GIANT Spotlight: Meet Shawn Bullen

In partnership with Curious G and Me & Super Social Club, we are honored to welcome renowned mural artist, Shawn Bullen to The GIANT Room. He will join us in our studio for a special FREE mural-making and creative STEM workshop featuring AI-generated avatars based on kid’s creations, prompts and ideas.

Watch the GIANT creative video prompt inspired by his work and join us in person on Saturday, April 22nd at 10am to learn and create with him. Can’t join in person? You can contribute to the mural by submitting your child’s idea of a dream avatar! We’ll turn their ideas into AI-generated avatar stickers and add to the mural in the printed form.

Artist Shawn Bullen grew up in Hyde Park, Chicago, where neighborhood murals provided early inspiration. During high school, Shawn developed his skills in photography, winning several awards and having his work showcased at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Shawn and his best friend Chris Gary founded the art collective IDC Art House, built on the dream of being able to support themselves doing what they loved and using their creative ability to make the world a better place.

After high school Shawn joined City Year, in which he tutored youth in literacy and organized several community mural projects. He went on to study drawing and photography at Columbia College Chicago and later transferred to NSCAD University in Halifax Nova Scotia, where he studied drawing and painting.

In 2011, Shawn began to pursue mural painting full time. His first stop was NYC and then Miami for Art Basel, where he was invited to paint for Wynwood Walls. Shawn spent the next two years traveling to cities across North America painting murals and teaching classes. Before returning to New York City, he lived in San Francisco and worked with the San Francisco Arts Commission creating murals across the city. His pieces gained further recognition with several newspaper and magazine articles including Juxtapoz Magazine and The New York Times.

Join us in person for a free workshop on Saturday, April 22nd at 10am to 12pm with Shawn Bullen, and turn The GIANT Room studio into a colorful, imaginative world highlighting our individual and shared identities! The event is free, but RSVP is required.