Art Beat: Mosaic Project and Mural Walk Build Communityby Pat'Patterson | |||
It's said that art and its creative processes can be inspiring and therapeutic. Take a look in our Metro areas, and you'll witness a wide range of artistry, alive and thriving. It's true that art really builds community. Two great examples in our midst are worth highlighting in what, in future issues, will be the Art Beat column. This issue I'll celebrate two art and community-building projects: Maxwell Park's Second Mosaic wall and the Laurel Mural Walk. | |||
Danielle Lawrence’s great tree mural addresses the “grow” literally and poetically. Photo by Pat Patterson.
Click to enlarge. |
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Why Art Beat? It seems only fitting to dedicate space in the Metro for art, to take advantage of the healthy supply of artists in all creative fields. All it takes is the wave of various Open Studios, with their handy maps, and one sees the number of local visual artists in our Metro boundaries. Why not collect those names and info about cultural "happenings" of our own?
Maxwell Park Mosaic Project—550 Hands Build Community, One Tile at a Time
The restroom at Maxwell Park in the 4600 block of Fleming received another incredible jewel-like adornment, as the community came together and completed another wall in June.
This was community at its finest—from the initial idea or vision, to outreach for volunteers, to pressing that very last tiny piece of tile into position. There were 110 volunteers and 1,000 volunteer hours tallied, according to Nancy Karigaca, Co-Chair, Friends of Maxwell Park.
At the June 26 celebration, Beverly Shalom, coordinator/mosaic artist and guest speaker, thanked folks for their contribution. "I read off 50-plus names. We are grateful for all the work," Shalom stated.
Other key leads included Nommi Alouf, designer; Suzanne Scolnick, mosaic artist/assistant; Laura Nicodemus, Co-Chair, Friends of Maxwell Park; Daud Abdullah, mosaic artist/volunteer; Gail Murphy, Peter Pan School children's coordinator.
I asked Nommi Alouf about the community building aspect of the project.
Q. How did you feel the mosaic helped build community?
A. In so many ways! Families and children gathered at the park, under eucalyptus trees, to smash tiles and create beautiful mini mosaics, which we incorporated onto the wall. Many passersby on foot or in cars called out enthusiastic remarks to us such as, "Thanks for doing something beautiful for our neighborhood."
Daud Abdullah, mosaic artist, stuck with the project the way he does his regular electrical work. "Some days we'd stand back, make observations, think about it overnight, then jump back in for more," stated Abdullah. His eight-year-old son, Adam, worked on various wall scenes.
Laurel Mural Walk
Six murals were showcased at the Grow the Laurel mural walk on MacArthur Blvd. Held just at Metro deadline, the walk was designed to showcase artists in the Laurel district. You can still see some of the murals starting at the side of the Laurel office Building on Maybelle & MacArthur. Stop in and ask the merchants where else. Links to more photos online at www.macarthurmetro.org.
A Call to All Artists/Musicians
For Art Beat, I'd like to develop a roster of artists/musicians in the Metro area, similar to Dimond district's Web site, where they list their artists' info. To get on our list of artists/musicians: email pmacp\@sbcglobal.net, with name, email address, type of art medium (or instrument), telephone number.'