East Liberty Busway Mural, Post Gazette Photo, July 2007
Artist Kyle Holbrook and Artist Robert Qualters in East Liberty 2007..
R-L: Edward Rawson, Elizabeth Scott and CEO Artist Kyle Holbrook at Ross Park mall Kiosk 2007 (Caricatures, air brush, clothing, paintings& more)
Jasiri X infront of MLK East Busway Mural.
L-R: Press Director Anji Corley, Education Assistant Ashley Hodder, Artist Michelle Gregio and CEO Artist Kyle Holbrook.
MLK Mural Staff pictured on the Cover of Next American City Magazine October 2007.
MLK Mural Unveiling June 7, 2007: (L-R) Anji Corley (Wamo), Judi McNeil (Port Authority), Evan Frazier (Hill House CEO), Todd Moules (CEO-National City Bank), Rev. Marcus Harvey, Mayor of Wilkinsburg John Thompson, Executive Artist Kyle Holbrook, Mayor of Pittsburgh Luke Ravenstahl, Michelle Gregio and Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato.
Homewood Mural details painted with fifteen(15) Homewood youth Summer 2007.
East Busway- Ellsworth Side, East Liberty, Pittsburgh by Kyle Holbrook and Michelle Gregio.
Homewood Bus station Mural Squad 7/14/07
Hamnet Station, Wilkinsburg, PA by Jeff katrencick, Chris Savido, Kyle Holbrook and Wilkinsburg youth artists.
Shady Side Boys & Girls Club Mural by Kyle Holbrook & Chris Savido August 2007.
Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and Executive Artist Kyle Holbrook being presented a proclamation for Kyle Holbrook day in Allegheny County 8/12/07
Black Beauty Lounge Mural by Kyle Holbrook and Chris Savido
Past. Present. Future. These time stamps represent what 29-year-old Kyle Holbrook paints on his murals.
As a Wilkinsburg native and witness to troubled teens growing up, Holbrook set out to be a mentor to troubled youth by employing them to paint murals with his company KH design. Holbrook is the CEO and executive director of his self-titled company.
Holbrook established KH design and started out selling personalized T-shirts out of the back of his van. After a lot of struggles, Holbrook began to see some progress. "Anything in life that's worthwhile is hard," said Holbrook.
He started these mural projects for artistic and social reasons. He enjoyed the "large scale of beauty" of the murals and also wanted them to have a social meaning. In addition, he decided to bring teens together from rival neighborhoods to help minimize their violence against each other.
Holbrook's desire to be a mentor to troubled and other teens stemmed from the influence of his parents. The teens he's working with will be paid a salary of $1,000 per mural. They are required to participate in mandatory painting classes prior to the mural project and must complete 30 hours of work per week.
Holbrook is not just assisted by teens. He has a staff of 46 artists who also help in several projects, including the biggest one yet: the National City Martin Luther King Busway Mural Project.
Along what is known as the East Busway, the mural stops will include Penn Station (Downtown Pittsburgh), Herron Avenue Station (Hill District), Negley Avenue Station (Shadyside), Oakland, East Liberty, Homewood, Wilkinsburg, Hamlett, Roslyn, and Swissvale Station. The busway connects these communities with what had been graffiti-marked walls. Instead of removing the graffiti, the KH design company converts the negative space into something positive.
Pictured in several murals around town is Holbrook's motivation: his daughter, Kyla. Every mural tells a different story and can be interpreted in several different ways, he said. The murals represent the past, present and future with different shapes and colors.
Holbrook continues to set and achieve goals despite the negativity that continuously hovers over his work. "Believe in yourself" is the advice Holbrook gives up-and-coming artists who may experience lots of animosity.
He also continues to expand his company with projects from Pittsburgh to Atlanta, where KH designs is completing a mural project for the Tupac Shakur museum. Holbrook's ultimate goal is to submit a curriculum to the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education that would put art back into the classroom and beautify the communities through the work of students in schools.
First Published August 3, 2007, 2:30pm
“Carnegie Mural”, Sunset Pizza, 38 E Main St, Carnegie, PA 15106 by Bill Borcick, MLK artists and 15 youth.
PGH CITY COUNCIL PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS, Kyle Holbrook, director, artist, and founder of KH Designs is responsible for over 100 mural throughout Western Pennsylvania. The master muralist once again takes the walls of Pittsburgh this summer, this time with 10 legendary artists and over 70 of the city’s brightest youth artists, to produce a communities-enhancing public arts project of unprecedented size and grandeur; and
WHEREAS, Painting for the National City Martin Luther King East Busway Community Mural Project began June 18. Holbrook and a league of extraordinary artist start the first of over a dozen walls to be painted citywide, and when finished, nine communities including the East Liberty, Homewood , Shadyside and the Hill District will enjoy fascinating wall animation along the East Busway; and
WHEREAS, this is the largest community mural project since Mr. Holbrook’s last project, the Pittsburgh All-Star Communities mural, which coincided with the Major League Baseball All-Star game at PNC Park last summer and ended one of the largest murals in the world; and
WHEREAS, Similar to the All-Star mural project, the National City Martin Luther King East Busway Mural Project employed the genius and creativity of multiple artists for a truly mosaic presentation. Among the supervising and managing staff on the project is the much-accomplished artists Jorge Meyers, George Gist, Chris Savido, Ashley Summey, Colleen Black, Bob Qualters and Michelle Gregio; and
WHEREAS, most importantly, the project will be the 70 teen and pre-teen artists of Pittsburgh who has seen this project to fruition. Following Mr. Holbrook’s legacy in community-mural production, each mural will be a vivid, visual exploration of the histories of each of the nine neighborhoods hosting the wall art; and
WHEREAS, the images in each mural are based on local and historical people and events making the murals educational as well as bright spots for each community.
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby recognize and commend Kyle Holbrook for sharing his vision of art, education and history with other artist and the City of Pittsburgh for all to enjoy.
SPONSORED BY COUNCILWOMAN TWANDA CARLISLE
CO-SPONSORED BY COUNCIL MEMBERS LEN BODACK, DAN DEASY, DARLENE HARRIS, JEFFERY KOCH, JIM MOTZNIK, TONYA PAYNE, WILLIAM PEDUTO, AND DOUGLAS SHIELDS