5Pointz Vigil Held Last Night

by Emily Nonko

11/20/2013 3 minute 0

Last night 5Pointz artists held a candlelight vigil for the graffiti mecca, which (have you heard?) was whitewashed yesterday by the building owners. Queens Courier reports that the attendees gathered on the loading dock, where they lit candles and set up canvasses with artwork. Reports from Twitter say the evening was very calm and respectful. The gathering artists expressed shock and sadness for the abruptness of the cover-up act. As the artist “JUST” told the Queens Courier: “It’s just such a blow to the graffiti world. When you see it you say ‘gee, what are you going to do now?’ 5Pointz rest in peace.” After a number of attempts to save the building, it is expected to be demolished late this year or early the next. You can see more pictures of last night’s event after the jump.

UPDATE: Here are some thoughts from a reader, Paul Gullas; check out his pictures of the vigil after the jump: “I lived a few blocks from 5Pointz for a year and walked past it many times. It added a lot of character to the neighborhood, and, along with MoMA PS1 and the Space Womb Gallery, provided a kind of “Artists Circle” that made that intersection a nice destination spot. I understand the financial realities of LIC real estate, but I hope the developers make good on their promise to provide space for graffiti art and that whoever ends up owning the building doesn’t change their mind. I do wish that they had thought of a more creative use of the property that fit the spirit of 5Pointz instead of just more luxury housing. Even something like renovating the interior as, say, office space for startups, but keeping the facade as it was.”

Vigil Pays Tribute to 5Pointz [Queens Courier]
BREAKING: 5Pointz Warehouse Painted White by the Wolkoffs [Q’Stoner]

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