The Outdoor Murals of Richard Haas

The outdoor murals of Richard Haas are complex, site-specific works of public art that actively engage the environment in which they are situated. Informed by the architectural history and development of a particular site and its surrounding environment and executed using the techniques of trompe l‘oeil painting, his murals stand as historical markers and references that seamlessly embed themselves into the urban landscape. Richard Haas first began painting large-scale murals on the exterior walls of buildings while living in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood in the mid-1970s as a response to the large-scale construction and urban renewal initiatives that were drastically changing the city landscape. His first mural, the SoHo Mural, is a trompe l’oeil extension of the cast-iron, front façade of 112 Prince Street and is located on the brick party wall of the six-story building. Since the creation of the mural on 112 Prince Street, Haas has gone on to produce a number of technically challenging and artistically significant murals that have become distinct features not only within the New York City landscape but within cities throughout the U.S and abroad. Unfortunately, almost half o