A Light Touch

Earlier this week, BLINK announced the first wave of artists set to transform Cincinnati into the nation's largest immersive event this fall

The outdoor awe-inspiring event announced 14 international artists from 4 continents and 18 local artists/installations for large scale projection mapping, murals and interactive light sculptures throughout the urban core and into Covington, Oct. 13–16.

Shantell Martin

Shantell Martin is a visual artist, intuitive philosopher, cultural facilitator, teacher, choreographer, songwriter, performer, and more. From fashion and celebrity collaborations to adjunct professor positions at MIT Media Lab, NYU Tisch ITP, Columbia University’s Brown Institute, and choreographing a ballet at the Boston Ballet, Shantell’s LINE constantly evolves. Creating new connections between fine art, education, design, philosophy, and technology, Shantell explores themes such as intersectionality, identity, and play.

Case Maclaim

A German urban artist native to Frankfurt, Andres Von Chrzanowski (a.k.a. CASE or CASE Maclaim) is a graffiti painter who relies on his highly developed talent to create pieces that combine brilliant photorealism with a strong note of surrealism. This artist primarily uses spray paint as this street art technique enables him to get the most out of his visuals and achieve the level of perfection his incredibly life-like graffiti possesses. One of Andres Von Chrzanowski’s most common pictorial motifs are the overlaying hands that symbolize unity and power. It should also be noted that CASE is a founding member of the renown East- Germany Maclaim Crew, a group that has been the urban expression’s photorealism pioneer for over two decades now.

Add Fuel

Add Fuel is Portuguese visual artist Diogo Machado. A former graphic designer, his artistic practice has been focused on reinterpreting and playing with the language of traditional tile design,and that of the Portuguese tin-glazed ceramic azulejo in particular.

Blending traditional and contemporary elements, his original vector-based designs and stencil-based street art reveal an impressive complexity and a masterful attention to detail. Based on a combination of tessellations that create balance from symmetrical repetitions and visual illusion techniques such as trompe-l’oeil, his multi-layered patterned compositions create a poetic rhythm that plays with the viewer’s perception and the possibilities of interpretation. He has been showcasing his work in both solo and group exhibitions since 2006, as well as participating in some of the world’s leading urban art events.

PichiAvo i

PichiAvo is Juan Antonio (Pichi, b. 1977) and Álvaro (Avo, b.1985), a duo of street artists from Valencia (Spain).

Recognised for their skill at creating connections between painting and sculpture in urban settings, they adopt a thoroughly innovative approach in their artistic fusions. A balanced combination of classical art and the most contemporary urban art can be identified in their work. From the outset PichiAvo shunned artistic individuality, joining forces to create an absolutely unique body of work using a conceptually urban idiom, both in the street and in the studio.

PichiAvo’s career has attained artistic recognition and popularity on an international scale, establishing them among the most prominent street artists on the current urban art scene.

Wendy Yu

Wendy Yu is an interdisciplinary artist who works at the intersections of dance and urban media art. Utilizing dance and computer systems, she designs interactive works and builds large-scale immersive experiences to public spaces. Elevating forms of dance such breakdancing, which has typically been segregated to the streets, to the contemporary abstract art landscape. Representing the athletes and histories of local dance communities by creating inspiration and awe amongst viewers of a wider and more diverse background.

This is Loop

Loop is a collaborative artistic partnership founded by Harriet Lumby and Alan Hayes.

Based in their Somerset studio they have established a reputation for creating large scale audio visual experiential installations. With a practice focussing on utilising reflections and illusion this has created a common theme throughout their visually impactful architectural style work.

Their playful sculptures often with a futuristic aesthetic invite audiences to be engulfed by, at times, intense and challenging choreographed audio visual journeys. Frequently working collaboratively with sound artists and musicians has helped to elevate their work allowing deeper exploration of ideas and concepts and enhancing the bond between audience members and the works themselves. They have a track record in creating both large scale site specific work as well touring installations and have successfully done this both in the UK and internationally.

Vince Fraser

Having worked in the creative industry as a professional digital illustrator for over twenty years, the progression to visual arts was a natural one. Fraser’s work has continued to evolve and he sees himself as a new breed of artist in the digital age, combining a variety of skills including film and motion. With a keen eye for detail, he is always experimenting in a playful way whilst pushing the boundaries from a visual aspect. Bridging the gap between fantasy and reality, Fraser’s mission is to inspire, educate, and empower positive images of the African diaspora. Previous client work includes Nike, MTV and Adobe, just to name a few, while Vince also gained the attention of various musicians like Erykah Badu, Outkast and Usher.

Michael Coppage

Michael Coppage is originally from Chicago and now resides in Cincinnati. He studied at Memphis College of Art and obtained a BFA degree with an emphasis in sculpture. He continued his education and obtained an MFA degree from Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts(PAFA) with an emphasis in sculpture and mixed media.

Jason Snell

My name is Jason Snell, I bring the creative thunder with more than 20 years of experience in professional design, illustration, motion, management and client services. I’m a creative – everything from artist, designer, musician, Cincinnati sports fan and father. I have worked with major brands including Amazon, ESPN, Heineken, Mountain Dew, Taco Bell and Virgin America. I have also built local partnerships with neighborhood icons like the Florence Y’alls (Minor League Baseball), Haile Foundation and Habitat Skateboards. My goal is to help my clients and partners creatively problem solve, increase awareness, and create wonderful work in our communities that inspire and excite.

Lightborne

Lightborne opened its doors in 1985 with one goal – to be the best film production house in Cincinnati. Today our goal is equally simple – to create jaw-dropping visual solutions. From TV commercials to social, digital, concerts, experiential, and XR – we believe in the art of storytelling and the need to engage our emotions. We thrive on collaboration with our clients, and the results speak for themselves – original, unexpected, and memorable work at the highest caliber.

Architects of Air

The luminarium’s pneumatic environment, in its organic purity, provides a utopian vessel to contain light’s radiant brilliance and subtle hues. Through labyrinthine tunnels and cavernous domes visitors move in a medium of saturated color, in a world apart from the normal and everyday, accompanied by a gentle sensory soundscape.It is a paradox that such a stimulating environment can also be so calming, comforting and many people find the luminarium a place for rest or contemplation.Visitors try to put their experience into words – comparing the experience to like walking through a stained glass window, a futuristic space station, or like being inside a gigantic strange breathing organic but comforting creature.No two visits to a structure are alike as the atmosphere inside alters according to changing weather and light outside. How the visitor responds to the luminarium modifies the experience for other visitors – each visitor becomes part of a living, inhabited sculpture that is the luminarium experience.

Mz. Icar

Mz. Icar is an anonymous art collective. We were established in 2018. Our members include an Illustrator, Photographer, Designer, Prop Stylist, Street Artist, and Collage Artist. We started this collective to create works that celebrate women, global blackness, and fun. We create narratives in the form of mixed-media street art and fine art that explore history and imagine the best case scenario future from the perspective of women and people of color.

DogFish Crew

The DogFish is a historic Burning Man Art Car or “Mutant Vehicle” that has participated in the storied desert based art and culture event for the last 23 years. While historically Reno, NV based, the car was recently handed down to a Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Designer, maker and long time Burner and has found it’s way to the Midwest for the first time. For those unfamiliar, Burning Man is a nearly two week long gathering in the Nevada desert during which tens of thousands of people from around the world come together to create a participative temporary metropolis” based around art, music and community in the Nevada Desert or “playa” as it’s called. TheDogFish Crew is hoping to bring a little piece of the Burning Man magic and wonder to Cincinnati for BLINK in 2022.

Jessica Wolf

I have been a creator of things for as long as I can remember. Focusing on printmaking and photography, I graduated from Murray State University in 2003. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art under my belt, I worked in the package design industry until I eventually branched off to dedicate my time to my own business, Paper Acorn, in 2009. While growing my paper crafting business, I have continued to create fine art, show my work in galleries, and create custom installations for private and corporate spaces in the Cincinnati area and beyond.

Mallory Feltz

Mallory Feltz is a visual artist originally from Dayton, Ohio who is interested in a wide variety of materials and has always enjoyed building things. She earned her BFA in Sculpture from the University of Cincinnati, Design Architecture Art & Planning, in 2006, and completed her MFA in Sculpture in 2009 at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA.

Lindz and Lamb

As their style evolves, Lindz and Lamb will continue to share their vibrant art, while building community with artists around the globe. Though they call Denver home, they make regular trips for customized mural installations. When they’re not painting, they run a printing and art consulting studio in Denver called Like Minded Productions.

Graffmapping

Art is constantly changing, nowadays there are many graffiti artists that are now designers and they are now a mixture between traditional graffiti,graphic design, industrial design, robotics, architecture, street art and everything that is to come in the future. As technology develops every year in all aspects, you can also see it in the world of mural arts. Our passion is to experiment with new ideas through this long process of research that has no end. This year, Graffmapping will integrate projection mapping onto an existing iconic mural, Cincinnati Toy Heritage, an ArtWorks Mural, designed by local artist Jonathan Queen.

Antaless Visual Design

Antaless Visual Design was born in 2013, and is the result of the artistic and professional evolution of its CEO, Alessio Cassaro. With strong technical competences in the audio-visual field (gained in over 15 years of experience), numerous international awards and a boundless passion for the visual arts, Alessio is today the creative director of the studio. Under his careful guidance, a team of professionals, with multidisciplinary production skills, collaborates synergistically to create innovative, immersive, and mind-blowing multimedia experiences. Specialized in architectural mapping, Alessio has rewritten the geometries and volumes of some of the world’s architectural heritage, and has painted imaginative worlds in support of multimedia shows, concerts, festivals, theatrical performances, commercial and institutional events.

NeSpoon

Situated somewhere between street art, pottery, paintings, sculpture and jewelry, NeSpoon is a Polish street artist. On a mission to embroider the world, she enriches the already diverse urban art with her own unique brand of lace art. By using intricate doily patterns, the artist beautifies abandoned and unadorned spaces in unlikely urban jungles, transforming them into stunning works of art. Her process is based on an almost forgotten tradition of doily making, but NeSpoon has managed to take this humble domestic trait, successfully apply it in the streets (and on a much larger scale), giving the practice new possibilities, and new life. From lace murals and etched images to 3D lace installations perfectly attached to everyday things and intricate filigree in walls, trees or cracks in the sidewalks, she often provides harsh cityscapes with a new softness. Always working with respect for the spot and the local context, NeSpoon finds her inspiration in the local textile traditions. By choosing an art form associated with women, she celebrates its femininity and harmony it creates.

MASARY Studios

MASARY Studios is an interdisciplinary artist collective reconsidering environments through site-specific installations using sound, light, interactivity, and performance. Based in Boston, the studio’s practice includes live percussion performance, electronic music and production, facade projection-mapped video, artistic research, technology and materials fabrication, and the expansive use of animation. The studio is artist-owned and managed and was founded in 2015.

Sonny Day

Sonny Day is one half of WYBK. Their work is a conversation between two individuals played out in color, shape, texture and drawing from their shared influences – comic books, skateboarding, music and film. Sonny and Biddy worked and exhibited individually when they met in 2001. They began combining their talents in 2006, creating screen-printed posters for Popfrenzy tours on their living room floor, and have been working as a team ever since. Today they work for clients big and small around the world.

OGE CreativeGroup

OGE CreativeGroup / OGE Group / OGE Architects specialize in architecture, urban and branding projects with highly creative, inspiring character. In 3 words: “Creative – Young – Workaholics”. It is the mixture and the cross interference of different projects and tasks which keep OGE’s work fresh and always pushed to the limits.

All our projects are about emotions. A design or a project that doesn’t trigger emotions or challenges perception is hardly noteworthy nor successful. The relation between customers and/or visitors to our projects are essential for their success: they should be lovable, surprising, challenging, intriguing, social, inspiring, amazing, colorful, remarkable, distinguishable … and outstanding from the rest.t

Sean Van Praag

With over a decade experience as a freelance animator, designer, and director, Sean has had the opportunity to work all over the country at some of the top studios and clients in the industry. His work includes direction, illustration, 2D and 3D animation, storyboarding, VFX, and concept development. His projects have been quite diverse, consisting of commercials, projection art, stage visuals, explainer videos, film titles, and music videos. He’s been a featured artist, having created projection wall art for both Blink Fest and Digital Graffiti.

Thanks to new technology, communities of artists have been able to reach new audiences, but rarely–particularly in recent years–do they get to take that connection IRL. The emerging and rapidly growing world of artistic possibilities is thrilling, but the true magic lies in the crossover between digital and physical. That very space is where BLINK, Illuminated by ArtsWave, lives - bringing people from all over the world to Cincinnati and allowing them to experience truly immersive art amidst the cityscape. The nation’s largest light, art, and projection mapping experience, returns to Cincinnati for the first time since 2019 at the perfect time, bringing with it transcendent works across mediums. 

Exciting fans and drawing in new attendees, the immersive art experience releases the first round of participating artists, proving the almost unbelievable amount of sheer talent and dedication poised to flood the Cincinnati streets. Iconic visual artist Shantell Martin brings her signature black and white style enriched by her background as an intuitive philosopher and cultural facilitator, perfectly aligning her with the event’s mission. Star muralist Case Maclaim transports a strong visual message of movement and unity through overlays of hands in different positions, depicting not just physical movement but also political and societal action. 

Dedicated to the history and future of the city, world-class artists are poised to celebrate its unique culture. Portuguese visual artist and illustrator AddFuel is incorporating elements influenced by 140+ year old The Rookwood Pottery Company, ensuring the past is well represented deftly toeing the line between representing his own heritage and representing the rich history of the city itself. Artist Wendy Yu brings a collaborative effort of projection and dance, thanks to a partnership with Cincy-based Hip Hop Cultural Arts Center Elementz. Afro-surrealist visual artist Vince Fraser also explores the collaborative possibilities, working with Underworld Black Arts Festival and Napoleon Maddox to tell the history of Little Africa with a large-scale projection installation. 

The region’s own artistic talent is front and center, with BLINK exhibiting their work on a massive scale. Michael Coppage is extending his BLACK BOX project with a large-scale projection installation. Local artist Jason Snell is incorporating projection mapping onto the ArtWorks Mural, Ezzard Charles: The Cincinnati Cobra that Jason also designed. Local production powerhouse Lightborne takes on the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) for the third year, in a projection display that is sure to wow. Local favorites DogFish Crew, Jessica Wolf, and Mallory Feltz will also be bringing the Cincy vibe. Linz & Lamb, the art duo with one member hailing from Cincy bring their incredible romantic connection to each piece they collaborate on, incorporating a love of the city as well.

BLINK is not limited to the streets of the city, but rather committed to truly integrating with the city itself, which includes installations at historical and architecturally significant buildings. Among a sea of innovations, the upcoming work at The American Building in OTR, Mother of God Church in Covington, KY, and Memorial Hall stand out. The American Building project will be the work of Sean Van Praag, a wonderful returning projection artist. The latter two will be completed by Antaless Visual Designs, the Italian projection company led by CEO Alessio Cassaro. In addition to incorporating historical Cincinnati architecture, BLINK will also integrate projection mapping onto an existing iconic mural, Cincinnati Toy Heritage, an ArtWorks Mural, designed by local artist Jonathan Queen, and projection mapped by international video-mapping artist, Graffmapping.

That’s not the only international contribution announced so far. This is Loop, the incredible UK-based large-scale multidisciplinary creations team, brings their PULSE installation to BLINK making this the first USA premiere of PULSE. Previously exhibited as TOROID, BLINK is honored to host their US premiere as PULSE on the heels of a successful installation in Las Vegas. OGE Design Group, the international art collective from Israel, is working with parade partners ish to bring their “Together” installation to the BLINK audience. Spanish team Pichiavo is bringing their widely recognized prowess in connecting paintings to sculpture in urban settings, further integrating the 2D and 3D aspects among the city. 

The collaborative spirit is strong throughout the artist lineup and resulting event, with a particular focus on encouraging young artists. In order to accomplish this, MASARY Studios and the aforementioned Shantell Martin will both separately be working with youth artists through ArtWorks. 

The sheer excitement doesn’t stop with fan-favorite Architects of Air returning for the third time with a brand new installation experience for Cincinnati. Mz Icar brings the awe-inspiring 20-foot sculpture “The Full Set,” which is sure to be a show-stopper. Sonny Day–one half of WBYK–will be participating and creating some exclusive BLINK merch. And Female lace-inspired artist Nespoon and Devious round out the announcement so far.