By Jason Jones | The Athletic, 2026-06-10 12:30:24
随着纽约尼克斯队即将拿下东部半决赛的系列赛胜利，这位名叫凯苏安 (Kaysuane) 的艺术家宣布了一个消息。
“如果他们打进总决赛，街头还会出现另一幅壁画，”他上个月说道。
尼克斯季后赛征程中令人兴奋的一点是，多位球员都贡献了高光时刻。而随着这些瞬间的诞生，也为像常驻东哈莱姆的凯苏安这样的艺术家提供了新的机会，让他们得以在纽约各个区留下独特的记忆。
在尼克斯精彩的季后赛之旅中，凯苏安已经创作了两幅壁画。最新的一幅位于纽约中城，介于第30街、第31街与第八大道之间，画面将杰伦·布伦森 (Jalen Brunson) 描绘为“东部之王”，而NBA后卫特雷·杨 (Trae Young)、泰瑞斯·马克西 (Tyrese Maxey) 和詹姆斯·哈登 (James Harden) 则向王座俯首臣服。画像旁边是一座画有尼克斯队标的拉里·奥布莱恩冠军奖杯。
总决赛第三场的失利并没有击垮凯苏安或纽约市篮球迷的斗志。周三晚上，麦迪逊广场花园及其周边地区预计将热闹非凡，尼克斯队力求重回胜利轨道，迎战在周一让主场观众陷入沉寂的圣安东尼奥马刺队。
随着尼克斯队向着自1973年以来的首个总冠军发起冲击，骨子里是个纽约体育迷的凯苏安表示，某些赛场回合能瞬间激发他的艺术灵感。在东部半决赛对阵费城76人队的系列赛中，尼克斯中锋米切尔·罗宾逊 (Mitchell Robinson)隔扣乔尔·恩比德 (Joel Embiid)的瞬间，被他定格在了第30街和第八大道的拐角处，成为了永恒。
那个瞬间迅速成为了网络热梗，这也让凯苏安毫不犹豫地决定动笔作画。
“说到我的艺术，有时候这是一种感觉，”凯苏安说，“我大可以每天醒来都做点有创意的事，但我并不总是热爱它。但接着会有某个瞬间发生，让你觉得，‘这必须得画出来。没错，必须是这个。’
“米切尔的那记扣篮绝对就是这样的瞬间之一。”
在 Instagram 上查看此帖子
凯苏安自2023年开始创作壁画，在过去两年里，他凭借与体育相关的艺术作品赢得了更大的名气。他的“El Barrio”品牌不仅仅局限于壁画，还涵盖了音乐、服装和艺术。2015年左右，凯苏安将自己的艺术兴趣转向音乐界，用他的视觉设计来帮助他哥哥的嘻哈组合。
最近，这位34岁艺术家的尼克斯主题作品通过他的个人网站，已经从墙上的壁画转变为可以售卖的周边商品。
“作为哈莱姆人，我绝对是嘻哈的死忠粉，也绝对是个体育迷，”凯苏安说，“我只是觉得，总的来说，纽约市的文化非常多元，但嘻哈和体育在这里的影响力极大。作为一个来自哈莱姆的年轻人，我身上多多少少体现了这一点。”
凯苏安说，他在大约15或16岁时对艺术失去了兴趣；七八年后，那份热情重新找到了他。他此前有创作封面艺术的经验，并自学了Photoshop等工具的使用。他拍过视频，也做过经纪人。
此外，凯苏安表示他曾在素描本上画过画——但直到过去几年，他的作品才真正登上墙面，成为壁画。
“我以前约会过的一个女孩让我帮她画一幅壁画，”凯苏安说，“我告诉她我不画壁画，她就说，‘你要拒绝我吗？’
“我想，‘你知道吗……我不拒绝。’”
随后，凯苏安联系了他的朋友阿马尔·贝内特 (Amar Bennett)——一位从事壁画创作的艺术家，向他请教如何起步。贝内特引导他找到了Uptown Grand Central，这是一家总部位于哈莱姆的非营利组织，专门雇佣艺术家绘制壁画。
据Uptown Grand Central的负责人凯里·金 (Carey King) 介绍，Grandscale壁画项目并不刻意寻找成名艺术家。她说，当凯苏安为该项目提交作品集时，他的才华显而易见。
“他的作品在为尼克斯加油，而我们也在为他加油，”金说道。
常驻东哈莱姆的凯苏安自2023年起开始在纽约各地创作壁画。（照片由凯苏安提供）
他在2023年和2025年为该项目做出了贡献，两幅作品都画在第125街。他2023年的作品是对尼克斯球迷的颂歌，画面中他手捧拉里·奥布莱恩杯，头戴2024年NBA世界冠军帽。他说，2025年的作品是献给纽约女性的。他绘制了自由女神像模仿玛丽莲·梦露 (Marilyn Monroe) 在电影《七年之痒》中的经典场景——在地铁通风口吹来一阵风后，她正努力按住自己的裙摆。
该非营利组织的目标是为艺术家提供一个获得更多工作机会的平台。然而，金表示，凯苏安的成长并不仅仅依赖于这个项目。
“他非常拼，”金说，“他在全市各地奔波创作。这不仅仅是我们项目带来的结果，他真的很努力。他付出了汗水，并与许多不同的组织和其他艺术家进行合作。看到他活跃在街头真的很棒，他显然有很多才华可以与大家分享。”
壁画和涂鸦艺术长期以来一直与纽约紧密相连。涂鸦被认为是嘻哈的五大支柱之一，这使得它对这一文化的发源地至关重要。然而，涂鸦并不合法；想要在公共空间展示作品的艺术家必须获得许可。
“我从小就画涂鸦，但最后因为涂鸦惹上了麻烦，在那之后我有点失去了对艺术的热情，”凯苏安说。
他不仅重燃了这份热情，现在还在用自己的才华来展现尼克斯自1999年以来的首次总决赛之旅。在城市中增添带有他名字的艺术作品，这对他来说是一个额外的收获。他第一幅引起广泛关注的尼克斯主题作品位于第三大道，画的是歌手兼演员马克·安东尼 (Marc Anthony) 身穿卡梅隆·安东尼 (Carmelo Anthony) 的球衣，被称为“马塞洛·安东尼 (Marcelo Anthony)”。
凯苏安喜欢在作品中融入他对东哈莱姆的自豪感。马克·安东尼就是在东哈莱姆长大的。
“身穿梅洛球衣的马克·安东尼那幅画开始疯传，因为他看起来不像卡梅隆，”凯苏安说，“很多人感到困惑，但最终它吸引了大量的关注。”
去年在第32街创作的“I Hart NY”画作也引起了关注，画中展现了尼克斯后卫乔什·哈特 (Josh Hart) 在2025年对阵波士顿凯尔特人队的季后赛中满脸是血的画面。
今年，是米切尔的扣篮，以及布伦森的王座。
“自从我开始画壁画，我喜欢选择那些受损的、上面只有一堆杂乱无章涂鸦的墙壁，”凯苏安说，“只是为了增添一些色彩，带来一些美感和社区自豪感。”
他的作品影响力已经远远超出了哈莱姆。去年12月，他在迈阿密画了一幅壁画。他创作的罗宾逊作品在ESPN的季后赛电视转播中播出，罗宾逊本人也在社交媒体上转发了这幅壁画。
凯苏安说他还没有见过任何一位他画过的尼克斯球员，但他很高兴知道他们看到了这些作品。
“我热爱我所做的事……但我也希望它是带有积极意图的，”他说，“我希望它能对社区有所贡献，而不是破坏社区。亲手去创作并收获人们的喜爱，这种感觉太美妙了。我热爱我的工作，其他人也喜欢我的作品，这让一切变得更棒了。”
由生成式 AI 翻译，译文内容可能不准确或不完整，以原文为准。
点击查看原文：Knicks memories by way of murals: How an East Harlem artist is capturing moments
Knicks memories by way of murals: How an East Harlem artist is capturing moments
With the New York Knicks zeroing in on an Eastern Conference semifinal series victory, the artist known as Kaysuane made an announcement.
“If they go to the finals, there’s gonna be another mural out there,” he said last month.
An exciting part about the Knicks’ postseason is that multiple players have had highlight moments. And with the moments come new opportunities for artists like the East Harlem-based Kaysuane to make a memory around the boroughs.
Kaysuane has put together two murals during the Knicks’ spectacular run through the playoffs. The latest is located in New York Midtown, between 30th Street and 31st Street and 8th Avenue, depicting Jalen Brunson as the “King of the East,” with NBA guards Trae Young, Tyrese Maxey and James Harden bowing to the throne. Next to the image is a Larry O’Brien championship trophy with the Knicks logo drawn over it.
A Game 3 loss in the NBA Finals hasn’t taken the spirit from Kaysuane or the New York City basketball fans. Wednesday night is expected to be electric in and around Madison Square Garden, as the Knicks look to return to their winning ways against a San Antonio Spurs team that silenced the crowd on Monday.
As the Knicks’ run for their first title since 1973 progresses, Kaysuane, a New York sports fan to the core, said he finds instant artistic inspiration with certain plays. Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, on the corner of 30th Street and 8th Avenue, was immortalized when he dunked over Joel Embiid during the East semifinal series against the Philadelphia 76ers.
That moment immediately became a meme, which led to an easy decision for Kaysuane to begin painting.
“When it comes to my art, sometimes it’s a feeling,” Kaysuane said. “I could just wake up every day and do something creative, but I’m not always in love with it. But then there’s a moment that happens where you’re like, ‘This has to get done. Like, this has to be it.’
“The Mitchell dunk was definitely one of those moments.”
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Kaysuane (@ kaysuane)
Kaysuane, who has been making murals since 2023, has made a larger name for himself over the last two years with his sports-related artwork. His “El Barrio” brand isn’t just about murals. It encompasses music, clothing and art. Around 2015, Kaysuane focused his artistic interests into the music world, using his visuals to help his brother’s hip-hop group.
Lately, it’s been the 34-year-old’s Knicks presentations that have gone from mural to merchandise by way of his website.
“Being from Harlem, I’m definitely a big fan of hip-hop. I’m definitely a fan of sports,” Kaysuane said. “I just feel like New York City culture, in general, is very vast, but hip-hop and sports is very big over here. Being a young kid from Harlem, I kind of embody that.”
Kaysuane said he was about 15 or 16 years old when he lost interest in art; seven or eight years later, that passion found him again. He has previous experience in creating cover art and teaching himself how to use tools like Photoshop. He has shot videos and also has worked as a manager.
Additionally, Kaysuane said he has created drawings in sketchbooks — but only in the last few years has his work made it to walls for murals.
“A girl that I used to date asked me to do a mural for her,” Kaysuane said. “I told her that I don’t do murals, and she was like, ‘You gonna tell me no?’
“I was like, ‘You know what … I’m not.’”
Kaysuane then reached out to his friend, Amar Bennett, an artist who does murals, for guidance on how to get started. Bennett led him to Uptown Grand Central, a Harlem-based nonprofit that hires artists to paint murals.
The Grandscale Mural Project doesn’t seek out famous artists, according to Carey King, director of Uptown Grand Central. She said when Kaysuane submitted his portfolio for the project, it was evident he was talented.
“His work roots for the Knicks, and we were rooting for him,” King said.
East Harlem-based Kaysuane has been creating murals around New York since 2023. (Photo courtesy of Kaysuane)
He contributed to the project in 2023 and 2025, both painted on 125th Street. His 2023 contribution was an ode to Knicks fans, with him holding the Larry O’Brien trophy and wearing a 2024 NBA world champions hat. The 2025 piece, he said, was dedicated to the women of New York. He painted the Statue of Liberty mimicking the famous Marilyn Monroe scene from “The Seven Year Itch,” as she tries to hold her skirt following a breeze from a subway grate.
The goal of the nonprofit is to provide a platform for artists to get more work. Kaysuane’s growth, however, is not just about the project, King said.
“He’s hustling,” King said. “He’s all over the city doing stuff. It’s not just a result of our project, but he really works hard. He puts in the work, and he collaborates with a lot of different organizations and other artists. It’s great to see him out there, and he’s obviously got a lot of talent to share.”
Murals and graffiti art have long been associated with New York. Graffiti is considered one of the five pillars of hip-hop, making it important to the birthplace of the culture. Graffiti, however, is not legal; artists wanting to share their work in public spaces must do so with permission.
“I used to do graffiti growing up, but I ended up getting in trouble with the graffiti stuff. and I kind of lost my passion for art after that,” Kaysuane said.
Not only has he regained that passion, but he is now using his talents to help showcase the Knicks’ first finals appearance since 1999. Adding artwork to the city that simply shows his name has been a bonus. His first Knicks piece that got widespread attention involved singer/actor Marc Anthony wearing a Carmelo Anthony jersey, dubbed “Marcelo Anthony,” on 3rd Avenue.
Kaysuane loves incorporating his pride in East Harlem in his piece. Marc Anthony grew up in East Harlem.
“Marc Anthony in the Melo jersey started going crazy because it didn’t look like Carmelo,” Kaysuane said. “A bunch of people were confused, but ultimately it got a lot of attention.”
Last year’s “I Hart NY” painting on 32nd Street gained attention, as it featured Knicks guard Josh Hart’s bloodied face from a 2025 playoff game against the Boston Celtics.
This year, it’s Mitchell’s dunk. And Brunson’s throne.
“Once I started doing murals, I liked to choose walls that are damaged with just a bunch of chicken-scratch graffiti,” Kaysuane said. “Just add some color and bring some beauty and neighborhood pride.”
His work has grown well beyond Harlem. Last December, he painted a mural in Miami. His Robinson piece was shown during ESPN’s playoff telecast, and Robinson reposted the mural on social media.
Kaysuane said he hasn’t met any of the Knicks he’s painted, but he likes knowing they have seen the work.
“I love what I do … but I would also like for it to be intentional,” he said. “I would want it to contribute to the community rather than destroy the community. Actually doing it and getting love for it is beautiful. I love what I do, and other people love what I do, too, so that just makes it that much better.”
By Jason Jones, via The Athletic