Bio
American Born. 1972. I was raised in the working class neighborhood of Highlandtown in Baltimore, MD. My interest in art began with NYC subway graffiti in the mid 1980s. Having learned printmaking methods in high school, I eventually shifted my technique toward stenciling. In 2000 I began exhibiting my work. Adapting images from photographs and working with spray paint, stencils, and paper to create interior/exterior works, I seek to convey an authentic contemporary document that illustrates the triumph of the human spirit as experienced by those in underrepresented urban and rural environments. I work and live in Queens, New York with my wife and two children.
CV
2017
Coney Island Art Walls, Brooklyn NY
The Tick, Amazon Prime, NYC
Gypsy, Netflix, NYC
2016
Welling Ct Mural Project, Astoria Queens
Jersey City Murals, Jersey City, NJ
The Get Down, Netflix, NYC
2015
Persons of Interest, UN Project M7 Museum Show, Berlin, Germany
We've Got Your Back Girl, Pop Galleries International, NY NY
Concrete to Data, Steinberg Museum, LIU Post, Long Island, NY
2014
Tiffany’s, Watch Commercial, Charge Scenic work for Believe Media Inc, Queens, NY
Sex, Drugs, and Rock‘N’Roll, Scenic work for Depact Productions, Inc Brooklyn NY
Maybelline, Charge scenic work for Cosmetic commercial for Identity Media, NY NY
Eye Candy, Scenic work for FRB Productions, MTV, Brooklyn NY
Riki and the Flash, Scenic work for Tristar Productions, Brooklyn NY
Forever, TV series, Scenic work for Warner Brothers, Brooklyn, NY
Unforgettable, TV series, Scenic work for San Vicente Productions, Inc., Brooklyn, NY
A Most Violent Year, Scenic work for Tank Farm Inc, Brooklyn, NY
Ruffian, Commissioned mural for Aqueduct Raceway, Queens, NY
Sign Language, Mural with Creative Youth Inc. and Martha Cooper, Brooklyn, NY
Fountain Art Fair, Group Show, NY, NY
Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, Presentation and Lecture, Philadelphia, PA
Dedalus Foundation, Stencil and ‘zine making workshops, Brooklyn, NY
New York to Tehran/ Tehran to New York, Seyhoun Art Gallery, Tehran, Iran
People’s Climate March Poster, 350.0rg, NY, NY
Governor’s Ball Music Festival, Public Mural, NY, NY
Bushwick Collective Art Show, Group Show, Brooklyn, NY
Bushwick Collective Block Party, Public Mural, Brooklyn, NY
Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, Workshop/ Public Mural with NET, Philadelphia, PA
Welling Court Walls, Public Mural, Astoria, NY
Vans Stencil Workshop and Community Mural, Brooklyn/Queens, NY
2013
Public Provocations, Colab Gallery, Weil an Riend, Germany
Street Art Tour, Guest Lecturer, Charlie Ahearn for School of Visual Arts, Brooklyn, NY
Wooster Collective 10-Year Anniversary Show, Jonathan Levine Gallery, NY, NY
Ad Hoc Art, Pop up Gallery, NY, NY
Welling Court Walls, Astoria, NY
Invent the Future, Public Mural, Bushwick Collective, Brooklyn, NY
John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Public Art Mural, Sheboygan, WI
Annie, Mural work for Columbia Motion Pictures, NY, NY
Betting on Someday, Commissioned mural for Aqueduct Raceway, Queens, NY
Bravo Construction, 2 Commissioned murals for Bravo Construction Co LLC, NY, NY
Braddock Tiles Benefit, Swoon fundraiser for Braddock project, NY, NY
2012
Group Show, CAVE Gallery, Venice, CA
Fountain Art Fair, Armory, NY, NY
Re-Print, Hendershot Gallery, NY, NY
Wellington Court Walls, Astoria, NY
Street Art Project, Dorian Grey Gallery, NY, NY
Deep In the Cut, Mighty Tanaka Gallery, Brooklyn, NY 2012
Articulate Baltimore, Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, MD
Art of Basketball, POP Gallery, NY, NY
2011
ISFit 2011, World Health Art Print Work shop, Trondheim, Norway
Amory Show 2011, NY, NY
Art of Basketball, Public Works Dept., Newark, New Jersey
Street Art Tour, School of Visual Arts with Charles Ahearn, Brooklyn, NY
Wellington Court Mural Project, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Queens, NY
NY INK Tattoo Studio, Art Work Installation for TV Show, SOHO, NY
Factory Fresh Street Art Park, Block long mural event, Brooklyn, NY
Showpaper Event, Newspaper box collaboration with Avoid, Brooklyn, NY
Street Art Saved My life, BSA and CAVE gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Remembering 911, Mural, NY State Museum, Albany, NY
Electric Room Private Night Club, Painted Mirror Installation, NY, NY
T-Mobile Black Keys Promo Event, Murals on Canvas, NY, NY
NY Art Book Fair, PS1 MoMA, Book signing/ live stenciling, Queens, NY
Art Basel Miami, The Underbelly Project, Opera Gallery, Miami, FL
Art Basel Miami, Fountain Art Fair, Miami, FL
2010
Rooms, Scion Gallery, Group Show Curated by Roger Gastman, Culver City, CA
Ain’t Goin Home Soon, Chris Stain & Leon Reid IV, Creative Alliance, Baltimore, MD
Electric Windows, Public Mural, Beacon, NY
Art Basel Miami, Art of Basketball, Wynwood District, FL
Art Basel Miami, Fountain Art Fair, Wynwood District, FL
2009
From the Streets of Brooklyn, Thinkspace Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Up on the Roof Countin’ Pigeons, Solo show, Carmichael Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Which Side Are You On?, Just Seeds, UMW Union Art Gallery, Milwaukee, WI
Ultradelarue, Park Plaza Hotel, Amsterdam, NL
University of Trash, Just Seeds Artist Collective, Sculpture Center, Long Island City, NY
Street Art Tour, School of Visual Arts with Charles Ahearn, Brooklyn NY
Windows on Willoughby, Public Art Window Installation, Brooklyn NY
I Know There is Love, Chris Stain & Armsrock, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Brooklyn NY
Stencil Workshop, Rogoland Kunstsenter Art School, Stavanger, Norway
NuArt ’09, Stavanger, Norway
Underground Up, Art in General, NY, NY
2008
Outside/In, Carmichael Gallery, Hollywood, CA
Ides Of March, 6th Biennial Exhibition, ABC No Rio, NY, NY
The Threat Of Chance, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Thieves Ladder, Black Rat Press and Art Projects, London, UK
Just Seeds, Space 1026, Philadelphia, PA
Art Trek 5, Antwerp, Amsterdam
NUART ’08, with Nick Walker, Zeus Coleman, Know Hope, Blek La Rat, Dface, WTM, Dot Masters, Dolk, Pobble, Herokut, Stavanger, Norway
Artist Visit Lecture, Rogoland Kunstsenter Art School, Stavanger, Norway
Live Painting Demo, Sabotaz Aerosol Paint Manufacturer, Brooklyn, NY
Democracy In America, Creative Time, Armory Drill Hall, NY, NY
Art Makes Eye Contact, Secret Project Robot, Brooklyn, NY
Chris Stain, Solo Show, Dirty Pilot, Boston, MA
Sustainable, AS220 Gallery, Providence, RI
ABC No RIO Benefit ’08, ABC No Rio, NY, NY
Street Art for Street Papers, Oslo, Norway
Stencil, Art Whine Gallery, Washington, DC
UP Festival, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, UK
Galerie Beaubourg Group Show, Galerie Beaubourg, Paris, France
MoMA Teen Urban Art Program, Lecture, Museum of Modern Art, NY, NY
Primary Flight, Art Basel, Miami, FL
2007
Just Seeds Artist Collective, Group Show, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Graphic Work: Imaging Today’s Labor Movement, Gallery 1199, NY, NY
Kold Krush, Faux Ice Cream Truck Installation, Artscape, Baltimore, MD
You Can Never Hold Back Spring, Dorothy 6 Gallery, Braddock, PA
Swoon, Stain, Brodie, Galerie Beaubourg, Paris, France
It’s Still Winter In America, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Stencil, Tint, Print, Albany Center Gallery, Albany, NY
Can I Get A Witness? Sahlman-Helwaser Art Gallery, Chelsea, NY
2006
Off The Streets, North Adams Contemporary Art Center, North Adams, MA
Winter In America, Private Showing, Albany, NY
It’s Still Winter In America, Ad Hoc Art Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Art Of Resistance, Cultural Project, NY, NY
Unification, Albany Underground Artists, Albany, NY
If They Come For You In The Morning, ABC No Rio, NY, NY
Miss Rock-A-Way Benefit Auction, Holasek-Weir Projects, NY, NY
Street Sweepers, Albany Center Galleries, Albany, NY
Hip Hop for Labor, DC-9, Mural, Labor Day festival Schenectady, NY
Noche Lounge, Group Show, Albany, NY
M-80 Gallery, Group Show, Milwaukee, WI
2005
Chris Stain, Solo Show, Saints & Sinners, Baltimore, MD
Quick mART, Installation Artscape (main tent), Baltimore, MD
The Interventionists, Mass MoCA, North Adams, MA
Stain and Scout, Richard Sena Gallery, Hudson, NY
Printed Matters: Hurricane Katrina Benefit, Shelter Skatepark, Albany, NY
The Next Movement, Larkfest, Albany, NY
Hip Hop for Labor, DC-9, Mural, Labor Day Festival
CALF, AFL-CIO, Albany, NY
The Interventionists, Mass MoCA, North Adams, MA
2004
One Night Stand, Chelsea, NY
Real Hip Hop Is Back, Sonar, Baltimore, MD
2003
Bombpop, C POP Gallery, Detroit, MI
Struggle, Mural, The Shelter Skate Park, Albany, NY
Artscape, Mt Royal Ave, Baltimore, MD
Witness, Tang Gallery at Skidmoore College, Saratoga Springs, NY
Stencil Pirates, Touring Art Show, USA
Backjumps Outdoor Art Festival, Berlin, Germany
Vinyl Killers 1, Portland, OR
2002
Curators Choice: WPA Benefit Auction, Corcoran MoCA, Washington, DC
Grand Opening, Grange Gallery, Spencertown, NY
Vacancy, Albany Art And History Foundation, Albany, NY
Root Hog Or Die, Changing Spaces, Albany, NY
Stain and Scout, Space 36, Chatham, NY
2001
In The Dream, Mill River Gallery, Oella, MD
Artscape Outdoor Art Festival, MT Royal Ave, Baltimore, MD
DIY Fest, The Wetlands, NY, NY
Art On Park, Chatham, NY
Stain and Scout, Ms Mary’s Art Space, Albany, NY
2000
Visual Disobedience, Space 1026, Philadelphia, PA
Metropolis, G-Spot AVP, Baltimore, MD
Publications:
Stencil Graffiti
Stencil Pirates
Realizing The Impossible
Art Of Rebellion
I NY
Creative Review
Graffiti World
Reproduce & Revolt
The Thousands
Beautiful Decay
Vapors
Metroland
City Paper
OC Weekly
Ides Of March
Left Turn No.30
NY Times
Swindle No. 17
Paper (Action Culture Issue)
Gothamist (July 31 2008)
A Guide to Democracy in America
Stencil Nation
Juxtapoz (online art/culture journal)
Street Art New York
LA Times
NuArt: Eloquent Vandals
We Own the Night: The Underbelly Project
A Survey of Contemporary Printmaking
Chris Stain: Long Story Short
XCIA’s Street Art Project
ESPN Is Street Art the New Big Thing in the NBA?
Stencil Republic
Outdoor Gallery
Time Out NY (Bushwick Collective)
Video:
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Eloquent Vandals Documentary
Swoon and Friends
Flowers Mural Installation at WIN Initiative
NuArt 2008
I know There Is Love
Swoon, Chris Stain, & the Polaroid Kidd in Paris
Ain’t Goin’ Home Soon with Leon Reid IV
Scion Installation LA
Thieves Ladder London
Living Walls Documentary: Atlanta
Aqueduct Murals
Time Out NY
Teaching:
Dedalus Foundation Stencil Workshop 2014
Vans Stencil Workshop, Brooklyn NY 2014 / 2013
John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Stencil Workshop and Mural 2013 / 2012
Long Island University, Long Island NY 2014/ 2013 / 2012
East Brooklyn Community High School, Brooklyn, NY 2010-2013
PS/IS 49, Queens NY 2009-2014
Rogaland Art School, Stavanger, Norway 2009
Sunnhordland Folkehogskule, Halsnoy, Norway 2009