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Murals That Matter
Activism Through Public Art
In June 2020, amid an unprecedented global pandemic, protesters took to the streets of Washington DC in response to the murder of George Floyd -- and Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, and the many others who came before. To capture this moment in history, the DowntownDC BID collaborated with the P.A.I.N.T.S. Institute ("Providing Artists with Inspiration in Non-Traditional Settings") to commission dozens of murals for boarded-up storefronts. Reframed through vibrant art, the public experience of these plywood barriers shifted from "stay away" to "come look."
Buildings in the Gallery Place neighborhood were transformed with artworks expressing love, unity, and hope; that spoke to racial injustice and societal inequities; and that proclaimed support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Murals That Matter displays 18 of those relocated murals.
Joining the Gallery Place murals are six new artworks inspired by the lives and legacies of the "Big Six" Civil Rights leaders who organized the original March on Washington in 1963.
Rep. John Lewis / Chairman, Student Non-Violence [sic] Coordinating Committee
Whitney Young Jr. / National Director, Urban League
A. Philip Randolph / President, Negro American Labor Council
Martin Luther King Jr. / President, Southern Christian Leadership Conference
James Farmer / Director, Congress of Racial Equality
Roy Wilkins / Executive Secretary, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
1. Shawn Perkins (Detroit, Michigan), @sptheplug • John Lewis
2. Demont Pinder (Queens, New York), @demontpinder • Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
3. Dez Zambrano (Los Angeles, California), @dezcustomz • Whitney Moore Young Jr.
4. Levi Robinson (Newark, New Jersey), @levirobinsonart • A. Philip Randolph & Dorothy Height
5. Mohammed Gafar (Saudi Arabia), @kreativecustomkicks • James Farmer Jr.
6. Jamaal Lamaaj (Washington, D.C.), @jlamaaj • Roy Wilkins
The "Big Six" murals, painted live on this lawn will be incorporated into the exhibition upon completion. In part, through these efforts, P.A.I.N.T.S. is raising awareness and support for its partnership with Urban Outfitters to launch a new ARTrepreneurship Club at Thomas Elementary School, a public school in Washington DC. Through this club, youth will gain exposure and training in the arts, health and wellness, and growth and development programs, all from the comfort and safety of their homes through the P.A.I.N.T.S. Institute's virtual learning portals.
Public art is powerful. It gives people a voice and encourages conversation. Use this QR codes [sic] to link to the National Building Museum's website to listen to brief audio clips and watch video interviews of the artists speaking about their work.
National Building Museum |