For creative power couple Evan Bishop and Katori Walker of 320 Arts (named after their mutual birthday of March 20), art is more than just a hobby and a shared pursuit—it’s an act of service with the purpose of empowerment. 320 Arts entire mission is, as Evan Bishop explains, “to beautify communities and empower people through the arts.”
Beautification and Empowerment
While the two often work on collaborative projects, the pair also each has their unique niches within the art world. Katori is an aesthetician who does project management in the corporate world. She is also a performing artist, poet, and writer with three published children’s books. Evan graduated with a degree in graphic design, and despite dabbling in several creative pursuits, that’s still the artistic calling he considers his favorite.
I understand design, I trust that my vision to always want to serve others will allow me to bring forth the best project. Whether it’s a logo design, mural, portrait, or commissioned painting, I want to serve.
The notion of art as an act of service is one that he and Katori equally believe in and was the spark that started their first major art project together. In 2015, the couple launched 320 Body Arts, which blended Katori’s background as an aesthetician and her interest in meditation with Evan’s desire to explore new canvasses for his art.
“I was in a space of trying to explore different artistic expressions,” Bishop explains. “Canvasses are cool, but they’re only limited to a certain location. I saw a lady with one side of her head completely shaven. I ended up doodling her funky hairstyle and then added some graffiti writing to it. That was the birth of me wanting to really explore how I can take what I know in painting walls and use humans as canvasses.”
After some convincing, Evan painted the woman’s head in a park in Brooklyn, which made it feel like a level of performance art, and the seeds for 320 Body Arts were planted. Katori’s aesthetic work and understanding of skin helped Evan in picking out the correct paints to use on bodies, as well as how to prep the skin and apply the paint. When he’d start painting people’s heads and bodies, Katori would offer the models hand massages, creating a meditative experience for the person while the art was being conducted.
From this, the two would attend events to offer their body art and massage/aromatherapy services. These events eventually landed them arts residencies in Bronx and lower Manhattan, and it was through 320 Body Arts that the couple introduced themselves to Yonkers. Instead of trying to sell their art, they came up with a radical idea: painting body art on senior citizens. Their mission and work through this project led them to receive the Arts Alive grant from ArtsWestchester and thus, their next major project was born.
100 Words of Wisdom
Inspired by Katori’s grandmother, who lived to be nearly 100, 100 Words of Wisdom had a specific purpose: to celebrate the elderly. In 2016, for the pair’s birthday, Evan asked Katori’s grandmother that if she could share one word with her grandchildren, what would that one word be? Her answer was “focus,” Katori and Evan painted the word FOCUS on her hand, and the project began.
The 100 Words of Wisdom Exhibit became a photo exhibition that captured the stories of 142 senior citizens. Much like they had done with Katori’s grandmother, they would ask a senior citizen what one word they would share with the youth of today, what their favorite color was, and where on their body they would like to be painted. No words could be repeated, so each of the 142 images were unique, and Evan made sure that every word had a different characteristic, style, and blending technique. Katori, along with some occasional assistance from fellow artist Barry Mason, would photograph the person while they were being painted, and each photo would feature a one-sentence quote pulled from everything they said. As a result, they had over 90 hours of oral histories.
“It was truly a labor of love” Bishop recalls. “To do good by the elders has opened up all the doors that we’ve been able to work through.”
Blue Door Arts Center was the first to host the exhibit, but it would go on to also be featured in many other venues, including the Grinton I. Will branch of the Yonkers Public Library. This would prove to not be their only notable exhibit featured in the library.
YES YONKERS!
During 2018-2019, Evan and Katori’s next brainchild was born: the YES YONKERS! Community Quilt Project. The pair partnered with 35 businesses and organizations to create an all-inclusive art project. What was originally supposed to be 100 quilt pieces, ended up with a whopping over 1,200 participants, becoming the largest community art project in Yonkers’ history. Katori and Evan set up 40 creation stations all over Yonkers, allowing anyone who wanted to participate to do so.
“It made it easy because if you could write your name, you could participate,” Bishop explains.
If you could create and are willing to do something, you could be a part of it. People were given joy to be a part of something and feel included, regardless of their status in life, people connecting with each other.
This quilt was on display at Grinton I Will, which also allowed the folks who participated to see it, as well as the general public, without the barrier to access that a traditional art gallery may have. “We want folks to be able to take their pieces and have them be installed wherever it can, as long as its accessible to the public,” Walker says. “We’re still looking for people who might want to have a piece in their space to celebrate the community.”
Colors Amidst Steel
While the two have had many projects over the years, one thing they often return to is their mural work.
“I’ve been passionate about murals since I was a young teenager,” Bishop recalls. “I learned the power of using colors, words, and characters to liven up spaces.”
Once Bishop became established in Yonkers for his art, he was given the opportunity to create murals for Yonkers Public Schools, and the couple have done numerous pieces in the Bronx and Harlem. They’ve expanded their reach as well to Peekskill Elementary School, and aspire to do more beyond the state of New York.
The murals provide a colorful, vibrant, and live energy that contrasts with the concrete and steel around them. This work gives them “a great experience to communicate with people who live in the neighborhood or are diving by,” Walker says. “One time we were painting and a lady came running over and got off her bus because she wanted to take pictures of our progress and ask us about it.”
Superheroes of Yonkers
With such a profound background in the arts, what more could this couple possibly fit on their plate? A comic-con, of course.
In 2023, Evan and Katori founded YC3, which stands for the Yonkers Comic & Cosplay Convention, better known simply as Yonkers Comic Con, originally an extension of their successful program, I AM A HERO: Comic Book Creation Workshops. The two hosted the first comic book exhibition at Yonkers Arts’ gallery that featured the artwork of local artists who created original superheroes, and even received a proclamation by Yonkers’ Mayor Mike Spano.
This year’s second annual Yonkers Comic Con, taking place at the end of September, aims to be even bigger and better. Last year, they partnered with Yonkers Arts as the fiscal sponsor with a grant from ArtsWestchester. This year, they are opting to not pursue a grant to do it. Instead, they’ll be looking for outside funders, supporters, and donors. As part of this multi-faceted event, they’ll be partnering with the Yonkers Public Library who will be hosting a symposium and cosplay fashion show as well as facilitating talks with comic industry professionals on October 5. The winner of the cosplay contest, which will be produced by COSMODA, will also receive a hologram of themselves in their full cosplay regalia courtesy of S.I.C. Film School.
“I’m not the comic book geek I’d like to be, but I know that it is a community that needs to be celebrated,” Bishop says. “I understand the power of what the comic book medium can do for media literacy, art, and representation. I don’t want DC and Marvel to take over Yonkers, I’d rather celebrate the comic book creators and visionaries of comics, whether they be teams, individuals, pros, or emerging artists, who have an original superhero they’d love to share with the world.”
The sponsor of this year’s YC3 event is the Covenant Foundation of New York, located at 92 Main Street in Yonkers, and any donations will go directly to their nonprofit organization that aims to address mental health through arts and education. Their facility will host the returning original superhero art exhibition from September 27 to October 20. YC3 will be taking over their wall space in the front to showcase artwork from pros and emerging artists who have original superheroes. This gives a platform to the many talented artists who do not yet have their work published.
“(Covenant Foundation CEO/Executive Director) Tom Sullivan loves our vision. Every project is about Yonkers winning,” Bishop enthusiastically explains. “We want Lions Gate to start knocking on our doors! We want this to be a yearly event in Yonkers.”
Rock, Paper, Scissors
One final question remains, how do two people work together so well on collaborative art projects?
“A lot of thumb-wrestling and rock, paper, scissors!” Bishop laughs.
“Sometimes we have separate concepts, but we care about each other’s work and what we present to the world,” Walker goes on to explain. “We had to learn how to work and share a space together, respect each other, and give each other space. It works because we both do have the same mission. 90% of our values are shared. What’s different we work to find compromise or agree to disagree. We check in with each other every day to nurture our relationship.”
“We don’t have children together,” Bishop adds. “But every project that we birth is our child. When we get into head-butting, we go into whatever’s best for our child. We want to serve a community that’s supportive of our vision.”
And likewise, Yonkers is incredibly supportive and thankful to the visions and service that 320 Arts provides.
