Li-Hill has painted his latest mural titled, ‘Process of Acceleration’, on the wall of an apartment block in Grenoble, France. The painting was completed as part of the Grenoble Street Art Festival, organised by the SpaceJunk Art Centre since 2015.
Using aerosol and latex, the Canadian-born artist (who is now based out of Brooklyn) covered the concrete surface with what he described in a statement online as, “a piece speaking about the technological and environmentally focused innovation hub that Grenoble has become.
“At the top of the wall sits an architectural drawing of a particle accelerator, The ESRF: European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, which is in Grenoble. This stands for the current height of human technological advancement where particles are accelerated at the speed of light to create powerful x-rays and used to examine matter on a molecular level,” Li-Hill explained.
A particular line in the artwork is representative of an ESRF research station, inspired by scientist, Marine Cotte, who uses particle acceleration to observe the breakdown of paint in an artwork. Cotte, interestingly donated two samples extracted from Van Gough’s, “Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers” to Li-Hill for use in his mural.
Li-Hill was one of 30 participating artists chosen to add to the 130 plus artworks that have been produced in Grenoble and its suburbs since the festival’s inception, this year joining a list of local and international talents including: Shepard Fairey, Augustine Kofie and Ardif, to name a few.
The Grenoble Street Art Fest itself is a cultural event whose main purpose is to present all the techniques and aesthetics that make up the Street Art movement. The project endeavours to make works of art visible to all and to further the connection between street art and the public.
In his statement regarding his mural, Li-Hill epitomised these principles saying, “A pursuit in understanding the world around us is crucial to create change, but how this knowledge is used and what change is created is the constant friction of civilisation.”