Japanese Street Artist Shiro Paints Murals at Stuyvesant High School

During Presidents’ Week, Japanese street artist Shiro came to Stuyvesant High School and painted colorful and unconventional murals across the wall in the spin classroom and on a section of the hallway on the fifth floor. She came back to the school on February 27 to participate in a mock ribbon-cutting ceremony with Principal Eric Contreras and other school administrators, and to speak to a Japanese class at Stuyvesant about her work as an artist.

Physical Education and Health teacher Dr. Anna Markova initially reached out to Shiro over Facebook, where they connected easily due to their mutual friends. Markova asked her to paint a mural for the spin classroom where she teaches, and Shiro was later requested to paint a mural for the fifth floor hallway. “I thought it was a good idea because when I was in high school, there was no graffiti or art,” Shiro said.

She had already painted at other high schools, such as the August Martin High School in May 2015. A group of students at August Martin High School reached out to graffiti artists to redecorate their hallways and create a more bright and welcoming environment. “Usually, school is not really motivating for many kids, so I think it’s really good to have colorful artwork in the school,” Shiro continued.

Shiro is a graffiti artist; however, she does many forms of art and design. She currently resides in New York, but travels very frequently and has been to 17 countries so far to paint murals and attend events. Shiro began creating graffiti in 1998 in Japan, which makes this year her 20th anniversary. She was initially a nurse in Japan, but later decided to pursue a full-time career as a graffiti artist. “As a nurse I see so much, because people are getting sick and people even die in front of me [...] I realized from my job that we have limited time,” Shiro said. “I came to New York and said, ‘Okay, I’m going to paint as much as possible.’”

Shiro was inspired to venture in graffiti when she first saw it in the background of a music video. After that, she started researching it on her own. She was also influenced by the American 1983 hip hop film “Wild Style,” which takes place in New York City. “The story’s about all the school’s graffiti writers, so when I saw it I [thought], ‘Oh my god, I want to come to New York,’” Shiro said.

This love for New York inspired the mural in Stuyvesant’s spin room, which depicts a character of the Statue of Liberty holding a can of spray paint and a black book in front of many buildings. “When I came back to New York with my artist visa, I was so happy,” Shiro said. However, obtaining a visa as a graffiti artist was a long process for Shiro due to the stigma surrounding graffiti art. Shiro’s happiness about finally arriving in New York in 2002 is represented in her Statue of Liberty, as the character is holding materials for creating graffiti in her hands. “It’s representing me and my dream, and also maybe for other people, [making] the dream [come] true,” Shiro continued.

Shiro’s second mural, which resides on the fifth floor near the escalators, is more notable due to its more convenient location. It features many athletes of different sports against a bright red background, along with the word ‘achievement’ in different languages. “Just the stark contrast in color mainly gets someone’s attention,” freshman Ezekiel Kazuo Stahl said. Dr. Markova was critical in making this procedure happen.

“I told her that it would be [on the floor of] the physical education and also the language department, so basically she tried to incorporate it into the art,” Markova said. The departments that reside on the fifth floor were not the only sources of inspiration for the mural, though. Shiro intertwined these ideas with the values that relate to Stuyvesant through her word choice. “She picked the word ‘achievement’ so we can achieve anything we want in the world,” Markova continued.

Despite the sentimentality behind the works of art, the murals have a significant shock factor. “When I came back from break, I thought it was gonna be a plain simple wall, but instead I saw a giant cartoon strip,” freshman Ethan Weisberg said. However, many still appreciate the efforts of the school’s administration to add more artwork and color to Stuyvesant. Students recognize the steps being taken to dismantle the demanding and rigorous reputation of Stuyvesant. The mural also adds a playfulness that could help students de-stress. “It’s a good reminder for people to sort of take a break and enjoy themselves,” Stahl said. Despite its loud presence, there are still students who believe that it adds a nice touch to our school without jeopardizing its competitive and academically-centered atmosphere.

There is no doubt that its presence at Stuyvesant is noticeable through the shift in mood and environment and the discussion revolving around its artistic style and content.