"We are Golden / Somos Oro" Rah Crawford's 6-story Mural at the Denizen in Bushwick.

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK -- Visual artist Rah Crawford has been commissioned by ODA Architecture and OPEN to create a permanent mural at 54 Noll St. in Bushwick, which is a part of the Denizen Development.

Crawford’s creative vision is to honor local the community, “the Bushwick resident is my source of inspiration for the mural ‘We are Golden / Somos Oro’. My goal is to showcase the spirit of the local community within this newly developed landscape.

By painting symbolic silhouettes of Bushwick residents on a metallic gold surface, I am seeking to create a majestic symbol that celebrates the people who contribute to this culturally rich and vibrant community.”

This mural will be one of many that will go into making the Denizen Development courtyard a public place for the community to relax, find inspiration and interact with neighbors. This idea was made possible by OPEN a non-profit organization launched by ODA in an effort to make a positive impact in the communities in which they operate.

ABOUT RAH CRAWFORD

Rah Crawford is a self-taught visual artist, who has shown his work in Amsterdam, London, Paris, Philadelphia and New York. Creator of NPIC-Art (Neoteric Pop-Iconic Clairvoyance), the artist uses words to share visible and non-visible information within his artwork. This approach to art encourages the viewer to look deeper at the artwork, as the viewer researches the meaning of the words, they discover a layer of contextual information that informs the artwork. Arthistoryarchive.com includes Rah Crawford on a short list of 17 Neo-Pop artists whose work defines the genre, alongside Keith Haring, Damien Hirst, and Jeff Koons. The New York Times describes Rah's work as "Buoyant" "Exuberant" and "Optimistic".

ABOUT ODA

Founded in 2007, ODA is a New York-based architecture and design firm. They believe that quality of life need not be compromised for the privilege of residing in NYC and strive to keep people first in their design process. They focus on finding the best practices for developing a new paradigm: a model that can translate the desirable qualities of small-scale housing formulas - which encourages social participation and maintains a sense of community - into the framework of vertical living. By exploding the traditional concepts of a city block, they look to create voids, gaps, and open spaces that can be shared by the community.

ABOUT OPEN

OPEN is a 501(c)(3) organization launched in November, 2017. Their goal is to make a positive impact in the communities in which they operate by giving local non-profits the resources they need to develop projects that unite, engage, and empower residents of diverse backgrounds. They support projects in the following four categories: Community Green Space, Media & Technology, Design & Architecture, and Public Art. All completed projects are made free and accessible to the public so it may serve more people and help build lasting relationships.