Brooklyn based artist, Rapper & Photographer Redesigns the Puma Fifth Avenue Store

June 2020, Midtown Manhattan - Brooklyn based Artist Cavier Coleman found himself down on his luck at the start of the Coronavirus shutdown, due to art gallery closures and limited professional opportunities given the unprecedented circumstances. Until Puma called - giving him the chance to decorate their boarded-up shuttered flagship Fifth Avenue storefront.Show more

In the wake of citywide shutdowns followed by weeks of ongoing protests, street art has played a pivotal role in unifying New York. Businesses like Puma have discovered the power that public art has to spread messages of hope and solidarity during these turbulent times, offering their closed storefronts as canvasses for artists like Cavier Coleman to promote “unity, color, and happiness” in an effort to “make it feel like New York once again.”

“Are you listening?” - a question that resonated with Coleman after hearing it in protest chants, ultimately inspired the overarching theme of the mural. Referring to it as the “question of the year,” Cavier reaffirms the need to become better listeners in order to evoke change and to better ourselves as a society. The role that street art has played in effectively transforming NYC in recent weeks speaks to the power of artistic expression and its ability to demand the attention of an audience.

Puma and Coleman arranged for the collaboration to benefit OneWonder, a nonprofit organization that offers motivational career and mentorship programs to underprivileged NYC youth. By giving back to the community and empowering the voices of tomorrow, the charitable gesture succeeds in reinforcing the messaging of the artwork.