Imagine the impact 150 of the best street artists could have in the world if they were to work together on a single cause? That’s the question illustrator and social entrepreneur Diego Orlandini asked himself when he rounded up the best street artists in the world to create AimfulBooks.com
It was only a few years ago that adult coloring became a huge trend that took the market by storm, turning important bookstores like Barnes & Noble and Amazon to coloring books for their sales growth.
Diego Orlandini in front of Pawn Price mural in the book
Orlandini created a series of adult coloring books based on street art that became best-sellers in his adoptive home city of Miami. Since then he gathered the support of the best street artists and muralists in the world to create his fourth book and most impressive work of art yet: The Ultimate Street Art Coloring Book.
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Illustrating FinDAC’s Los Angeles Mural
Artists of the stature of Kenny Scharf, D*Face, Vhils, and Ron English agreed to participate. Orlandini spent thousands of hours illustrating their murals and turning them into bonafide black and white replicas. Soon the 140 pages of the large format hardcover embossed book were filled with authentic ready-to-color black and white illustrations featuring murals by fellow artists such as Cryptik, Daleast, Crash, The London Police, Lady Pink, Daze, Gonzalo Borondo, Vexta, Toofly, Beau Stanton, Icy & Sot, Case Maclaim, Don Rimx, Fin DAC, Fintan Magee, Jason Botkin, Meres, Sego, Saner, Kevin Ledo & many more. Even Banksy’s representatives showed interest in the project.
Tourists in Wynwood, FL holding Ron English’s page in front of his mural featured in the book
He soon realized he had invited so many fantastic artists that perhaps he had started the largest collaboration of street artists in the world. And it might very well be. The street art coloring book series features the artworks of 153 street artists and muralists in all four editions including The Wynwood Coloring Book 1 and 2, The Brooklyn Coloring Book, and the latest one The Ultimate Street Art Coloring Book.
The four books in the street art coloring book series by AimfulBooks.com
But here’s the cherry on top. Aimful Books was developed by Orlandini with the intention to match every sale with a free educational textbook given to children and schools in need. “The goal,” he says, “is to create libraries designed to inspire and educate children around the world.” Orlandini has taken his project to India, Peru, and Cambodia where he has tested this concept. Partnering with grassroots organizations fostering education, Aimful Books has been able to place thousands of textbooks in the hands of children, like the kids of Pazos in Villa El Salvador, Peru. He plans to continue with the donations in Asia and Africa next year.
Afterschool program Pazos receiving textbooks in Peru
“A lot of people in our generation talk about being inspirational or doing something inspirational,” Orlandini shares. “‘Be the change you want to see in the world,’ we repeat. I don’t know if I’ll ever succeed at it, but I thought it should not end in words, but must be transformed into action. That’s how Aimful Books came about. With a need to do something aimfully, with purpose. Education was for me— and still is—very important. How can I use my time to be that change? How can I pay forward what has been given to me? That’s how the donation of books came about. Everything else unfolded as a result of that single goal.”
World-class street artists got on board the project as soon as they found out about the mission, and with Orlandini’s track record of designing gorgeous coloring books in the past, it became a no-brainer. Combining the psychological benefits of coloring with a powerful social mission makes this project the largest inspirational collaboration of street art to date. For the artists, it’s also a way to reach other people who could directly interact with their art
Celebrated NYC street artists John “Crash” Matos says about Aimful Books: “It takes a village, and in this case a global village to raise children… Every book that is sold helps to build micro-libraries where they are needed the most.”
Canadian-born muralist Fallen Rose adds, “This is the real deal!!! For every book you buy they donate to a child in need. I’ve personally been to schools in Cambodia they donate books to.”
If you haven’t tried coloring yet, you’ll see what a stress-reliever it is. You will be able to turn modern masterpieces from prominent neighborhoods like Brooklyn and Wynwood into your own. Color intricate murals that decorate world-class cities like New York City, Melbourne, and Paris, and allow yourself to relax. Discover hidden street art gems from Canada to Jordan, and learn from these great street artists whose works decorate large metropolis and small towns alike. As you express your creative side, you’ll also be helping a great cause. Every copy of the street art coloring book series that is sold results in the distribution of a textbook to a child in need. So, color away knowing that you are directly influencing the education of a child. If this project doesn’t warm your heart, we don’t know what would!
