Public Art - Table of
Contents
"Yellow Dog" Mural
735 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, NY
July 2019 photos    |
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Reprint
Mural Alert: Yellow Dog is a Cosmic Trip of True Buffalo Proportions By Queenseyes Buffalo Rising, July 4, 2019  Another mural has popped up on Elmwood. Now it’s the Bureau crew that has orchestrated the artwork. You might recall that Bureau also led the charge for the Lip Service mural that was painted back in October. This time, the inspiration for the mural, on side of the Visualeyes building (735 Elmwood), came from a totally unexpected place – it’s a legendary Buffalo story that not even David Lynch could dream up. Bureau owners Jon Eisenberg and Joseph Stocker, along with their friends – photographer David Mitchell – headed out west to shoot a video for their new line of jeans (currently in process). After an initial visit to Las Vegas, the friends then headed to Santa Fe. While en route, they stopped along the side of a desolate scenic route in Truchas, NM (in the middle of nowhere) to photograph a horse standing in a valley. Admittedly stoned out of their minds, they thought that they were hallucinating when a guy in a pickup truck (with a Bills sticker on the back) pulled up to see how they were doing. “He rolled down his window, and he looked just like Jimmy Page,” said Eisenberg. “He was with his wife and his dog. We told him that we were from Buffalo. He responded that he was originally from Batavia, and invited us to come back to see his art studio. So we followed him to his home, which was in an artist community on Spanish grant lands, where we sat around drinking tequila and listening to stories for the next five hours.” It turns out that this artist from Batavia, who they thought was a mirage at first, goes by the name of eRic Luplow. Luplow told them that when he was young, he used to accompany his parents to the Albright Knox – the gallery inspired him to become a painter. In fact, his dream has always been, to have one of his paintings in the world renowned gallery in his hometown.  eRic Luplow. Eisenberg then told me that he went back to visit Luplow four months later (October of 2018), to discuss embarking upon an Elmwood mural project. Luplow loved the idea – he figured that if his works weren’t being shown in the AK, the next best thing would be, to have a mural of his work emblazoned upon a building just down the street.” The next step was for Luplow and his wife was to make plans for a road trip to Buffalo, as part of their annual art expedition around the country. The couple have been on the road since February, and just appeared in Buffalo a few days ago. Upon arrival, Luplow got right to work on the mural, finishing the last bit yesterday. According to Eisenberg, the that resulted in the further bonding of comrades, the start of new friendships, and a fantastic new mural on Elmwood that is a daily reminder that the entire trip was not a dream after all. |
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Parial reprint Batavia native and artist unveils 30-foot-tall mural in Buffalo this weekend By Lauren Leone The Batavian (online July 2019)  Photo courtesy of eRic Luplow. eRic (sic) Luplow, a Batavia native and surrealist-folk “sur-folk” watercolorist, will unveil his eye-catching Yellow Dog Mural at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Elmwood Village, Buffalo. eRic (sic) Luplow, a Batavia native and surrealist-folk “sur-folk” watercolorist, will unveil his eye-catching Yellow Dog Mural at 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Elmwood Village, Buffalo. Luplow recently completed a mural painting of a 20' x 30' angular, cube-like yellow dog on the side of the Visualeyes optical shop building at 735 Elmwood Ave. The vibrant mural will be dedicated by Joel Feroleto, City of Buffalo common council member. An art reception inside Visualeyes City will follow the unveiling. To design his two-story-high image, Luplow referenced his surfolk yellow dog painting from several years ago and worked with the dimensions of the building to recreate his piece. Over the course of four days, Luplow The Yellow Dog Mural in Buffalo is his largest painting to date; his last mural is in the Valley International Airport in Harlingen, Texas. “I’m a watercolor painter, so a mural is pretty far out there for me," Luplow said. "My biggest piece of work is usually 20 inches by 30 inches." Luplow has had a passion for drawing and painting from a young age. He graduated from Batavia High School in 1975 and began as an electrician before pursuing his love for art. Luplow currently resides with his wife, Peggy, in Truchas, NM, where he displays art in his gallery and paints in his trademark sur-folk style. Luplow describes sur-folk as a fusion of surrealism and folk art. Sur-folk features vivid colors that mimic the hues and shapes found in the culture and landscapes of New Mexico. Luplow uses watercolor paints to capture his memorable experiences and personal struggles. The watercolorist said family, friends and nationwide art collectors are traveling to Buffalo to view the mural, so he is excited to show off his artwork in the area of his upbringing for the first time. “Everybody, whatever they do, is proud of it," Luplow said. "I’m proud of being an artist." More of eRic Luplow’s work can be viewed at his website: www.ericluplow.com. |
