Breathe Life Together, Rob “ProBlak” Gibbs, 2022 Activated by Studio HHH, 2023

Drawing from our conversations with ProBlak and his early visual studies for the mural, our team developed animated visual content that highlights key elements of the mural, bringing in new textures and movement to build upon the original work’s intentions. The projection breathes figurative life into the image as galaxies and music flow visually throughout the artwork, amplifying the cosmic elements central to ProBlak’s signature style. This projection invites new engagement with the visual narrative of the original mural and illuminates the mural into the evening hours.

To celebrate and expand upon the extension of ProBlak’s 2022 mural, Breathe Life Together, visual artist Pamela Hersch and multidisciplinary design team Studio HHH partnered with ProBlak to create a new media artwork that animates and activates the mural with an overlay of projected digital art. The projection comes alive each evening at dusk from March 2023 to May 2023.

Drawing upon conversations with ProBlak and his early visual studies for the mural, Studio HHH developed animated visual content that highlights key features of the mural through new textures and movement. The projection breathes figurative life into the image -inviting new engagement with the visual narrative of the mural-  as galaxies and music visually flow throughout the artwork, amplifying the cosmic elements central to ProBlak’s signature style.

Breathe Life Together by ProBlak and activated by Pamela Hersch and Studio HHH is the first projection artwork to engage with an existing mural at Dewey Square, and the first collaboration between a Greenway muralist and light-based artists. By transforming the mural into a new media artwork through the addition of animated digital content, this project establishes an innovative framework for recurrent collaborative work between Greenway Dewey Square mural artists and local creative studios. 

  • Design Team Studio HHH and artist Pamela Hersch are honored to collaborate with Rob “ProBlak” Gibbs to activate Breathe Life Together in dynamic ways. Breathe Life Together, Rob “ProBlak” Gibbs’ 2022 mural at Dewey Square, features a young Black girl confidently presiding over the park, surrounded by the inspiration and culture of generations that came before her. The mural signifies her central place in the community and culture of Boston, and forms an important cultural marker. We are humbled to join the conversation this piece inspires by collaborating with Rob “ProBlak” Gibbs to activate and build upon his bold and beautiful artwork.

  • HHH is a multidisciplinary design studio led by creative director Vanessa Till Hooper and Art Production Manager Emily Castro. With a small team of all-women designers, artists and creative technologists, Studio HHH is committed to developing unique and meaningful experiences within the built environment, at any scale. 

  • Pamela Hersch is Mexican-born visual artist and musician based in Boston and NYC. She focuses primarily on interactive and light installations, projection design, mapping, and animation. Her work is inspired by organic movement and perspective-shifting experiences in hopes of fostering a sense of human connection and awareness of how we impact each other and the world around us.

  • The Greenway Public Art Program is exclusively funded through grants and private sources. The activation of Breathe Life Together by ProBlak and Studio HHH in 2023 was made possible in part through the generous support of Meet Boston, the Greenway Business Improvement District, ILLUMINUS, and LuminArtz.