Stacey Williams-Ng to lead “Street Canvas” mural project in Bay View

The Kinnickinnic Avenue BID selected the program director of Black Cat Alley to organize the street art initiative, featuring five local muralists this summer.

The Kinnickinnic Avenue BID, the non-profit organization tasked with supporting business and development along its namesake “main street” in Bay View, is proud to announce a multi-mural project on five commercial buildings on KK Avenue. Discussions are underway with several interested building owners, the final decision on locations is to be determined.

The mural project is just one aspect of the Kinnickinnic Avenue street enhancement project, which aims to stimulate neighborhood growth throughout the length of the KK commercial corridor. Inspired by last year’s Black Cat Alley mural project on the East Side, the Kinnickinnic Avenue BID Board voted to set aside a portion of their streetscape budget to sponsor five local artists to create large scale murals along Kinnickinnic Avenue.

“Bay View is a hub for artists and creativity in our city and we want to reflect that in the KK Avenue streetscape,” says Mary Ellen O’Donnell, a member of the Board of Directors. “Street art is a great way to stimulate interest in a neighborhood as well as transform a harsh urban landscape with powerful and beautiful images.” Along the way, the project committee had the idea to choose an all-female roster of artists. “We were making these difficult choices right around the time of the Women’s March, earlier this year,” recalls Toni Spott, KK BID Streetscape committee member. “So many of the artists under consideration were great, and at some point we realized that an overwhelming number of them were women. We decided to make that the unifying theme of our mural project.”

The KK BID hired Wallpapered City, a Milwaukee-based agency led by Stacey Williams-Ng, to lead the project. Williams-Ng was the program director of the Black Cat Alley, and is a muralist herself. The agency was formed to help connect business owners and community groups to the international community of artists, helping with all aspects along the way such as logistics, promotions, funding and copyright negotiations.

The final roster of artists for the Bay View Street Canvas project includes Jenny Anderson, Bay View-based painter; Nova Czarnecki, Milwaukee-based painter; Rozalia Hernandez-Singh, local artist whose recent mural along the Beerline Trail celebrates the new Milwaukee flag design; Jenny Jo Kristan, muralist whose work has been featured at both Sky High Gallery and the Black Cat Alley; and Dena Nord, Bay View-based artist with work featured in the Little Free Public Library project.