Deliver Black Dreams – 5th Ave.

In late 2020, once the protests died down, I was invited to join a group of artists who would support the city in creating a public art work that spoke to Councilmember Shayla Favor’s desire to show City support of of the changes demanded by Columbus citizens. While the original ask was to paint a major street with a large phrase that could be seen by drone or on Google maps, the group advising streets were concerned about the potential issues it could create. Through many discussions, we were offered a handful of the city’s retaining walls to make our statements. I got to work on creating some concepts on a Friday, and by Monday, we had two concepts to present to the city! By the end of the year, we managed to get our first of 3 murals painted, and it was a community effort. Below show some process photos showing the power of our community coming together to push for positive change.

It’s all starts with walking and measuring, visualizing and dreaming.

A weekend of focus boled down to a pdf document presenting our chosen concept for approval with the Columbus Public Art Commission.

After a couple of weeks of planning and scheduling, we started painting the background color.

Alicia Vanderelli and Dan Rona were key to laying the foundation of the mural design on a Thursday in November.

I went next, both on Thursday and Friday, dropping chalk lines as guides to trace the letters. We did not use a lift; only ladders! Glad Alicia stayed to keep me safe and provide extra hands.