This fall I had the pleasure of reconnecting with my friend Jose since our days at School of Visual Arts. As the Artist Programs Manager of the Youth Artist Initiative at Joan Mitchell Foundation he is able to find creative ways to expose young alumni to professional careers in the arts. I am so thankful for the invitation to speak about my work, and to provide guidance and tips to young passionate minds. It was such and honor, and it made me super happy to see my friend with a big heart again. Thank you for all you do!

The #TooflyWorkshops are growing in number every year, and I am happy to continue to work with the Pepatian folks uptown in the BX.  This year they granted a few of the women in hip hop artists like myself the opportunity to teach and continue out graffiti, break dancing, DJ, spoken word, and much more lesson plans.  Shout out to the youth at Bronx Works, and The Point after school program who took the time to create some cool art with messages during these cold March days in NY.

Mural Installation in Dumbo Brooklyn for Project Art! Trying to diversify my stylez in art & design for my STAY TRU clients.  Shout out to @Mistadrumin for the art assistance, baked oven pizza, and laughs. Thank you Adarsh and team at Project Art. Doing great things for youth in various communities across the USA.

By now ya’ll know I don’t live in NY anymore right? I have been gone for 5 years and the transition was pretty smooth. I still gotta work tho. Only now I get to live as an artist full time. My dream has come true! It’s something I have always wanted and strived for. I have chosen to live the country life in Ecuador, and the city life in the states a few month out of the year. When you grow up in NY you have this “you can make it anywhere” mentality, and it’s true. You can. When you grow up in NY you make a lot of friends, it’s part of city life, it’s part of urban life. Over time those wonderful friends  jumpstart their biz, and the real work begins. Especially when their business models are educational, creative, and socially responsible. It is the kind of friends I like to work with! I am a worker. I love to get involved and make ideas work. It is the kind of energy that motivates me. I now have the opportunity to pop-up in NY for a workshop, a project, a gig, a wall, etc; It keeps things in life fun for me. That is how I do these days, and it’s working out. I LOVE IT! June is not too hot, and not too cold. Perfect to work outdoors. This year Thrive Collective and I took the time to reconnect and set-up a workshop as soon as I arrived. The #tooflyworkshop has become part of what I do as an artist. I have so much I have learned over the years that I can now share with others on a professional level. It is gratifying work, especially when it’s with youth. Each workshop is different, and with Thrive we have history. It makes this particular collaboration special to me. Wow 10 years. Time flies in NY.Make sure you make the time count. Back in the days when LASE NYC and I worked together ( Motug Days ) he brought me on to many creative and pioneering projects that I am thankful for. With Thrive, I think before it was called Thrive we painted at a public school in the Lower East Side. This is where I got to meet Jeremy Del Rio and all the wonderful community folks who continue to do the “good work” in a changing city. I am happy and proud of them. Thanks guys! Shout out to all the students involved in beautifying their schools walls.

Thank You Thrive Collective!

The #TooflyPopUpShop is back! It’s been a few years but this time around I had a little more time to put it together the right way. I am currently enjoying the process of curating events at various places. Something about getting all the pieces to an idea where people get together gives me great joy. Like painting I am putting together theme, color, and design to tell a story. Our story. Save the date!

I’m excited for June! Lot’s in the works this summer. The second #TooflyWorkshop has a date, a space, and a time. Get on the list only 8 spots left as of today!

I had an opportunity to go to NY right after Mexico and rock a mural workshop with the Pepatian Hip Hop Academy. I haven’t been back to Bronx Works in about two years because the program is usually in March. It’s very cold in NY during that time so I try to avoid it. This time I decided to make the stop, and troop it like the native New Yorker I used to be. It was nice to see some of the students I worked with a few years ago, they are all grown up! Wow, time just keeps flying. I was happy that Jane Gabriel’s made it happen, and that Bronx Works approved a wall for us. In the past the kids and I had worked on the “My Name Is” workshop, as well as the “Hip Hop” canvas/stencil workshop. It was time for a mural! Hip Hop Culture has changed over the years, it is important for many of the educators to teach it’s roots. We have to know where we are from in order to know where we are going.  The “Hip Hop Don’t Stop” mural workshop sprung from this idea, and students got a chance to learn about the four elements + pioneers in the process. It became a large story book they can use to talk with others about, especially new students joining the program. They are proud of their work and want to share what they created. It was really fun to see some of the kids zone out and forget time and space when they were painting. I know what that feels like — I live for that! Thank you students! thank you Pepatian team! Thank you Bronx Works staff! and everyone that was involved. Shout out to Marisol Diaz for the beautiful photography and all the wonderful educators of this program. For more information visit www.pepatian.org

Lancelot Chase, Toofly NYC, Caridad de la Luz “La Bruja”, and DJ Fred Jones

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ©MARISOL DIAZ 2017

HI my name is, and I learned that Hip Hop Don’t Stop!

Back in June! for more ya’ll see ya soon.

There’s a lot going on this fall and I have to make the best of it. I’ve been taking trips to NY every June/July and every November/December now for the last 5 years and it’s working out great! These seem to be the best weather months, and a perfect time to reconnect with my NYC community and friends. I enjoy getting them together for dinner/brunch parties, dancing missions, road trips, exhibits, and pop-up shops. Now that many of their little ones are grown up I can organize events for them too. Our community is filled with beautiful parents, it’s nice that we have reached an age where the whole family can enjoy it. It gives me great pleasure to set-off the #TOOFLYWORKSHOP this year with the AD HOC ART organization at 17 Frost Gallery in Brooklyn. This year they celebrate their 10yr anniversary.  Back when Brooklyn was just getting on the map, Ad Hoc Gallery was a perfect location for graffiti and street artists to showcase their work before the big boom in street art gallery work. A lot has changed, and the team has since moved on and back to the streets for the Welling Court Mural Project in Astoria Queens. It’s great to see your friends grow and transform spaces for the artist community to get together. I love it! Thank you Allison and Garrison for all your hard work! I look forward to this lovely workshop with 12 young girls and women in a space where our art/stories inspires the next generation.

As soon as I landed in NY, I took a long power nap and then it was off to the Bronx! I had to rock the “Toofly Graffiti Workshop” at Bronx Works with 15+ afterschool students. This year the budget for the Pepatian “Bronx Hip Hop Academy” was enough to extend it from 2 weeks to 4 weeks which gave my class the opportunity to learn a lot more, and put a little more effort on their graffiti project. We got some bigger canvases, and acrylic paint to fill up big areas of eye poppin’ color. Their goal to collaborate and work together as a team on a backdrop for their final presentation alongside Rokafella’s dance crew, DP One’s Dj crew, and La Bruja’s MC/Poetry crew. The “Toofly Crew’ had a lot of fun spraying and stenciling their pieces, and working with Reph on the outlining of their letters with big fat sharpies. Shout out to our hommie Reph for subbing on a day I could not attend workshop. Everything worked out great and the kids had fun. It’s always nice to see it all come together.  Next year we hope to get a nice long wall to re-create their 2014 piece:) A big thanks to Jane Gabriels for making this project happen and getting the “true school” crew together to educate young men and women the art of Hip Hop’s Culture. Big thanks to Shanika and the youth at Bronx Works for rockin’ out with us again this year! Have a wonderful summer.

Bronx Hip-Hop Academy was Produced by Pepatian for more infromation visit their site: www.pepatian.org

In a collaboration with BronxWorks Teen Program, Pepatian’s Bronx Hip-Hop Academy offered a series of workshops in all four disciplines of Hip-Hop in April 2013, culminating in a final informal showing. Held at BronxWorks, the Hip Hop Academy gives youth in the Bronx a similar opportunity: to feel and experience hip hop in its birthplace. The youth learn the history of the genre and its connection to our borough but also to personally connect. Inspired by their lives and the culture they develop tools for creative expression. From stirring poetry to fresh art work to fly steps, Bronx Hip Hop Academy is a program that connects youth to the spirit of the music and to learn more about themselves. My hope is that the youth take inspiration from hip hop and continue to express themselves and tell their story. By telling their story, they are hip hop!

NYC TRUE SCHOOL! —>  TOOFLY, LA BRUJA, DJ DP ONE, ROKAFELLA
proud to be part of this wonderful teaching artist team. Thanks Jane for linking us all up!

Happy to be heading back to California this year. It’s been a minute! This year I will be working with an amazing woman, friend, artist Favianna Rodriguez. We met a few years ago in NY when she was showcasing her prints in El Barrio. I love her work, and the great activism projects she has lead with the Culture Strike group. I am happy to be in full support of her migrations butterfly project which will take place at the Life is Living festival on Saturday October, 12th in Oakland Ca. We will be painting beautiful butterfly pieces for a public street art project about the human right to move. Proud to be part of it and super excited to see everyone! Especially Erin Yoshi, Estria, Glow, Nancy Pilli, Brett Cook Disney, The Few & Far girls, and many more. See you guys soon! ((( Many Thanks )))

Nancy Pili, Estria, Erin Yoshi, and the gang setting off the Estria Battle at the Life is Living Festival.

Favianna Rodriguez/Culture Strike kicking knowledge about what is happening in this country to undocumented immigrants and the crazy laws being passed that many of our friends and family may soon have to deal with. It is a serious time, and we have to use our art to spread these messages to the public at large. Graff is dope and all but we gotta start using our talent to educate folks and spread powerful messages to our community. Our art can be deeper, powerful, and more meaningful to all. DREAM! MIGRATE! LIVE!

Toofly, Glow, Dime

Time for some action!

We’re almost ready!

Strolling through event and found some vendors I love!

Agana ready to rep for the ladies as the only girl out of 14 artists male artists participating!? We need to work on this on the next one…

Blackbook battles with the funky cool youth.

Gloria rock’n her beautiful Butterfly. Migration is TRANSFORMATION!

Great to see all of Oakland beautiful peeps.

Voila! MIGRATON IS FREEDOM/LIBERTAD – Because I am flying back in forth between North America and South America these days the freedom to live this way is def where it’s at. FREEDOM FOR ALL!!! We should have the right as human beings searching for a better life to live wherever we want.

Mary Jane in the house! Nice to finally meet ya. Rocked a nice logo for them earlier this year.

Doves NYC reppin…characters letters background….

Miguel lindo! aka BOUNCE #trustyourstruggle hommie…gotta me time to hang next time.

Doze Green and the gang…Congrats to Vile for the win! 400 Montana cans what! I may just have to get in on this battle next time…it was actually all good and fun. Slowly getting over the idea of a competition…wouldn’t mind winning  400 cans!

It’s a wrap! Thank you Culture Strike <3

Why can’t we make people understand that we can enjoy life? – Phylilis Lun

Thank you Life is Living Festival, Oakland Ca!

Thank you Culture Strike and Estria Foundation!

Trying to get all my bloggy blog posts in before they start piling up! Here’s a preview of what’s to come for our friends at Circa 95′ who are about to open up a their very own POP-UP SHOP in the BX. I’m super proud of my peeps!  Thanks for the invite to rock the entrance wall in the space. I’m happy I had a chance to rock it during the trip, and most of all kick it with ya over some rice and beans WEPA!

The Circa ‘95 Pop-Up Shop is a community art shop/gallery space that exhibits a variety of urban artistic works and use the arts to transform communities.  Circa ‘95 has a four month artistic residency with The Bronx Music Heritage Center Lab. The shop is dedicated to supporting new upcoming and established artists. Through our new temporary storefront in The South Bronx artists will have the opportunity to sell their goods and share their work.  Work which is traditionally under-represented in the cities big chain stores, galleries and museums.  We will also be hosting workshops, special events  and musical engagements for kids and adults, creating a community for artisans to share their experiences, hone their craft and create further opportunities.  The Circa ’95 Pop-Up Shop is committed to the artistic, educational, and economic development of The South Bronx. Our staff is 100% volunteer, and we rely heavily on community support.

Cekis Circa 95′ Piece love it!

Circa 95 shop logo by Toofly:)

Photos by Samantha Morales

Summer in NYC is officially over:( My Project Girlzâ„¢ team has returned to their regularly scheduled school program. I’m gonna miss my little “Tooflies”, but I know they are just a phone call away. We had a great summer, especially at the Welling Court Mural Project where we kicked off our first official session. I am super proud of how well the girls did. Thanks to the NJPAC “Ladies First” grant for women social entrepreneurs, I was able to jump start the program this year. The girls did some amazing illustration, design, and handcraft pieces that are ready to be shown. All we gotta do this fall is lock down a location and Project Girlz will have their first official exhibit/mini market. Until then check out what these lovely talented ladies where up to this summer preparing with the TF’ster…

PROJECT GIRLZ™ is a multi media arts summer youth program. It was formed by artist Maria “Toofly” Castillo in 2011 with the help of the NJPAC Ladies First Fund Grant. It is being developed as a bridge for young women artists ages 14-18 to enter the art world by creating fine art, design, fashion, street art, and organizing community events in New York City.

Shout out to Nicole, who shot many of our Project Girlz sessions and created her very first documentary about women artists!

Gotta show the girls the daily artist missions on public transport:)

Shout out to Meres who let the girls paint their canvases at the most wonderful place in Queens, 5Pointz!

Itching to paint…

ANA THE GREAT!

NICOLE AKA MISS PURPLE!

TATI THE BEAUTIFUL!

At some point we will have to re-shoot with our missing link SYD THE KID. She was unable to make the last session but we will soon link up for flick:)
Miss you darlings!!! see ya soon:)

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Art of the Streets in Stockholm Sweden is back!!! I’ve been invited to participate again this year, alongside graffiti women MAD C, and BLUE. Looking forward to seeing you ladies again it’s been a hot minute. Especially BLUE, who’s character work was refreshing to look back in the days on walls of the lower east side. I want to send a big thank you to organizers, Jacob, Ceylan, and Tobias for the opportunity to be able to visit your beautiful country again. Looking forward to share my work, and rock some graffiti workshops. See you guys soooooooooon! If you missed it last year,  check it out Art of the Streets 2010.

Welling Court Mural Project#2 rocked! Lots more walls, lot’s more artists. Big ups to Alison, and Garrison (adhocart.org) for organizing another beautiful event. Sending love to Louie for opening his home, and heart to all the artists again this year. Thank you Welling Court community for supporting us, we hope you enjoy this amazing public art museum for years, and years to come. To my Project Girlzâ„¢ summer youth team you guys made me very proud yesterday. I hope you had a blast, get ready for more the summer has just begun! Shout out to all our friends and family who came thru to check out the event. See you at the BBQ’s brunches, picnics, beach trips and much more. Hello Summer!!!!

3-4 hours…

Zam, Toofly, Chorboogie

IN LOVE WE TRUST….

Our youngest little member, Princess Ani…

I live for those smiles:)

You guys ready to rock your first gate?

Shout out to Tanya for hooking my girlz up with extra paint:) Thanks girl!

After a few can control lessons they were ready for their first ever freestyle session…

Project Girlzâ„¢ Youth team 2011 baby!

Time for their photo opps…

Little pro, in love with paint…

Cern…lovely as ever…

Cycle, Lady Pink, Free 5….

Street artist process shots…

This lady’s work is amazing!

This too! DOPENESS….

STREET ART is the BEST! Feel right at home in this world…the artists are diverse, kind, and conscious….

Explore…

More gardens, more gardening, more green, more plants, more, earth, more peace, more flowers…

Nature, the true queen of art!

Summer blooms…

Grown with Love, Grow with bugs:) One step closer, we’re getting one step closer….THANK YOU.

For more infromation about the Welling Court Mural Project check out the press release below:

Read more

OOoooooeeee back from Stockholm, Sweden! Wow. What a beautiful 3 day trip to Europe, and what a dope project to take part in. I had a great time at the ART OF THE STREETS event. Everything, and I mean everything was well organized and taken care of. I really appreciate and give much props to folks that put events like this together in a professional manner. Shout out to Jacob Kimvall, Tobias Barenthin, and producer of project Ceyan Holago for organizing Art of the Streets, and making my stay such a pleasure. You guys rock!!! I big thank you Riksteatern and the Sodra Teatern who help make events like this possible to support artists, and ideas that need a voice and a well respected platform. I didn’t realize how tough it had been for Stockholm to get an urban arts project like this to happen. The media was going bonkers over this. Apparently there is a lot of controversy surrounding an event that celebrates graffiti and street art. I guess I should have noticed. Stockholm is a very clean city, and the traditional folks in power are definitely not in support of graffiti or any type of illegal vandalism that could influence youth to go messing with their streets. The debates were pretty intense, I didn’t speak a word of swedish but I could feel the tension. Change is inevitable folks. The new generation will have it’s part and say just like you did. Graffiti and street art is not going anywhere. It’s only getting bigger and wiser. It will be just a matter of time until we are the ones in power making a few minor adjustments here and there to create the world we want…and on that note here’s to the beginning of it { cheers! }

DAY 1 – 14HRS LATER…TF HAS ARRIVED!

Hello Stockholm! Hello Scandic Malven Hotel! Flight was hella long but worth the wait to get to this flyyyyy hotel. Shout out to homie Ayman picked me up at airport, along with Adam Mansbach who wrote for Stress Magazine back in the days. Small world!  Had a nice chat on our way to airport. Peeps is peeps:)

Dope hotel. Organic breakfast buffet was no joke! Wow…too bad I have no flick of that. Really dig that they got Jamie Oliver from Food Revolution TV show to team up on their meals. Love that show!

Room 508, Sweeeeeeeeeeeeet!

Ayo Cinik your on a wallpaper at the Sandic Malven hotel in Stockholm Sweden! lol, I think you better look into it. I wonder what the culture minister would say about this? hmmm….Is this graffiti? is this wallpaper? hmmm….

6PM. Approaching location. Eeek! nervous, but mad excited. Ready to rock a presentation and share my life’s work & Younity up to this point…

Sodra Teatern
Sweden’s foremost International venue for Music, Theatre & Debate!

Ghetto-electronica from Angola, Mexican punk-salsa, political drag from New York, streetsmart flamenco, avantgarde rock from Tokyo, and Senegalese hip-hop.

Every corner in the world has its own aesthetic expression… it’s  picked up, transformed, influenced by and influentially transposed into a world that is both microscopic and awesome at once. In our micro cosmos, we are always searching for new life-models and alternative outlooks.

Södra Teatern holds up the mirror to the world we see around us; presenting music, performance, debates and festivals. We are particularly fascinated with the world’s big cities, where cultures mix and clash to form scintillating new subcultures. On our stages we strive to expound upon new angles in culture, and to open your minds eye to places you have never been before. Here, we want to question identity, mix up reality and have a ball while we are doing it. We want to be the exciting watering ground where everyday you can meet interesting people, discover contemporary artistic expression, and be inspired anew!

Södra Teatern is a part of Riksteatern. We present events all year round on our three stages; The Main Stage, Södra bar and Kägelbanan. In 2007 over 160,000 people visited our venue and saw over 500 productions from all around the world!

Jolie was up first. I was so bummed we didn’t get a chance to catch up:( Haven’t seen her since Berlin in 2008! Wasup Jolie!!! Tough timing homegirl I’ll hit you up through FB. Huggggz!

Wow I was SOooo honored:) Presentation went great!!! It’s a lot easier when you speak from the heart. People respect and get inspired by the honesty and risks one takes in order to follow their dreams. It’s a universal language when you show people you care and how you made the journey to discover who you want to be in this world.  The more you fight for it the more folks will support you because they understand how powerful it is to just do it! I thank everyone for their questions, and chance to understand where I came from and how I got to this point. I’m still thinking about many of the things you guys asked. Truly felt { Loved } THANK YOU!

Finally got a chance to meet and kick it with RosyOne! Love her work. Her style. Her attitude. Look out for her new book coming out soon. Congratulations Rosy!!!

Live painting by ROSYONE

Classic Steelo. PROPS hommie I’ll be in touch!

First night was awesome. Kicked ass on the presentation, the organizers welcomed the tooflowers with open arms, met Rosy, and ate some delicious fish and shrimp with potato…

YUM. This was just the beginning of them little food tickets they provided the artists with. Riksteatern knows how to treat their artist! { bowing with many many thanks }

DAY 2 RISE & SHINE!

Big day today. Woke up and saw the news was all over the event….

Big ups to Ceylan Holago  producer of Art of the Streets event. Woohooooo!!! Breaking barriers one at a time…

Tobias representing for graffiti and street art with the culture minister of Sweden! wow…I couldn’t understand a word they were saying but it felt intense. eeek!

Ok seriously I wanted to pinch myself every time I had them meal tickets and sat to eat at their beautiful terrace…

I was in heaven. Every meal I had was amazing…yum…

TOOFLY WORKSHOP: STYLE 2-3PM

Time to get to work. My Style workshop went pretty smooth. Everyone got hooked up with an unlimited supply of Art of the Streets special sketchbook and markers. There were about 15-25 members and their ages ranged from 10-30+. I was especially happy to see a graffiti dad and his two sons working on pieces together, sketching, and coloring.  That was awesome! Shout to that dad, who reminded me of how much better this all is when you have the support of your family. There is an amazing power and magic that happens when you can share this with your children. Those kids are gonna be amazing when they grow up. You can count on that:)

Zoned out…Art is theraputic…you can’t deny that.

A little technique secrets to go around and folks felt comfortable enough to rock their aerosol skillz. Practice makes perfect…

Shout out to Lotta rocking out on the free for all wallz. Not many women stepped up to rock, and I was especially feeling this drippy marker. Gonna get me one and try some pieces with it, shit is fresh!!! I love drips…drips drips drips…

LIVE GRAFF BY TOOFLY 4-5PM

Here we go…Got 2 hours to share my live classic steelo with the Swedish community…

ART OF THE STREETS – STOCKHOLM 2010 baby!

After a long day of painting, workshops, and panel discussions I headed back to hotel which was only like 5 minutes away. Had to get ready for the closing party!

Found a little bit of street art along the way…

Party time!

{ Drum roll please } If ya don’t know now it’s the time to find out.  The Secret Wars was in full effect for the first half of the kick off and closing party. These guys from what I think I understood are the original art battle creators of the live marker art performance. What a freak’n awesome performance this was. Amazing!!! and the best part is I got a chance to participate:) Yay!

This is how live art indoors at club events should be done. Been saying it for years in NY. You gotta go all out like this if you really want to do it right. Shout out to Secret Wars for developing this idea you guys are AWESOME!!!

Even though I’m personally not a fan of art battles, I needed to feel this one out. 90 minutes of music, marker lines, and some freestyle flows. ATOM & TOOFLY Get Free…

Shout out to our competitors. I was especially digging Olli’os steelo on them vines. I’m still not down for art battles but guess what…Atom and Toofly won the battle wooohooo!

Time for jamz. DJ’s were off the hook. Mad beats…

Sweden’s Hip Hop community…

What an awesome event. No redbull to hold me down just pure happiness and some club soda with Ice. Ahhhh….I feel the blessings. Thank you peeps! You are great people. You have love, and the warrior spirit. Together we can and will share the dopeness and inspire folks to bring back the love:) Big hugggz to all, and many many thanks for this beautiful experience!

Day 3: GAMLA STAN coming soon….