Mural Arts @rmuralarts - Tumblr Blog

The Paulo Freire reading was really dense and interesting. I like his ideology of using dialogue as a teaching method. I hadn’t really thought of students and teachers as the oppressed and oppressors, and I can see how it applies to a standard large lecture classroom setting. I agree that those are not ideal learning conditions for anyone, but a smaller group setting with open dialogue is better. This gives everyone the chance to speak and be heard and be represented equally. It’s also really interesting to apply this to the artist and viewer. I think it is more challenging to do this as an artist because often times works of art have stable finite end results, no matter how much conversation and dialogue happens before, there is always going to be an end product that gets displayed in a museum of somewhere else. Also, the viewer can’t do much to teach the artist once the work is completed, so it kind of forces the artists to always be the oppressors. Teachers and students however can always have a dialogue and the final product is the education that you take away from it, which will continue to be influenced by other dialogues as time goes on. I suppose works of art by artists as a whole can be looked at as a series of snapshots in the education of a global community. The only way for viewers to overthrow the oppression of artists is to become artists themselves.

domgreen

Keith Haring performing in New York City subway 1982

lots of progress on the Lea mural!

second draft and possible locations on the Delaware expressway in south philly, near the sugar house casino, on the back of a bus

first draft

mahasubramaniam

Mural project by Penn students from past years with an Ethiopian theme.

Response to Elizabeth Thomas reading: It’s interesting to think about the work Mural Arts Program has done as a democratic process. There are all types of murals that were painted by and for all types of people. Everyone and any anyone can request a mural I suppose, and the ones that are visible serve as an homage to those involved. I imagine most people looking at these murals throughout the city rarely see past their aesthetic value, at least I know I hadn’t until taking this class. But having a mural in your own neighborhood that you can identify with can be an important, though maybe subtle, validation of existence. Especially for foreigners, seeing images of Philadelphians in Philadelphia that look like them and that they can relate to can make them feel included; remind them that this city and the whole world is ours as humans to share. Being actively engaged with the mural creating process has given me some insight into how projects are decided on and completed. It’s great to see such a wide variety of ideas represented on the walls around the city.

progress on the lea school mural!

#mural #lea elementary school

had a great time in south philly working on this photo project, reading with kids, and giving homework help

#southeast by southeast

some murals in south philly by Shira Walinsky

#murals #mural #south philly #southeat by southeast #mural arts #shira walinsky

Reflecting on today’s class. Wow. I already had a general and vague idea of the injustices and unfairness in the prison system, but after watching Concrete Steel and Paint and hearing from Robyn and Jesse I have just been floored by how terrible the situation truly is. Even still, I’m sure this is just the tip of the iceberg. Hearing these stories is disheartening and inspiring at the same time. I can’t imagine how tricky it must have been for Jane to work with offenders and and victims at the same time on a project. It makes sense that they eventually decided to make two murals, telling the story from each side. Learning about all of this really emphasizes the importance of treating other people with respect because you never really know what someone has been through. Just because an offender is sorry doesn’t undo the harm they have caused, and just because a victim is hurting, doesn’t give give them the right to treat their offenders inhumanely, that doesn’t solve anything. I think the work that Jane, Robyn, and others have done in order to bridge the gap between these two sides and promote a respectful dialogue is incredibly powerful.