BY ABBY RICK AND MARGARET RYAN

Painted on an electrical box next to a bus stop, a mural of an Indigenous woman watches over the intersection of 33rd and Dodge Street. Ten streets away, a similar electrical box is home to a mural of Central High alumna and WNBA player Jessica Haynes smiling over the 20th and Dodge Street. intersection. As Omaha has grown and evolved as a city, art has begun popping up everywhere and anywhere. The new podcast, Art on the Omaha Streets, aims at highlighting the everyday art Omaha residents can see during their day-to-day activities — whether that be bus stop murals on their drives home, the south Omaha mural projects, or alleyway graffiti after getting dinner downtown.

As modern cities continue to evolve, graffiti has become a prevalent form of artistic expression, yet it has not always enjoyed the mainstream acceptance it has today. Commonly referred to as the “graffiti problem” during its rise in the 1970s and ’80s, opinions surrounding graffiti have undergone a massive shift throughout the past decades.

Historically, graffiti has been seen as an act of rebellion. TheArtStory.Org describes the act of creating graffiti as both a “celebration of existence” and “a declaration of resistance.” However, in recent years graffiti has inspired the creation of a new form of art: Street Art.

Whereas graffiti connotes an illegal act of tagging a public building with written text or images, Street Art describes the creation of public art intended to beautify the area or send a political/social message.

In a Forbes article titled America’s Mural Magic: “How Street Art Can Transform Communities And Help Businesses”, author Wendy Altschuler discusses the changing attitudes toward graffiti and street art.

“Street art is no longer rejected as merely deleterious graffiti or vandalism,” asserted Altschuler. “But rather, it can be the source of civic pride, public artistry, and outdoor engagement in cities across America.”

Altschuler explains that strategically placed art not only contributes to neighborhood or city beautification efforts, it can also promote local businesses or infrastructure. In the age of social media, a posted picture taken with a mural outside or on a local business can act as free advertising. Altschuler believes that by “creating inviting spaces people want to see, spend time at, and take photos and video in front of to share on social media and other channels,” businesses have the opportunity to increase their engagement among the public.

In the case of the bus stop murals, lead artist Weston Thompson hopes the project will bring attention to the city’s public transportation. Along the Omaha metro ORBT loop, 23 bus stops are home to 23 identical beige, boring electrical boxes. At least, that was the case until the people behind local art initiative Art + Infrastructure decided to do something about it.

Introduced as a way to employ artists during the COVID-19 pandemic, the organizers of Art + Infrastructure plan to paint the electrical boxes at all 23 stops along the ORBT bus route. According to Kelsey Stewart, author of “Public art project at Omaha’s ORBT stops showcases local artists” in the Omaha world Herald, “Organizers hope that the project brightens the commutes of bus riders, drivers and pedestrians as it showcases Omaha’s creative community.”

In a statement given to the Omaha World Herald in May 2021, Thompson claims that this project increases the accessibility of art. “You don’t have to go into a gallery, into a museum,” said Thompson.

“It’s out there for free for anybody to experience, and the backdrop is the environment and the city.”

To hear more about Omaha street art initiatives, local murals, sculptures and art “hot-spot” recommendations, tune in to the next episode of Art on the Omaha Streets.