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Greek Chimera
The Chimera (/kɨˈmɪərə/ or /kaɪˈmɪərə/, also Chimaera, Chimæra; Greek: Χίμαιρα, Chímaira) was (according to Greek mythology) a monstrous fire-breathing hybrid creature of Lycia in Asia Minor, usually depicted as a lion, with the head of a goat arising from its back, and a tail that ended in a snake's head.
The Chimera was one of the offspring of Typhon and Echidna and was a sibling of such monsters as Cerberus and the Lernaean Hydra.
In later times, the term "Chimera" has come to describe any mythical or fictional animal with parts taken from various animals, or to describe anything composed of very disparate parts, or perceived as wildly imaginative or implausible.
Although this isn't a Chimera in the Greek mythological sense, this interpretation is simply awesome.
View of the mural from NB I-75
The Russell Industrial Center commissioned artist Kobie Solomon to install this mural on one of its prominent building walls. The concept for the mural is one that embodies the entire city of Detroit and should pull on the heart strings of many of its residents. The main focus is, of course, the Chimera.
Solomon has put his own touch (a Detroit influence) on the Chimera definition and has created a beautiful rendition. To represent Detroit, the creature is composed of elements of each of the 4 major sports teams, aspects of Detroit industry and graphic representation of some of the creative activities going on at the Russell on a daily basis.
Kobie Solomon spraypainting graffiti
The mane is made out of Brushes, pencils, files, hobby knives, chisels and pens. His tail ends with a glass blowers torch. The head and body is that of a lion, representing the NFL Detroit Lions, the tail is that of a tiger, representing MLBaseball Detroit Tigers, the wings of the figure represent the NHL's Detroit Red Wings and inside the body are pistons from a vehicle engine, representing the NBA's Detroit Pistons basketball team.
With a backdrop of the city and the Detroit River displayed prominently, This painting is a testament to the beauty that Detroit has to offer the rest of the world.
It's located on the westward-facing wall of the Russel Industrial Complex’s Building #2 and is a colossal 8,750 square foot (813 sq m) mural that is purportedly the largest graffiti mural in the State of Michigan and can be seen by thousands of passersby on Interstate 75 every day.
Design-sketch for the mural
A graduate of The College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Kobie has an extensive portfolio that includes design of nightclubs, current record holder for largest graffiti mural in Michigan (the Chimera), gallery owner, live performing artist at the first 3 years of Electronic Music Festival, and representative for Detroit Chapter of the Zulu Nation. He's also a longtime street artist who wants to change the look of Detroit one wall at a time and this massive Chimera project is possibly one of the largest pieces of spray can art not just in Michigan, but in the world.
Among the reasons for this mural, aside from a dedication to the city that he loves, was “To give a newer appreciation to some of the local artists.”
Studio space at Russell
But with over 1,000 hours of labor already invested in the mural, it's still not finished. Part of the delay has been because of the needed supplies and equipment in order to reach the entire mural, which can be an expensive endeavour because of the specialized safety equipment for a project such as this and the fact that he is the one funding it.
There is an online campaign to assist in funding the project, but that is only part of the battle with the project as Solomon is also running out of time as well.
The hope is that artistic projects like this one will inspire others to improve their environment, as well as the environment of those around them. Sometimes it takes very little resources to make a huge impact on people.
Kobie Solomon at the mural
The artist hopes that people will like it, and that it will make folks happy...as there "are a thousand different kinds of happy".
There are many abandoned buildings in the area that could be used as a "canvas" of sorts and would improve and beautify the areas that they reside. It's items and projects like this that can do some very special things for the City and it's many residents.