Sidewalk Sam was the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

of Robert Charles Guillemin (May 4, 1939 – January 26, 2015), a

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

-based artist who resided in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located roughly west of Downtown Boston, and comprises a patchwork of thirteen villages. The city borders Boston to the northeast and southeast (via the neighborhoods of ...

. He was best recognized for his reproductions of European masterpieces, chalked or painted on the sidewalk. Following an accident in 1994 that left him paralyzed, Guillemin increased his focus on large

participatory art Participatory art is an approach to making art which engages public participation in the creative process, letting them become co-authors, editors, and observers of the work. This type of art is incomplete without viewers' physical interaction. It ...

projects for communities and businesses. His motto, on a

sticky note A Post-it note (or sticky note) is a small piece of paper with a re-adherable strip of glue on its back, made for temporarily attaching notes to documents and other surfaces. A low-tack pressure-sensitive adhesive allows the notes to be easily ...

at the top of his computer, was "Entertain, Inspire, Empower and Unite".

History

Guillemin first took to the streets of Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts in the summer of 1973, drawing famous artworks on crowded street corners where passersby filled a bucket with change. By the early 1980s, Guillemin found business sponsors for his street artworks and shifted to longer-lasting acrylic paints. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Guillemin also organized chalk-drawing festivals, open-air art exhibits, and public art events that engaged participants in the creation of large mosaics, murals, and banners. In 1990 and 1991, Guillemin organized the Boston Artists’ Summer Festival. In 1994 Guillemin fell from the roof of his home which paralyzed him from the chest down and made him into a

wheelchair A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...

user. After his accident, Guillemin returned to street painting and continued to organize participatory art events in Boston and internationally. He appeared on the ''Today'' show and ''Good Morning America'', and was featured in ''People'' magazine, the ''New York Times'', ''Carnegie'' magazine, and a high school social studies textbook. Mr. Guillemin died in his sleep at his home in Newton, on Monday, January 26, 2015, at age 75.

Education

As an undergraduate Guillemin attended

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

, the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

, and finally,

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

, where he received a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students pursuing a professional education in the visual arts, Fine art, or performing arts. In some instances, it is also called a Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA). Background ...

(BFA) in 1962. While at Boston College, he also attended courses at the

School of the Museum of Fine Arts The School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University (Museum School, SMFA at Tufts, or SMFA; formerly the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) is a dedicated art school within Tufts University, a private research university in Massa ...

(a.k.a. Boston Museum School). After graduation from Boston University he traveled to Paris and attended courses at the

École des Beaux-Arts ; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts architecture, Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth centu ...

and the

Académie de la Grande Chaumière The Académie de la Grande Chaumière () is an art school in the Montparnasse district of Paris, France. History The school was founded in 1904 by the Catalan painter Claudio Castelucho on the rue de la Grande Chaumière in Paris, near the A ...

. Starting in 1965, Guillemin studied for his master's degree in painting at Boston University, where

Walter Tandy Murch Walter Tandy Murch (August 17, 1907 – December 11, 1967) was a Painting, painter whose still life paintings of machine parts, brick fragments, clocks, broken dolls, hovering light bulbs and glowing lemons are an unusual combination of Realism ( ...

(1907–1967) was the chief graduate painting faculty. Guillemin received his MFA in 1967.

Solo exhibitions

* ''Structural Surfaces'', April 1971, the

Rose Art Museum The Rose Art Museum, founded in 1961, is a part of Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, US. Named after benefactors Edward and Bertha Rose, it offers temporary exhibitions, and it displays and houses works of art from its permanent co ...

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

* ''Quick Sketches'', December 1971, the Institute of Contemporary Art on Beacon Street in Boston

Group exhibitions

* ''Flush with the Walls'', June 15, 1971, Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Guillemin worked with a group of five artists (Kristin Johnson, Todd McKie,

Martin Mull Martin Eugene Mull (, August 18, 1943 – June 27, 2024) was an American actor, musician, and painter. He became known on '' Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,'' its spin-off '' Fernwood 2 Night,'' and '' America 2 Night.'' Other notable roles included ...

, David Raymond, and Jo Sandman) to stage a protest event/exhibition in a men's restroom located in the museum's lower level.

Awards and recognitions

* Official Screever of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1984

Family

Computer scientist

Ernst Guillemin Ernst Adolph Guillemin (May 8, 1898 – April 1, 1970) was an American electrical engineer and computer scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who spent his career extending the art and science of linear network analysis and synth ...

was his uncle, and he was the younger brother of

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

mathematician Victor W. Guillemin, recipient in 2003 of the

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings, ...

Leroy P. Steele Prize The Leroy P. Steele Prizes are awarded every year by the American Mathematical Society, for distinguished research work and writing in the field of mathematics. Since 1993, there has been a formal division into three categories. The prizes have b ...

for Lifetime Achievement. His brother-in-law is revolutionary historian

Ray Raphael Ray Raphael (born April 19, 1943) is an American historian and author of twenty books. He is noted for his work on the American Revolution, the Constitution, and the regional history of Northern California. American Revolution In 2001, Raphael' ...

. Microbiologist

Karen Guillemin Karen Guillemin is an American microbiologist known for her work on the role of bacteria in influencing animal development and health. She trained with renowned microbiologist Stanley Falkow, studying how the stomach bacterium ''Helicobacter pyl ...

is one of his nieces.

References

External links

*
Sidewalk Sam's answer to the question, "What is a failed poet?"
''Somerville News'', 2008