In new exhibit KMAC brings art ‘inspired by the street’ from the block to the gallery

With her mixed media artwork “The Bricks,” Jaylin Stewart reimagined the idea of a contemporary mural, taking an outdoor scene and building it indoors. Depicting multiple generations of a family in front of a home, the piece is a nod to community, but it also bridges the gap between the more traditional definitions of street art and fine art. “‘The Bricks’ is a scene, a set-up, a monument created to replicate the projects in Louisville, really highlighting Black women, telling the story of each Black woman from all ages and generations that come from these spaces,” Stewart said. It is one of the many thoughtful and conceptual pieces currently showing in KMAC’s exhibition “Wild in the Streets,” a layered show that features decades of creations from artists inspired by urban settings. The exhibit has work from more than 20 artists, including renowned locals such as Ezzit Whurr, Mark Anthony Mulligan, Tom Pfannerstill and Licia Priest, as well as acclaimed artists from elsewhere, like Barton Lidice Benes, Richard Hambleton and Chris Johanson. “Each one of us brought a different experience in this collective space,” Stewart said. The exhibition contains graffiti-inspired paintings, satirical signs, streetscape models, woodwork made from skateboard decks, hyperrealistic...