JR

Discover the stories embedded in the artist JR's mural projects. Using augmented reality, you can hear what every person in the mural has to say, giving life to each portrait.

The app includes five epic murals, four of which are part of JR’s Chronicles series that imagines how a city or issue can be represented through art. For each of the murals, individuals choose how they represent themselves in their portrait. After being photographed, participants step into an audio booth where they can share a thought, experience, or message. Download “JR:murals” to listen to and read the stories connected to each portrait.

The Chronicles of Miami

In November 2022, 1,048 residents and visitors were captured in JR’s mobile studio. The portraits were collaged together to create The Chronicles of Miami, a highly realistic, photographic mural that offers a window into the social dynamics and paradoxes present in Miami life. Explore the mural to meet the artists, service workers, business owners, and beachgoers, among others, who call Miami home.

Tehachapi

Meet 48 men - some currently and formerly incarcerated, some victims of crime, others correctional officers and staff - who gathered at a California Correctional Institution to share their stories of mercy, rehabilitation, and the current state of America’s legal system. Together they pasted 338 strips of paper on facility grounds to extend their stories of hope and redemption beyond prison bars.

The Chronicles of New York City

In May and June 2018, the mobile studio was parked at fifteen different locations around the five boroughs, chosen for being specific crossroads of the city. JR and his team photographed 1,128 New Yorkers, from all walks of life, in their own neighborhoods. Only through this artistic process can such a unique cross-section of the city be brought together. The mural tells a story of New York City through art: its energy, its feats, its issues, its people. What was New York City in 2018?

The Chronicles of San Francisco

Inspired by Diego Rivera, JR sought to create a portrait of San Francisco. In January and February 2018, the artist and his team visited 22 different locations around the city, welcoming everyone who wished to participate. Over 1,200 people - including well-known public figures as well as doctors, swimmers, homeless men and women, protesters, shop vendors, and many other San Franciscans - were filmed, photographed, and recorded. The result was a monumental video mural presented at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) in May 2019.

The Gun Chronicles: A Story of America

In October 2018, TIME magazine and JR partnered on a special issue exploring the wide-ranging points of view surrounding the gun debate in the United States. It is a uniquely American story: the country has 325 million people, an estimated 393 million guns, and 35,000 shooting deaths a year. The discussion spans everything from the U.S. Constitution itself—which enshrines the right to bear arms—to complicated questions about how to address violence and mass shootings. The mural invited people to share their views, describe their experiences, and discover common ground. It features 245 individuals, including gun collectors, hunters, law enforcement officials, shooting victims, doctors, teachers, parents, and others, giving a face to the full and complex spectrum of views on guns in America.