Craig Costello

Craig Costello was born and raised in New York City. Growing up writing graffiti, skateboarding, and listening to hip-hop and punk, DIY sensibility informed much of what his community did as youths. He was always looking to the surroundings finding new places to paint, from the tops of buildings to the deepest tunnels. The practice was about architecture, scale, and repetition to ensure the marks were seen. Costello’s environment was his creative space and essential to his work.

He later attended the San Francisco Art Institute with a focus in photography and conceptual art. While in San Francisco, Costello was involved with “The Mission School,” which blended graffiti writers with studio artists. He returned to NYC in 1998 and established Krink, Inc., a creative brand and art supply company.

While Costello no longer writes graffiti, elements of his early artistic approaches exist in the way he interacts with his surroundings and pervade his studio practice and installations today. His site-specific installations continue a conversation of art in outdoor and public spaces and participation with urban landscapes. The installations are dramatic with striking contrast and elements are reminiscent of falling water, celestial bodies, and cascading light.

This series of paintings explore formal representations through the continued practice of experimental and unconventional tools. The forms, comparable to traditional shapes, are gestural and create a sense of motion.