Brooklyn Painter Steve Wasterval’s goal started out pretty small.
“I wanted to like, give art away - I wanted to like, be able to give art to people, like for people to have art if they wanted it, and so this was like a way, to do that,” said Wasterval. “I remember always seeing these novelty canvases at like art supply stores growing up and I never knew what they were for and it just kind of like clicked. It’s like I could hide these, put them out on the street, real paintings that people could take home. So it’d be like literal street art.”
What You Need To Know
- We first introduced you to Steve Wasterval's work back in April
- The New York City artist has been hiding miniature paintings every weekend in Greenpoint, Brooklyn for eager followers to find
- We decided to tag along for one of the hunts, here is how it unfolded
Every weekend, Wasterval paints and hides a two-inch by one and a half-inch landscape canvas somewhere in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. But there is one major caveat to these “minis.”
“No one’s ever bought one, they’ve only been found and that’s why they are extra special,” said Wasterval.
Generally, Wasterval paints on a much larger scale in an impressionistic style, and says these miniatures took some getting used to. But regardless of the canvas, his subject always remains the same: Greenpoint.
“Greenpoint feels like this little place that kind of was behind on all the modernization and gentrification,” he said. “And so, it's obvious to me that it's going to turn into like SoHo and I'm not even saying that's good or bad, but it will. And when it does all these paintings of all these old buildings and stuff, I just think would be this great collection to exist.”
Today’s hiding spot - Transmitter Park on the waterfront.
“They remember all my hiding spots - I know where they will look,” Wasterval said. “The best is some little nook or cranny that I can stuff into. They never get lost in three years, every single one is accounted for and I know the owner and it found a home.”
Then, it’s a quick email to his list of followers, who get a heads up first, before the clue gets shared on Instagram.
Within just 25 minutes, the sought-after prize was found.
“I live right up the street, so it’s sweet to have something so special and local too,” said Ashley Schieffelbein, a Greenpoint resident.
To be notified of the next chance to find one of these mini masterpieces, sign up at SteveWasterval.com.