If you have walked anywhere in The City over the past year, you probably encountered a piece of “Protect Yo Heart” street art.

I never understood what “Protect Yo Heart” meant, and each time I walked over the phrase etched into the sidewalk, I would stare at it curiously. I would ask friends and people who I happened to be with while passing this street graffiti, and nobody knew what the art was referencing. However, like any good journalist, I had to do the research and figure out what this movement is all about.

The artist responsible for the messages that litter the streets of New York City is named UnCasso, the creative mind behind a clothing line called UnCutt Ink. Now, his efforts are focused on these pavement pastels affectionately dubbed “UnCuttart.”

The idea behind Uncuttart is to make people, as UnCasso puts it, “see things in a simple way and simplify their lives; get rid of all the bullshit.”

In 2014, UnCasso attended Art Basel Miami, a huge art festival that takes place in December and provides a platform for enormous networking to take place among people of the art world. While in Miami, he began working with a charity who got UnCasso a 25-foot wall to do a mural and present his artwork to the world. He utilized the large wall space to paint Steve Jobs – because he believes Jobs’ impact on this generation was admirable.

“I like to create art that reflects people who inspire me,” the artist claims. “In life, shit is going to happen the way it’s going to happen. Find the positive outcome and run with it. What are you going to do? Time doesn’t stop for anyone.”

By Casey Mollon