thestandouters - With rolling steel gates as his canvas, artist Franco the Great changed the face of Harlem--his murals range from the historic, the uplifting, to the whimsical.
However, in the past decade, soaring rents priced many small mom and pop stores out of the area, and many of the new business coming in threw out Franco's work. Plus, In 2008, new zoning laws required store owners switch over to the "see thru" gates, putting Franco's work in danger of disappearing all together.
Over a 30 year period, Franco painted over 200 murals.
Today, only 25 remain.
Franco and a community of supporters are working to save the rest.
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