Maker City KC newsletter: Aaron Sutton is changing landscapes and minds with his impactful street art
Street art is centuries old. From the wall inscriptions in Graeco-Roman antiquity to the SeeSprayMO festival here in Kansas City, street art, as Zoe Penner writes in Murals for Social Justice, “embodies a unique intersection of aesthetic, public space, and social criticism. The accessibility of the art form contributes to the power of its message, as it confronts people in their everyday environments with injustices that are otherwise easily ignored.”
Aaron Sutton is one of Kansas City’s most prominent street artists. Born in Oklahoma City and raised in New York, California, Atlanta, then Kansas City, he graduated from Shawnee Mission North High School, then attended the Kansas City Art Institute for two years.
“I’ve been creating as long as I can remember. I received an award for one of my drawings that went to the Capitol when I was six. I wanted to be a scientist or a veterinarian growing up, but I always had art in my life,” Sutton says. “I began doing graffiti art around age 14 or 15 through hip hop culture. I’ve done pieces all over Kansas City now.”
Sutton is inspired by the past, present, and ancient future. A combination of hip hop, skateboarding, anime, Afro Americana (Black “Our Story”) and video games laid the foundation for his imagination. He calls his work “Afrocosmic” and creates vivid, bold images in many mediums, including painting with both acrylics and spray paint on walls and canvases, digitally designing on a tablet, and sculpting. “I’m a sculptor that creates small mask faces and visionary pieces from polymer clay with crystals, stones and other adornments. The sculptures go under the name of SOULMEC,” Sutton says.
Sutton has participated in the SPRAYSEEMO and KC Masterpiece mural festivals in Kansas City. He has also done work for non-profits like ARTSTECH, Mattie Rhodes, Operation Breakthrough, Interurban Arthouse and Troost Market Collective. Troost Market Collective’s community mural project was created in 2017 with the community so their voices could be heard. Artists, like Sutton, and community members were invited to share what the past and future of Troost looks like to them while the Troost Market Collective buildings and other small businesses it will fill are in transition.
Writing for Vogue, Olive Pometsy said, “Whether it’s political or within the art industry, inspiring change is what graffiti does best. Giving an artistic voice to those who may not have had the opportunity or desire to attend a prestigious art school, it’s a vehicle of expression for all, for the oppressed and disillusioned.” Giving voice to those whose voices may not be heard is one of the main reasons Sutton continues to create street art. “I want people to feel charged up and energized by the pieces I create. Murals have been around for a while but as they gain more popularity with festivals and more public commissions, it’s important we respect the communities they are being made in and honor those that exist in the communities. I want people to know I make the work for them and the future, for the children,” Suttons says.
Sutton has been working with underserved urban youth through different non-profits, teaching youth how to draw and paint and being a mentor. “I will continue painting, sculpting, and sharing to inspire the people of Kansas City and beyond. I’ve recently been hired by an organization called “Art In the Streets” out of Boulder, Colorado where I’ll be teaching an after-school mural program In Westminster.” His advice to future makers? “Keep pushing; never stop. Have an imagination and don’t do what everyone else is doing. Draw all the time, create as much as you can, whenever you can, so when the people are ready for your work, you’ll be ready to provide for them.”
You can find Visual Goodies online and see his work at many different locations around town, including 3100 Troost, 4001 Troost, 5600 Budd Park Esplanade and 1522 Holmes.
This story was originally published February 27, 2020 at 10:00 AM.