By R. Anthony Harris

 

I have always admired someone that backs his or her rhetoric with action. Actually, the less you talk, the better. Let your work speak for you and grab my attention.

Enter Shane Pomajambo, the owner of Art Whino Gallery in D.C. He talks a giant game and to his credit, backs it up. His mission to take the artwork off the walls and into the streets has led to several high-profile events that combine outdoor art, gallery showings and live music.

I spent years watching from the sidelines as he took his energy and ideas across the nation. I watched the videos of his takeover at Art Basel in Miami that drew tens of thousands of spectators over a week period. I read about how the first G40 Art Summit in D.C. helped revitalize a rundown section of the capital. I followed the art world write-ups on what he did everywhere. Pomajambo was creating art environments out of thin air and changing neighborhoods and perceptions about street art everywhere he went. Everywhere but here, that is.

Which led to a fateful meeting between us as he planned his next mural project. I made the trip to D.C. and asked him to visit Richmond – maybe this could be the site for his next “happening.” It was finally the right time for something like this and after walking around Broad Street with world-renowned muralist Pixel Pancho, it was decided. The rest is history and the aftermath of the Richmond G40 is 23 unique murals created by an international crew of some of the best contemporary artists living today and an arts district that actually looks like a creative center.

One year later Pomajambo is a Richmond transplant. Art Whino Richmond started last year at 202 West Broad and is now in the planning and execution phases of The Richmond Mural Project 2013 to bring 20 more murals to town. The guy is doing his thing changing our city through art and has backed up his talk by walking the walk.