Have you ever wondered who paints some the elaborate murals around Yankee Stadium or other artwork around the Bronx?
He’s the borough’s own Andre Trenier and he’s got quite the portfolio. From doing mural work for the New York Yankees, Brooklyn Nets, Bronx Zoo and many more, the Kingsbridge native is raising the bar for artists everywhere, each day.
His creative calling began at an early age.
“I was that kid that loved to draw,” said Andre. “I’d go through a thousand notebooks of just sketches growing up, it was just my calling. It was at age 15 that I started with murals” the artist added.
Sneaker design and hip hop culture have always tied into Andre’s inspirations.
He’ll turn a white pair of Nike’s into a masterpiece overnight or work up a mural of famous DJ Kool Herc in no time at all.
Andre fostered his talent at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.
It was after college that he formed his relationship with the Yankees and began leaving his legacy on River Avenue.
“I grew up loving the Yankees. Thurman Munson was always my favorite, getting the opportunity to paint his mural and so many others really was an outstanding experience,” Andre said.
Some of the other Yankees-related murals he’s painted have been of Roberto Clemente, Reggie Jackson and recently Aaron Judge.
Recently as part of the Bronx Zoo’s ‘Boogie Down’ program, Andre was called in for live painting demos and also had animals step in paint and then step on a canvas to ‘start a painting’ in which Andre and his colleagues finished on behalf of the critters.
Andre worked on two paintings: one started by a sea lion and another by a flamingo.
Trenier knows that it’s up to him and his fellow artists to preserve and advance their culture.
“I know it sounds corny, but it really is on us to keep everything going,” said Andre.
One of the most touching works that Andre has been given great feedback on is his Melrose mural of him holding his son.
“What I love about this is that nobody knows that this is me,” said Andre. “People are just happy to see a positive representation of fatherhood and that makes me very happy to see,” he added.
He’s also very adamant about not being defined as a graffiti artist.
“I’m not a graffiti artist, I’m just an artist, there’s nothing different about my murals that you don’t see in conventional art,” said Andre.
“Picking up a can of spray paint doesn’t make you a graffiti artist, they incorporate poetry and so many hip hop elements and more into their works, so I’m not comparable to those guys,” he added.
Andre recently finished designing and paining artwork for a new hip hop themed restaurant called Beatstro on Alexander Avenue near Bruckner boulevard.
He’s also responsible for the Bronx’ Brewery’s front and back revamping as well as painting some of its interior and designing cans for the brewery as well.
Andre’s latest work is a mural at The Point in Hunts Point of children holding a banner that says “The Bronx is Breathing.”
