Last week I mentioned that two new murals were being added to the 3200 block of Georgia Avenue. Both are part of the Georgia Avenue Window Walk project. The mural I featured last week was by artist Dana Jeri Maier.
Below is the one at 3212 Georgia Avenue. The artist is Elizabeth Stewart and the mural takes its inspiration from the Caribbean Day Festival.
Elizabeth Stewart putting finishing touches on her mural
The section of Georgia Avenue south of the Metro seems to have a growing stable of public art these days. Within the past few months murals have been painted at Sweet Mango and the corner of Park Road. The District Modular space also installed a new installation.
Now there is a new mural in progress at 3622 Georgia Avenue to add to this growing list. The mural below was begun on July 24th. You can find it between Lion’s Fine Wines and Spirits and DC Reynolds. I have to wonder where the next piece of public art will crop up.
Over the weekend I noticed that a new mural has been painted on the Bell Corner Stop (3501 Georgia). The mural, shown below, is on the Park Road side of the building. According to the listed credits, it is the work of Charles Jean-Pierre and James Flowers. Less than a month ago Jean-Pierre organized a group of MacFarland Middle School students to paint a mural a few blocks north of Chuck Brown at Sweet Mango.
I’m sure many residents who walk past Sweet Mango Cafe (3701 New Hampshire Ave.) every day noticed last Friday, May 18th, that a new mural was in the early stages of being painted. While I’m not sure how detailed it will ultimately be, enough of it was completed to clearly show that it is a tribute to Go-Go Godfather Chuck Brown, who passed away on May 16 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore at the age of 75. Below is the image that inspired the mural.
The mural is based on a 1992 photograph of Chuck Brown taken by the Washington City Paper’s Darrow Montgomery.
I just visited the Annie’s Hardware site — located at 1240 Upshur and shooting for a February 7 opening — and discovered that they’ve painted murals in the windows at the front of the store. I have to say that I think they look great. I especially love the nod to the surrounding communities of Park View, Brightwood, and Crestwood.
The murals were created by Petworth resident Torie Partridge and you can contact her via email or visit her Website to learn more about her work.
(Center mural with name of the store and some of the products Annie’s will carry)
(The mural at the east end of the store is devoted to Petworth)
(The western mural maps out the surrounding neighborhoods of Park View, Crestwood, Brightwood, and North Petworth)
Mural @ Bruce Monroe Park
The new mural on the Columbia Road side of Bruce Monroe Park appears to be finished. For those that haven’t had the opportunity to see it close up, I’ve posted photos by section after the jump. (more…)
The new mural at the Bruce Monroe Park is well underway. It is located on the south side of the park along Columbia Road and the goal is to be finished on or around September 15th.
The design is closer in concept to the first of the two options originally proposed, but has changed in response to sought after public comments.
One thing I like about this mural is the inclusion of mosaic elements. You can see a detail of one of these mosaics here, which is a face in the middle of the central tree.
You can get a better sense of how this design has evolved from its original concept by comparing it to the drawing below.
One preliminary design for the new mural at the Bruce-Monroe Park
For those that haven’t seen the new mural at the Park View Recreation Center you can get a good idea of what it looks like from the image below. Last time I was there, the only thing missing was the commemorative plaque about the former mural located on the Otis Place side of the building. The plaque will eventually be located on the west end of the building near the portrait of Malcolm X.
The recently completed mural at the Park View Recreation Center
And for those that like murals, there is another one in the planning stages for the Columbia Road side of the new Bruce-Monroe Park. The artist for this one will be Joel Bergner, who will be familiar to many in the community. To read more about this mural project you can access the documents at the Pleasant Plains, D.C. Web site.
One preliminary design for a new mural at the former Bruce-Monroe site
In the space of just ten days, the new mural being painted on the Rec Center has gone from a great start to a state where there is little left to the imagination. You can see how it looked on July 2nd here, and compare that with the images below. I’ll be surprised if this isn’t wrapped up in another ten days or so.
Those familiar with the development of the new mural may recall that the removal of the old mural was not met with 100%. The April Park View UNC and ANC meetings both had this issue on their agenda’s for discussion. After additional changes and community input, the mural now taking shape was approved.
"The territory comprising Park View extends from Gresham Street north to Rock Creek Church Road, and from Georgia Avenue to the Soldiers' Home grounds, including the triangle bounded by Park Road, Georgia Avenue, and New Hampshire Avenue" (from Directory and History of Park View, 1921.)
Metrorail disruptions WUSA-TV – DC News Washington Business Journal
Mural, or Street Art? — Silenced George
December 6, 2011Last time I was on U Street I saw the mural below at the southwest corner of U and 15th Street, NW. While it’s scale suggests it’s a mural, it strikes me more to be akin to street art. Does anyone know if this was painted before Occupy DC or in response to it?
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Categories: Art, Social Commentary
Tags: Art, Murals, social commentary, street art, U Street
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