Justin Bua

Born on March 29, 1968, Justin Bua grew up in the Upper West Side of New York City during the 1970s and 80s, influenced by the burgeoning hip-hop, breakdancing, and graffiti movements. He began his artistic journey by tagging under the moniker “Just-1” before transitioning to painting. Bua attended Manhattan’s Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Performing Arts and later graduated from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, in 1992, earning a B.F.A in painting. His artistic style merges classical training with his urban background, focusing on lyrical narrative paintings that depict musicians, DJs, and characters defining the urban landscape. His work became widely recognized with his iconic ‘The DJ’ poster, which has sold over 11 million copies worldwide, making fine art accessible to a broad audience.

Throughout his career, Bua has engaged in numerous projects beyond fine art. In commercial art, he has designed for skateboards, CD album covers, apparel, and advertising campaigns. Notable projects include the opening sequence for MTV’s ‘The Lyricist Lounge Show’ (2000–2001), work on EA Sports’ ‘NBA Street’ (2001) and ‘NFL Street’ (2004) video games, and contributions to Slum Village’s music video ‘Tainted’ and Toyota’s Long Beach Grand Prix campaign. In 2015, Bua developed, hosted, and executive produced Oxygen Channel’s ‘Street Art Throwdown,’ a reality competition for emerging graffiti and street artists. He also served on the U.S. Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee, appointed by the U.S. Postmaster General in 2014, where he notably approved a stamp featuring Mister Rogers in 2017.

Bua is also recognized for his educational and digital contributions. He taught figure drawing at the University of Southern California for ten years and launched an online program with ArtistWorks in 2013, making his curriculum globally accessible. In 2018, he co-hosted the ‘Art Attack’ podcast with Dr. Lizy Dastin, discussing art and art history. More recently, in 2022, Bua was among the first artists funded by Ripple’s $250 million Creator Fund to develop NFT projects, launching a collection of 1,011 unique NFTs at the South by Southwest festival in 2023. His published works include ‘The Beat of Urban Art – The Art of Justin Bua’ (2007), ‘The Legends of Hip Hop’ (2011), and ‘Original Influencers’ (2022). His art direction for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s documentary ‘On the Shoulders of Giants’ contributed to the film winning an NAACP Image Award.