A new mural painted in my neighborhood has created a buzz like I have never seen before. When people walk pass, strangers unite to figure out where it came from and what it means. The mural was so mesmerizing that it forced people to stop and look. As a fellow passerby, I was just as intrigued. I read the mural and it had a very important story to tell and it spoke to me in a way that made me question the whole idea of a mural. I wanted to know:
- Who was behind it?
- What was the inspiration for the content of the mural?
- How was the artist chosen?
- Were other community members involved in the process?
- Did someone outside of the community organize this?
- How is the mural affecting the community overall?
To find the answers to my questions, I have searched locally by speaking to the people of my community. I began by asking my neighbors questions about the new mural. I have even went as far as hanging around the mural so I can engage in conversation about it with strangers. I have gathered lots of different opinions and feelings about our neighborhood gem. Most of the opinions were positive.
Currently, I have been interested in the history of mural making. I found a brief history given by a Brooklyn organization called Groundswell Community Mural Project. I have found that murals were used to express cultural and political issues of different communities. Also, mural painting was a very popular art form in America during the 1940s, after it died out, it returned in the 1960s. Now, hand painted murals are being revived in urban neighborhoods in major cities like Chicago, Philadelphia and New York City. http://www.groundswellmural.org/about_HistoryofMuralMaking.html
This link was very helpful because I have always seen murals and wondered when people began to paint them. All the murals that I have seen seemed like it was there forever, probably before I was born. Most of them were murals that captured the memory of some person in the community who died. It was only until recently that I have noticed murals that addressed social, political, and social issues in our communities. So when I read the history, I realized that “message murals” were at the beginning of its existence in America. Also, I learned that there are many organizations that assist in the creation of these murals around town in conjunction with the community.
Another useful link I found was a blog done by New York Times called City Room. This blog had a feature about NYC murals. It was a three-part question and answer session between NYC residents and the historian and muralist, Janet Braun-Reinitz and Jane Weissman. They are the authors of the book, On the Wall: Four Decades of Community Murals in NYC. Questions about murals are thoroughly answered by experts in the field. Janet Braun- Reinitz is a muralist herself as well as an historian. She was able to give thoughtful responses to the questions many people may have wondered about the current transformation or future transformation of their communities with the art form of murals. Many of these questions were great questions because they were questions many people may want answered. For instance, the question of how someone interested in having a mural painted in their community, can go about getting it done. Braun- Reinitz gave an answer that would help anyone to get started even if they only had an idea. She explained the whole process involved to bringing this idea to fruition. http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/20/ask-about-new-york-citys-community-murals/
The next steps I plan to take in answering some of my questions about this mural in my community is to speak to the groups involved in the particular mural in my community titled “Peace In, Piece Out.” I want to find out how and why this particular mural was placed in this specific location. Ultimately, I would like to know how I could become involved in future projects.
No comments:
Post a Comment