by Tamar Lechter

In these times of COVID-19, the majority of us are staying home, while essential workers continue to provide the necessary services needed to help us all get through these difficult times. Beyond the healthcare workers, delivery people and grocery clerks, another group of people are working hard to fill the streets of our city with inspiration and hope. They are the artists of DC.

Crestwood resident Shawn Perkins is one of these artists. You’ve probably walked by one of Shawn’s murals on the side of a restaurant or store, and maybe even shared it on Instagram. Shawn’s pieces inspire, uplift and seek to bring us all together in this time of separation.

The murals are part of an initiative of Busboys & Poets’ CEO Andy Shallal, whose restaurants have always centered around the arts. He and Perkins worked together in the past doing live art demonstrations and collaborating on social media. Today, Shallal is hiring local artists like Perkins to decorate storefronts using the hashtag #paintthestorefronts.

“The whole idea is love, light and positivity,” says Perkins, who has now painted seven restaurant and storefronts as part of the initiative. He first painted the Busboys & Poets 5th Street location, and was invited to continue painting by Shallal, Jose Andres and other local business owners who took notice of his bright colors, inspiring messages and captivating imagery.

Perkins painting at The Coupe in Columbia Heights

The artists are given free range to come up with ideas and messaging that are uplifting. They try to keep away from religious messaging and keep the art accessible to all. Perkins hopes the initiative spreads to every neighborhood in the District, as it’s already spread throughout the NW neighborhoods.

“It’s been an all-around great experience,” Perkins reflects, “We’re all practicing social distancing and not interacting much. Art breaks that barrier down. It gets people to engage together from a safe distance. At home, we start to go crazy and feel uneasy. The goal here is to give people hope. Hope is the number one thing.”

As an artist, Perkins says he naturally leads an isolated life, but didn’t realize how much he would miss interacting with others. He was supposed to attend the South by Southwest (SXSW) conference in Austin performing live art demonstrations and participating as a panelist on entrepreneurship, and found out it was canceled one week before he was set to attend. He misses live painting and attending events.

Painting out in the community this way, Perkins believes he is providing a service that many artists before him have carried out.

“Throughout history, artists have documented what’s happening in the world. We play an important role in times of crisis. We create work to push up morale and lift spirits. I just love to paint, so I’d do it anyway, but it helps to know it’s for a good cause.”

You can see Perkin’s work on the #paintthestorefronts initiative at the following locations: