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AK Public Art Spotlight: Tavar Zawacki's Metamorphosis #5

October 24, 2019

A member of the AK Public Art team at work on Tavar Zawacki's mural Metamorphosis #5 at 1665 Main Street. Photograph by Tom Loonan.

It was another busy summer for AK Public Art! Here on the blog, we're taking a look back at how this year's class of murals, sculptures, and other projects grew and developed over time.

September 17: Painting gets underway on Tavar Zawacki's Metamorphosis #5 at 1665 Main Street. Photograph by Tom Loonan.

September 18: Painting continues on Tavar Zawacki's Metamorphosis #5 at 1665 Main Street. Photograph by Tom Loonan.

September 20: Tavar Zawacki's mural Metamorphosis #5 for 1665 Main Street in progress. Photograph by Eric Jones.

Tavar Zawacki's mural Metamorphosis #5 for 1665 Main Street in progress. Photograph by Eric Jones.

Over the course of a couple short weeks in September 2019, a massive field of vividly colored overlapping and interweaving upward arrows—visible for blocks around 1665 Main Street—took over the façade of this structure, a former warehouse. These arrows are the signature motif of artist Tavar Zawacki. For Zawacki, the upward arrow symbolizes “the powerful mentality to rise above fears, challenges, and anything holding you back from your goals. . . . everything is possible!” In the context of 1665 Main Street, this imagery and the idea of metamorphosis, or dynamic transformation, resonates with the resurgence of the greater Buffalo region and ongoing positive economic and cultural developments in the East Side neighborhoods nearby.

Check out Tavar Zawacki's Metamorphosis #5 at 1665 Main Street or take a look at a complete map of all AK Public Art projects here.