Graffiti and mural artists lend an explosion of color to alley near Kelley Square

On June 8, when Kristian “Nu Element” Rodriguez heard that some of his fellow local artists were on their way to the Brick By Brick street art festival, the short notice didn’t matter. He knew he had to join them. When he arrived at the festival — at the at the Summit Lounge alleyway connecting Water and Harding Streets near Kelley Square — it turned out he had nothing to worry about. Other artists cleared a section of brick wall and lent him spray cans, and soon, he was hard at work, mixing colors and teaching his craft to his young daughter. “I didn’t have any paint at all, I barely had a spot to paint, but we cut some vines and I had a nice little wall,” Rodriguez said. “It was especially cool to have my daughter paint because it was her first time picking up a spray can.” ‘We had the best of the best’ Artifakt Studios, responsible for many of the murals and art installations that decorate Worcester’s businesses, brought in more than 25 graffiti and mural artists to cover the walls of the alleyway near Kelley Square over the course of five days for the Brick...