It’s easy to get caught up in the New York City rat race, marked by a high-status job, trendy clothes and the eternal quest for a spacious apartment. If you were passing through the East Village on Saturday, however, you got a reminder of what is really important in life:
“Become your dream”
That’s the message behind a string of uplifting chalk drawings that spanned the length of St Marks Place. The artwork bore the signature of James De La Vega, a New York street artist with roots in the East Village.
De La Vega’s store on St Marks Place closed in 2010, but it appears the artist has not forgotten his old neighborhood.
The chalk drawings formed a sort of treasure trail, with several messages scrawled on each block. I stumbled across my first chalk drawing on 3rd Avenue– not far from Astor Place– and followed the artwork to the entrance of Tompkins Square Park. The trail grew cold across from a mural of punk legend Joe Strummer.
While I didn’t find a pot of gold at the end of the trail, the chalk art was payoff enough. De La Vega’s drawings brought a burst of excitement to a rather ordinary Saturday. Even after the chalk images wash away, I’m left with the artist’s message:
“Be mindful even if your mind is full”
“Realiza tu sueño” (In Spanish, “Make your dream come true”)
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I absolutely love it! Street art is such an important aspect of culture in NYC and the world at large. I hope this trend continues to grow.
Thanks Mario! I loved the inspiring tone of this chalk art… it made me stop and smile 🙂
That’s awesome. And chalk art is something so temporary as well. So you must have felt special being one of the few to see those!
So true– this chalk artwork was fleeting. Although, since I live in a popular area of the city (the East Village), perhaps ten thousand people saw it too 🙂
I wonder if he got his start making hop scotch arrangements as a kid?
Your timing is impeccable Ted– just a few days ago I walked down the same stretch of St Marks Place and a group of high school/college-age kids had created a chalk hopscotch board on the street. They were invited pedestrians to play!
I like how these are inspiring messages of art. Great pictures!
Thanks Maria. It’s always fun to bump into street art when you least expect it 🙂
Become your dream. How great. 🙂
Seriously– this chalk art had a great message. One that you seem to live by!
Love these! Might have to steal this idea for San Antonio. Thanks!
Nancy
If you do cover San Antonio in chalk art, please share the pics. Would love to see it!
I just love street art! It’s the best! Especially when they have a good message like that!
I also enjoyed the treasure-hunt aspect of this chalk art– I kept following the trail to see what the next drawing would look like!