by: Ellen C. Caldwell
for New American Paintings
Pow! Wow! Long Beach, a contemporary art festival, recently took over Long Beach, California — both in and off the streets. Pow! Wow!’s distinct gatherings take place internationally throughout the year with events expanding to Taiwan, Israel, Jamaica, Washington D.C., Singapore, Germany, and Guam — to name a few.
Founded by Jasper Wong, the festival’s inception and inaugural Pow! Wow! gathering began as a week long festival in Hawai’i. During these events, muralists take over the city, where they can be seen working on the murals from start to finish throughout the week. Additionally in July, the Long Beach Museum of Art (LBMA) featured an accompanying exhibit Vitality & Verve in the Third Dimension.
Curated by Andrew Hosner of Thinkspace Gallery in Culver City, CA, Vitality & Vervebuilds on last year’s 2015 exhibition titled Vitality & Verve: Transforming the Urban Landscape. This year’s exhibit shifts from “ephemeral murals” and focuses on site-specific, three-dimensional installations at the LBMA…