Artsplosure!

Saturday was Artsplosure again in downtown Raleigh. I love seeing artists from North Carolina (and other areas in the South) with their booths set up all around Moore Square.

When I walked through the center of Moore Square, I saw a collection of painted trash cans. I immediately recognized the one that was done by artist Keith Norval. I have been a fan of his for probably as long as I have lived in Raleigh and first saw his work in Artspace. His characters are fun animals with bright colors, which is right up my alley.

Keith Norval's can-vas

Anyways, I found out more about this movement in Wake County and it's called 86 it: Respect the can. Many artists (86, actually, I think) painted cans and they're going to be distributed around Raleigh. It's supposed to attract people (aka litterers) to the cans. I really hope they put one on Hargett Street by the bars near my building. You cannot imagine how many cigarette butts I see on the ground every day.

Respect the can.

After seeing Norval's work, we decided to walk to his studio in Artspace. Outside, is the (temporary - they paint over them every couple months) mural he painted. Enjoy!

Keith Norval's mural