hARTberg walk – curated by NYCHOS and Rabbit Eye Movement

In June 2023 NYCHOS celebrated his 40 1/2 birthday in his hometown Hartberg in Styria, Austria.

For this special occasion, Rabbit Eye Movement teamed up with the city and invited 21 artists from all around the world to jam & celebrate together on 13 locations around the city. Great times with great people who do great work:

Toast, Bailon, Cone The Weird, Jeroo, Frau Isa, David Leitner, Saturno, Koes, Shane, Rever, Azukar, Quake, Optimist, Phekt, Shue, Fader, Aron, Fatheat, Kendel Joseph, Yanoe & Zoueh.

Scroll down to see and read about their works & a recap video by Christian Fischer.

Also, here’s a map with an overview of all the murals, and here’s some detailed information on the tour (duration, length, etc.). Have fun exploring!

As always, huge thanks to the family & to everybody involved in making this happen (Inoperable,  Montana Cans !). Thank you Hartberg for the warm welcome & support.

NYCHOS – “Kabbalah”

location: Josef-Hallamayr-Straße 36, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @nychos

NYCHOS grew up in Hartberg and is the initiator of the hARTberg walk. The artist became known worldwide with his large-scale anatomical murals. Deeply rooted in graffiti, shaped by the cultural and pop-cultural influences of his childhood and nourished by transcendent visions, his work includes murals, paintings, illustrations, 3D objects and animations. 

His mural “Kabbalah” makes visible essential aspects of his art making. The anatomical representation of a human is embedded in the Kabbalah Tree of Life, which is used as a symbol in many mystical traditions and represents the connection of physical and metaphysical content. The third eye refers to the knowledge of this connection. 

NYCHOS is the founder of Rabbit Eye Movement, co-founder of THE WEIRD and member of the LORDS Crew. He currently lives and works in Vienna, Austria and Los Angeles, California.

JEROO – “Funk Vogel Hartberg”

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @jerooone

Christoph “JEROO” Ganter is an urban art and graffiti artist from Stuttgart, Germany. He has been active in the scene since 1993 and has helped shape and drive the emergence of new styles with his exceptional style. His works are characterized by sophisticated color and form concepts that address both the immediate environment of the image and the architecture of the surface. In 2013, Ganter wrote the first comprehensive graffiti textbook, “Graffiti School,” which has been translated into four languages and is now a standard work in the genre. In addition to his work in public spaces, Ganter has devoted himself to painting on canvases for many years.

FATHEAT – “Aim”

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @fatheat

Fat Heat is a visual artist from Hungary who dedicates most of his work to walls and canvases. His roots are in graffiti, a culture that has influenced him for more than 20 years. Furthermore, he deals with digital art, such as animation and augmented reality (AR), which he combines with his large-scale murals.

SATURNO

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @saturnoart

Miguel Ángel Sánchez aka Saturno comes from the outskirts of Barcelona, Spain. The autodidact painter and illustrator has been making a name for himself in the European graffiti scene since the mid-90s. Since 2012, he has been painting in a distinctive style inspired primarily by science fiction films of the 80s and 90s, as well as the aesthetics of arcade games. Characteristic of Saturno is the realistic painting style of imaginative figures and creatures, which seem to provide insight into subconscious and darker aspects of human existence.

TOAST – “What’s left”

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @atabozaci

Ata Bozaci is an artist and entrepreneur. His work includes drawings, paintings, digital graphics, large-scale murals and modular sculptures. From 1990 to 2012, his main creation was graffiti writing. Under the pseudonym TOAST, he is considered one of the most influential protagonists in the scene. In his work in Hartberg, he intertwines the letters “TOAST” and reduces them to typical graffiti elements. He lives and works in Zurich, Switzerland.

AZUKAR – “The Green Whispering”

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @alexanderazukar

Alexander Azukar is an artist from Santiago de Chile. He is an environmental planner and autodidact artist. His works are often characterized by motifs consisting of a single continuous line. As a painter and graffiti artist, he has left his mark in Peru, Mexico, Brazil, China, Switzerland, France, Japan, China and Denmark, among other countries.

KENDEL JOSEPH – “Tribute”

location: Ferdinand Kraus Gasse 17, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @kendel_arts

Kendel Joseph is a young artist from Providence, Rhode Island, USA. His work “Tribute” deals with mortality and the various life cycles we go through. One starts small, grows large, ultimately moves on and returns one’s physical shell to the earth to create breeding ground for new life. The work is dedicated to Kendel Joseph’s rescued sparrow “Nugget“.

YANOE & ZOUEH – “Beauty and the Beast”

location: Augasse 24, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @yanoexzoueh @oh_yanoe @zoueh_skotness

Ryan “Yanoe” Sarfati and Eric “Zoueh” Skotones are an artist duo based in Los Angeles, USA. Both began painting graffiti in the early 1990s. Over the years, their works gained a variety of influences

In Zoueh’s case, it is a study of art that he incorporates into his works. He combines elements from graffiti with figurative representations from ancient Greece. In his mural in Hartberg, he embedded a profile of a classical sculpture held in dark red tones into wildstyle graffiti.

Over the course of his decades-long career, Yanoe has developed a keen understanding of mass and space. This results in dynamic works in which he responds to the conditions and structures of the locality. His mural in Hartberg represents an interweaving of lettering and figurative mural painting. Yanoe can be read in violet on a dark background. The “A” is formed by the arms of the female figure and their shadow.

Yanoe & Zoueh paint mainly together, Yanoe with spray paint and Zoueh with coating paint.

PHEKT

location: Augasse 24, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @djphekt

Phekt originally comes from Steyr/Upper Austria and deals with classic graffiti/style writing in the early 90s. Letters (in his case the alter ego “Phekt”) are completely rethought, connected with each other, colorfully staged and funky/swingy “made to dance”. He is part of the Californian collective “Lords Crew” since 1997 and has painted his pictures in cities like New York, Bangkok, Los Angeles, Berlin, Vienna and many more. On the side, he has been working as a DJ and radio host since 1995.

QUAKE

location: Augasse 35, 8230 Hartberg, Austria

Quake is a graffiti artist from San Francisco, California, USA. He is a member of the worldwide operating sprayer collective LORDS.

FADER

location: Augasse 35, 8230 Hartberg, Austria

Fader is an Austrian graffiti artist from Upper Austria. He is a member of the worldwide operating sprayer collective LORDS.

REVER – “Do the right thing”

location: Augasse 35, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @rever_odv

Rever’s works move between classic lettering, graphics and abstraction. They are characterized above all by several superimposed layers, some of which stand out from one another in terms of text, structure, painting style and color. His work “Do the right thing” in Hartberg is equally layered: The words “Do the” are kept in dashed light blue with a dark outline, below which are the two other layers “right” in dark blue and “thing” in red. Rever is a graffiti artist and lives in Paris, France.

SHANE – “Random Action Heroes”

location: Alleegasse 12, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @shane_odv

Shane is a graffiti artist, muralist and illustrator. He currently lives and works in Paris, France.

For his works, Shane draws inspiration from pop culture, history, and current world events. Low-contrast color schemes, primarily in shades of blue, meet high-contrast content, as the aesthetic of the work often hides an alienating spectacle upon closer inspection. Superhero figures from childhood move in realistic scenarios, and floral elements mingle with the artificial characters. 

With his mural “Random Action Heroes,” Shane left his mark in Hartberg with both a classic writing and a figurative painting.

DAVID LEITNER  – “Hunde“

location: Wiesengasse 39, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @david_leitner

One of the facades of the old Hartberg building yard, whose premises now serve as music rehearsal rooms, among other things, was designed by David Leitner, a native of Graz. Man and dog sleepily listen to the sounds coming from the interior spaces. Leitner’s works often make direct reference to their surroundings. This is clearly noticeable in the joint diploma project with Katharina C. Herzog. “Würmla’s Walls” comprises 13 facades, which were created in dialogue with the inhabitants of the Lower Austrian community of the same name.

David Leitner is a visual artist living in Vienna, Austria. He believes in the power of vanishing boundaries and therefore doesn’t believe in the separation of applied and fine art. His murals are represented worldwide.

FRAU ISA  – “Sluggish Ensemble“

location: Wiesengasse 39, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @frauisa

Frau Isa’s work in Hartberg depicts a still life, an ensemble of seemingly randomly strung together objects. Her works are known for their childlike simplicity and openness and the slightly incorrect perspective. Unlike her other works, the focus here is not on a woman but on everyday objects. Frau Isa is one of the first women to establish herself on the Austrian scene. She is part of “The Weird” crew and lives and works in Vienna, Austria.

Cone The Weird’s works are rich in detail, figurative and invite the viewer to dwell. They often contain hidden details, meta-levels and sometimes messages that can only be discovered by looking closely. Those who eventually find them will be rewarded. The artist himself sees his works as drawn poems. “Green Walk” in Hartberg is a tribute to the Hartberg countryside. It contains themes such as hiking, forest, and above all: the green of Styria. In the color scheme, the artist has also been inspired by the conditions of the building. Thus, the work fits wonderfully into the Hartberg city center. 

Cone The Weird is an illustrator and muralist and currently a visiting professor of communication design at the Hochschule der Bildenden Künste Saar in Saarbrücken.

NYCHOS – “Amanita Muscaria”

location: Grazer Straße 18, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @nychos

In the mural “Amanita Muscaria” NYCHOS is spinning on the concept of his crewmate Cone The Weird, who painted the other side of the transformer house in the city center. NYCHOS continues the story in his style and infuses it with the crew’s signature weirdness.

BAILON – “Rise Above”

location: Am Ökopark 10, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @mateusbailon

Mateus Bailon is a Brazilian artist currently living and working in Sao Paolo. In his works he explores narratives that recall the connection between man and nature. Born and raised amidst the amazing biodiversity of the Atlantic rainforest and shaped by its destruction, Bailon brings the power of nature in form to the streets of this world. His fantastic creatures spring from a mythological universe of their own. His birds are especially characteristic, as depicted here in Hartberg. Bailon’s works are intended to promote people’s environmental awareness and lead them back to where they belong: into nature.

OPTIMIST

location: Am Ökopark 2, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @optimistwilliams

Optimist is a graffiti artist from California, USA. He is a member of the global sprayer collective LORDS.

SHUE 77 – “Take it easy”

location: Habersdorfer Straße 51, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @shue.77

Shue77 is an Austrian graffiti artist and breakdancer who has been active in the scene since the mid-90s. The idea of giving letters and characters a special style was already present at a young age and still runs like a thread through his creative work. Shue has his own signature, which artistically moves beyond the visual language of graffiti, but never forgets its origins. His work in Hartberg deals with the oblique angles of the wall surface and the colorfulness of the logo. Garfield as a character fits the relaxed atmosphere of the festival weekend and long theory sessions of a driving school.

Shue currently lives and works in Vienna, Austria. He is a member of the global sprayer collectives LORDS and Jukebox Cowboys.

ARON – “Mädchen mit Buch”

location: Hauptplatz 2, 8230 Hartberg, Austria

Books are an important medium for the younger generation. Active reading promotes cognitive skills, expands language and reading competence and one’s own vocabulary. But reading is not just about absorbing information. Above all, reading is stimulation. It stimulates, enchants and creates magical worlds. There are no limits to your imagination. ARON aka Michael Porath is a working architect and currently lives in Vienna.

KOES

location: Hauptplatz 2 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @andrea_koes

Koes is the result of an aesthetic search of letters that emerge from the word cohesion – the underlying spirit of his artistic process and art making. Cohesion between people, cohesion between the artist and his medium. In the mid-90s, he began to engage in graffiti and has since participated in numerous festivals around the world. Andrea “Koes“ Crestani is based in Bassano del Grappa, Italy where he works as an interdisciplinary illustrator and painter. In 2021 he led the digital illustration course at IUAV University of Venice, Italy.

RABBIT EYE MOVEMENT – “The Look”

location: Baumschulgasse 16, 8230 Hartberg, Austria   /   instagram: @rabbiteyemovement_official

photos by (c)Rabbit Eye Movement and (c)Christian Fischer