"le MUR" is 'free' wall of 50m² on the parking lot of a local wharehouse in Merksem, a district north of Antwerp. It's a passion project by a local who's is a big admirer of art in the streets and who has been dedicating all of his free time to supporting street art. From documenting, to organizing tours, from facilitating on projects to building Street Art Cities, all with one goal promoting urban art and sharing it with the general public. During his travels and talking with festival organizers, city administrations, galleries and artists he build a solid network, but his frustration grew with the growth of commercial murals, the heavy curated festivals/ projects and the cultural appropriation of city marketeers putting pressure on creative freedom. "le MUR" wants to create a creative beacon in the urban landscape.

"I will host a new artist every 2 months to paint this wall, no designs up front, no demands, no rules. It's all about creative freedom, going back to the grassroot mentality of old school graffiti where 'leaving your mark' was the vibe. I'm convinced that this blank canvas will bring out the best in them, it will trigger them to experiment and try something they've never had the chance to.": explains Tim 

Local artist Lobster Robin was back in town for 2 months and took the time to paint the very first chapter of 'Le MUR'. A combination of flashy colors, signature juicy lines and childhood  memories created this cool pigeon. Cause pigeos are a symbol of the city, right? Or maybe he got inspred by this pigeon who kept hanging out in front of the wall all day.....

You can find it on the parking lot in the back of Albert Heijn, Bredabaan 387, 2170 Merksem. Check opening hours to visit, it's free to visit.

This 50m² 'free' wall is a reaction to commercial walls and heavy curated festivals where artistic freedom is put to the test. All selected artists get 'carte blance' and full creative freedom.

The project aims to share all styles and forms of street art to the visitors. Chosen artists will be contacted directly.

Unfortunately no, this project is completely self-funded, there's no sponsors to guarantee complete freedom. All costs are covered to paint the wall.

We sat down with Lobster Robin to talk about his artist life, his artistic journey, his inspirations, how he thinks about social media, algorithms and AI. Check out the full interview below, click on each question to read more.