The Queen of Queens - Welling Court 2015 - Fumeroism Street Art Queens
This was my 5th year painting and the 6th year for the Welling Court Mural Project. I returned to my favorite spot located at 30th & Main Avenue, at the end of Astoria Boulevard in Astoria, Queens. It’s always a pleasure painting at Welling and the good energy vibes are always in the air permeating throughout this awesome little neighborhood. The annual block party hosted by the residents living on Welling court, in conjunction with Ad-Hoc who facilitates the international mural project, open up the community for the public to enjoy. It was a beautiful day on Saturday, June 13th, the weather was sunny and hot, just right for painting murals.
This year my theme is ‘the woman‘ and what better woman to represent the sisterhood than, Nefertiti. She was the wife of Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaten and together they abolished the worshipping of polytheism and instituted their own monotheistic god, Aten or the sun disc. Some scholars believe that the disc does not symbolize the sun but rather a UFO or flying saucer and the rays seen on reliefs emanating from the disc is the bright light illuminating from a flying orb or space craft.
Nefertiti lived from 1370 – 1330 BC during the 18th Dynasty of the New Kingdom. Nefertiti means, ’the beautiful one has come’ and her bust is an icon of elegance and beauty. It is believed that she may have reigned alone after Akhenaten’s death and until her son, King Tutankhamen (King Tut) came of age to rule as Pharaoh. This queen of queens represents the strong black female from Africa, as well as a symbol for strong women everywhere. Nefertiti is the universal woman role model, she represents not only beauty but shrewdness and fortitude for all females from all ethnicities and cultures. Queen Nefertiti is a person that women look at and admire and I believe she reminds us that all women are queens and should be treated as such.
Nefertiti’s eyes are intense and pulsating as she stoically gazes into the future and sees the stars high above the Earth’s sky. One can see the confidence and strength in her look. Her bone structure is defined by her high cheek bones and her lips are full and round with the deep hue of pomegranate red. The beauty of her face is accentuated by her elongated neckline and her crown is the mark of her power and great prestige. Nefertiti is proud of her rank as the first lady of a great empire that once ruled the ancient sands of Egypt.
This year I have Shiro and Chris Soria flanking me on the left and right. The transition of our murals creates a fluid collaboration from one to the next. The white rays from Shiro’s mural cuts into the left side of Nefertiti and the energy beams connect to the queen’s ear and frontal lobe. On the right, the grafstract bubbles represent the sky and the cosmos. The universe is filled with stars and the constellation of Orion is gleaming with the Great Pyramids of Giza directly below mimicking the Orion alignment.
A big thank you to the residents of Welling Court, the incredible double duo of Ad-Hoc, all the artists and the public for your continued support for fine art on walls which have turned Astoria, Queens, NY into an outdoor gallery.