Starting our Wall Mural

 My hope is to leave the world a little better for having been there. -Jim Henson

Day 2: low vision students can add pattern

The retaining wall behind our school building has been an eyesore for at least a decade, and I've had several people ask me over the years if I would paint a mural on it. I really love the idea of making a physical space happier for people to live and work!! Unfortunately my feelings are almost as strong when it comes to my dislike for the paperwork involved with ordering paint and supplies. This is the year I bit the bullet and decided to go for it, and it goes along with our Art Movements unit in talking about American Regionalism and WPA murals.

My students and I are three days into the project and have already done the underpainting on one side of the wall, that consists of 17 eight-foot panels. We painted pattern on six of those panels, four of which were completed with large words on top of the panels. So happy!

Day 1: about 300 square feet of color underpainting

Day 2: activate the background

I started by having students write down inspiring words and filling sheets of paper with patterns and color. As a class we discussed which of these ideas would go best together and in what order, and then I did very rough sketches on how they might all work. Most of the time was spent figuring out the four panels by the picnic tables, and the six large ones around corner from the four. The last seven, we didn't have any concrete ideas about where it would go. Once we saw what colors we had finished, we thought about what was lacking. And the thing is, you never know how much paint it will take until you're mid project. Orange is yellow and red, but it turns out you need about 4 times as much yellow to make an orange, so we have to constantly evaluate how much of which color we have available. We are also adjusting the patterns and word size as we go along.

It is a lot of fun to work outside and have people stop to offer compliments and encouragement. It is not fun to work outside and have people stop and offer unsolicited advice and suggestions. The minute one sees a work in progress they make assumptions about where it is going and  share ideas about where it should go. I hope at least my students are learning to respect the process and stay true to their vision.