Modica Way in Central Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a public walkway connecting City Parking Lot 5 to Massachusetts Avenue. Walkways are common and often dingy, unlit and dirty with stagnant water and rats scurrying around. However, Modica Way has broken free from these stereotypical characteristics to evolve into a master piece. It has one side featuring black and white collage photographs and it has people and places around Central Square, installed by the city. The other side is a canvas for graffiti and street artists. The wall graffiti are constantly updated with fantastic, colourful art. It also has canopies of stained glass which adds to its glamour. It is more of an open-air gallery than a walkway. As a result, it is a famous hangout amongst artists and photographers.
Weiying Olivia Huang, who graduated from Northeastern University in 2017, is making a documentary that will explore the art on Modica Way and the artists who contribute to the colourful alleyway. The documentary will showcase the dynamic artwork on Modica Way and in-depth interviews with some of the graffiti artists who use the alley as a canvas. The alley is already a popular feature on Instagram. Huang wants to bring it’s background into focus as well. The Modica Way might serve as inspiration for more such alley ways around the globe. Huang got the inspiration when she used the alley way while commuting from Cambridge to downtown Boston. As a filmmaker she wants to tell stories which inspires her. She says,
“If you do something every day, you will find something interesting.”
Do keep your eyes open for her documentary- ‘Above the Free Walls’.
Shraddha Patil.