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Mural Projects
My goal in all three of the Mural Projects was to set the context so that the public could paint their collective story. By creating the physical structure of the wall, I had cast a web to reveal the story that is shared by a large crowd of people. Along Story, the first spiraling mural was painted at Artpark in Lewiston in the summer of 1985. Then in 1986, Tell Tail Tale was created on the lawn of the Albright Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo as part of the Imagination Celebration. Then in 1989, there was The Peacemakers Mural Project at the Buffalo Zoo.
The Peace Makers Mural Project, in 1989 was the centerpiece of the Children’s Peace Festival at the Buffalo Zoo. It was a 1000 ft mural painted on primed fabric, which was stretched between poles at 8 ft intervals, snaking through the zoo grounds. People who came by were asked to complete the sentence, “Peace is……” or “Peace is not…..” , which was then written on each eight foot section.
We provided the smocks and the paints and the brushes and the trays so that people could illustrate their statements about peace. I had a wonderful team of paint waiters, color mixers and brush washers, including a local Girl Scout Troop. There was another group running around with good handwriting and permanent markers. Both sides of this wall were completely filled in one day. It was something on a great scale. It was magic. The images are very precious and poignant.
The piece stayed at the zoo for a month and was then re-hung in the atrium lobby of a downtown bank.
