Thomas Evans, one of Denver's most-loved street artists, got a pretty rad gig recently.
Former late-night talk show host David Letterman chose the Denver artist, aka Detour, to paint portraits of hip-hop star Jay-Z and of Letterman, himself. Jay-Z is on the April 6 episode of Letterman's new Netflix show, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman. Letterman even changed his Facebook profile picture to the Thomas Evans portrait.
(Want to learn more about Denver graffiti and street art in the Rino Art District? Reserve a spot on one of our tours today.)
Detour is one of the most well-known figures in Denver's graffiti and street art community. You can check out his work all around town, including in the RiNo Art District where he painted a mural of jazz great Charles Mingus at the entrance of nightclub Nocturne. An awesome portrait of Democratic congresswoman Maxine Waters can also be found on the former RiNo bar and club Cold Crush at 27th and Larimer.
Thomas Evans' vibrant portraits
employ bright colors and a combination of surrealistic swirls and realism.
He is part of a burgeoning graffiti and street art scene in Denver. Last year, Evans was selected as Denver's representative at the prestigious Art Basel in Miami. Check out the process video of Evans painting his portrait of Jay-Z.