HOW & NOSMare helping fight AIDS…
The Spanish graffiti artists, comprised of twins Raoul Perre (HOW) and Davide Perre (NOSM) have been tapped by rock legend and philanthropist Bono on a new initiative to raise awareness in the fight against against the disease.
Bono, one of the founders of the global AIDS charity RED, has tapped 17 artists to paint murals in New York, Washington, Lyon, London, Berlin and Paris in advance of next month’s Global Fund Replenishment Conference in Lyon (October 10), with HOW & NOSM making the list.
“Street artists have been raising the alarm in the fight against AIDS since HIV appeared — from the streets of New York in the 1980s, and now in the next weeks in cities around the world with Paint (RED) Save Lives,” said Bono in a statement. “There has been a lot of progress, more than many experts predicted, but not enough yet to put the sirens to rest. Young women continue to bear the brunt of this disease and maddeningly, every week 6,000 of them are needlessly infected. I’d call that an emergency. (RED) is the color of emergency.”
In addition to HOW & NOSM, the other chosen artists creating (RED)-inspired art for the project are: Add Fuel, Bisco Smith, BRUSK, DALeast, Faile, Faith XLVII, Hera, Inside Out Project,Karabo Poppy Moletsane, Ludo, Olek, Ron English, Stephen Powers, Trevor & Cosmo, and WK Interact. There will also be a PAINT (RED)street art auction on Artsyto raise additional money for the Global Fund.
The artworks are intended to engage and encourage political leaders to fully fund the fight against AIDS, with key sites in New York, D.C., Berlin and Paris getting transformed during this month and early October ahead of the Global Fund meeting that will determine funding for the next three years to help save 16 million lives while cutting the mortality rate from HIV, TB and malaria in half.
Some of the artists have also created custom augmented reality Snapchat Lenses, which users can share on Instagram, Facebookand Twitter.
HOW & NOSMhave created elaborate murals for commercial clients like Sony. The brothers have lectured at universities including MITand their work has appeared in numerous films, music videos, documentaries, and the windows of the historic department store, Lord and Taylor. Both have been featured within the pages of numerous publications, including The New York Timesand New York Magazine.