everyone involved in the project was really accommodating.

The Mural at a Glance:

There are multiple scenes visible at first sight, each seeming to follow no particular order in arrangement. From left to right: Two aloof friends ignore each other at the bar: a person with an old-school muscle car for a jaw stands proudly in a pair of red heels while confetti falls and light shines upon them from a death-star shaped lamp.

A glacier with an igloo atop it sails on a lonely ocean as two drops of blood rain from the sky. A person is crushed under the weight of several plastic cups manufactured assembly line style by a money-obsessed corporation as two clothes hangers dry socks to the right of them.

Follow the artists on Instagram:

Soloman Sanders

Steven Speir

Hobby

Check out more of the Groove Street murals, like “Shadow,” by Rachel Sommer here and through the Gainesville Urban Art initiative. 

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