The Wall at Central Square

In the historical New England town of Cambridge, Massachusetts stands The Wall at Central Square. The inspiration for The Wall began with Geoff Hargadon, a New England financial advisor and street art collector. He enlisted the support of restaurateur Gary Strack, of the Central Kitchen restaurant. As an evolving narrative on the exterior of the Central Kitchen—The Wall is a colorful exposition on life.

Historically, laborers would cover the Central Kitchen’s brick canvas in beige. Any artistic expression was dutifully masked by the city of Cambridge. To ensure The Wall’s permanent place in the neighborhood, Strack collaborated with the city mayor’s office, and in 2007, Hargadon and Strack curated the inaugural street art exhibition known as The Wall at Central Square. An ensemble of talent including Rene Gagnon, Darkcloud, Michael De Feo, Gaia, Judith Supine and other notable street artists from around the United States and Canada were invited to feature on The Wall.

For the street art culture of New England, The Wall is a tale rooted in cumulative and layered intent. The normative effect of The Wall manifests as an emergent voice dichotomy: one favors collaboration, the other prefers to stand on its own accord. The two distinct voices either enhance or obscure the narrative respectively.

The Wall itself exists as story upon story, which evolves as each speaker’s voice emanates in cumulative or layered fashion.

Strack believes this dichotomy allows each artist to see The Wall differently, as it encourages extraordinary discourse. Classic graffiti artists endure without collaboration, subscribing to the layered voice. They battle for brick real estate, supremacy, and to stand above their peers. Street artists embracing stencil or wheat-paste, students of traditional artistic schooling, adhere to a more cumulative narrative.

The communal impact of The Wall at Central Square was its maturation into “a space for socio-political discourse, used to speak to the people,” according to Strack. This is evidenced in particular by the number of street artists for whom The Wall is a canvas for their own narrative—or as an artistic backdrop for a street performance. Strack notes that New England universities and colleges have held academic courses at The Wall.

“The Wall gives the people of the community a voice.”

A negative byproduct of the “by permission” aspect of this ongoing narrative occurs when unapproved works deface The Wall. It reveals the weight of artistic privilege—“the weak like to cover up the strong.” To combat the constant defacement, Strack engages the street art community and encourages them to feature new works on The Wall.

When asked about the longevity of The Wall, Strack points out that, “the future of The Wall is a political dance to maintain.” There is constant pressure from the community, however, “The Wall works best when it grows organically.” For those who have the privilege of contributing to The Wall’s narrative, it works best as a never-ending story.