Zehara Eckert

“The true power of these murals lies in their local, community impact, their ability to illuminate issues that resonate with real people, the oppressed, the poor, the overworked, the unrepresented. The process, the act of community building and collaboration, the beautification that community murals provide, create tangible threads (On The Wall).”

This beautiful quote from On The Wall highlights the collective process that stands behind every public mural. I can imagine how the completion of a mural can invoke pride not only in the painters of the mural but in the residents of their communities who see and enjoy the mural. In a collaborative mural, the community can present many aspects of the attitudes and hopes of local residents. This can create pride and a sense of accomplishment for the project’s participants, especially young people who may not have previously felt a strong community connection. At-risk youth in particular may not always feel a connection to their community, and it is possible they never felt it. Murals have the power to pull together people who are often segregated from their neighbors because murals allow people to cross boundaries – for example boundaries of language, age, income and social status.

When initiating a community mural, partnering artists need to decide whether “the mural will address a social and political issue or celebrate a neighborhood, its history, and its residents” (On The Wall). Mural organizers may choose the artists but ultimately it should be the community that identifies the themes, suggests the designs and images of the mural. Thus a mural is an interaction of artists, sponsors, and community residents. Muralists don’t only consider a wall’s size, but also the location and how the mural will be viewed by audiences such as pedestrians, bikers and people riding in cars. Community volunteers can provide assistance as painters, but they can also show muralists the talents and resourcefulness of the residents of that community.

Painting murals “enables artists to integrate our social and political beliefs with our artistic skills and, more importantly, …made art no longer superfluous and extravagant but something that belongs to the people” (Cityarts Workshop). I remember the discussion in Professor Lynn’s class about how some people are fearful and resist doing art because they think they are not good at it. This quote about art “that belongs to the people,” as well as our class discussion that day, emphasized that you don’t need to be a professional artist to do art. Art doesn’t only have to be superfluous to your everyday life or an extravagant piece. It can be something simple and true. Art will look different as seen through different lenses of different people. As long as it invokes some kind of emotion in its viewers, a visual or musical or performance piece is art.

Art can persuade people to get engaged with others. Nowadays, community murals are used to beautify, educate, and motivate residents to action. Through community murals, individuals from a neighborhood can bring attention to their community’s needs for social justice, better education, and even health care. Murals can transform an otherwise ugly wall into a vibrant public canvas. To me that is art.