Dutch street artist Jan Is De Man create lively 3D paintings for local communities who want to connect. He targets to create projects ‘where everyone can identify themselves’ by asking for the reflection of the residents’ who hire him. Jan Is De Man’s most new gift to a neighborhood – a whimsical tri-level trompe l’oeil wall mural bookcase on an apartment building in Utrecht, Netherlands.
More Info: Instagram | Facebook
Street artists Jan Is De Man and Deef Feed Joined Forces to create a literary mural for a neighborhood in Utrecht, Netherlands
Image credits: janisdeman
The location for the 3D wall mural came before the concept, said Jan Is De Man, “I know the people who live on the ground floor very well. They’ve wanted a mural by my hand for a while. They also wanted to let me feel free in my design as long as it would bring something positive to their neighborhood. The first idea was to paint a smiley. A huge smiley. Because I believe people become happier when they see a smiley every day. But this idea didn’t feel complete, and it felt too simple.”
Image credits: janisdeman
Image credits: janisdeman
Image credits: maria_postema
Image credits: janisdeman
“We entered the community by asking people for their favorite books, and we were able to put eight languages and cultures together in the same concept. Everybody, every age, every culture, every language was welcome. The only rule I set up to participate in this art project was: no political books and no religious books. Besides that, every book title was welcome.”
Image credits: janisdeman
Image credits: natiinspire
Jan Is De Man said the most challenging part was the initial concept planning, “think most of the time the most difficult [part] is to get the right concept, that fits the wall, that fits the neighborhood. but when you got the right idea, then there is not much difficulty.”
Image credits: elly.colen
Image credits: architectuurnl
They managed to capture the spirit of the residents and the artists with an array of their favorite books. When asked what his favorite titles on the giant shelf are he responded, ” I am really fond of “ the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime“ written by Mark Haddon And of course the Playboy.”
Image credits: stefanieweijsters
Image credits: Google Maps
Image credits: maria_postema
Image credits: maria_postema
So what’s up next for this muralist? “there is a lot of things coming, but I don’t like to tell plans, because I believe that if you tell your plans they don’t work. It sounds corny, but in the end, actions speak louder than words.” Well we can’t wait to see what he comes up with.
Image credits: handhavingutrecht
