Reach for the Stars

Wow!  Time flies while you're recovering from two knee replacements but, thank God, time heals all kinds of wounds and 2013 came with a new lease on life for this somewhat worn out body!   In the fall I was back to volunteer teaching art once a week at my old school.  The kids all wanted to know when we would be creating another mural so we came up with the idea of the fifth grade doing a mural to beautify the entry of our school and dedicating it as their graduation gift.  Once a week, with some time off for trips and holidays, we worked together to inspire the student body to "Reach for the Stars" with our own version of Van Gogh's Starry Night.  We are all very pleased with the outcome and hope it will be an encouragement to all the future students and parents that pass through these gates.

We Love L.A. !!

       With all the murals we have done at Glenwood School you would think we were done but ...no...When you walk through the office onto the campus you can't help but notice the four classrooms in a row in all their dull beige glory.  We can't stop until the first view on campus is more inviting!  We polled the teachers and students for a theme and style and decided "We Love L.A." was just what we needed.  Since we usually send the students on one field trip a year to some special place in L.A. what better idea than to highlight the places that make our city so special...and while we are at it, encourage parents to visit these places with their kids.
     Even though I keep track of how many hours each mural has taken I seriously underestimated this one....90 hours!  But, it was worth it.  Over 230 children painted some part and close to 50 parent volunteers showed up on a special Friday afternoon set aside for them to contribute their time and talent to the project.  My volunteer friend, Sue, was by my side faithfully to end and when my sister, Bev, came to visit in June she got involved as well.  It may well be our next favorite mural...until the next one!

Lessons learned:  Always buy the same brand of paint and the same color for sky...no two shades are ever the same and it will show.   When mixing a special color make a big batch at the same time (one quart at least) because you will always need to touch up or use it again and it will be hard to replicate.

Let PEACE reign in our schools.

Haskell Elementary called me back to create a mural with the fifth graders as their farewell gift to the school when they graduate this June.  They have been working all year on a positive message to deal with bullying in schools.  They created a leadership group called "teamPEACE" that has done a wonderful job in encouraging friendly peaceful relations in the student body.  Together we designed this mural and painted it this May.  It pairs nicely with the mural I did for them last summer and they are thrilled with their contribution to the beautification and education of the school.

The Tree That Grew a Forest

This lone tree was the inspiration for the last mural at Sherman Oaks Elementary this year.  The height of this empty wall was daunting but we started out by just paying someone to spray the whole wall in a misty light blue.  Then as the day for painting got closer my anxiety over how to paint trees on a wall 25' high grew and grew.  They say we resolve a lot of issues in our sleep and one morning I woke up with the solution.  I put a roller on a 6' extension pole and taped it firmly to my orange picker that extends another 12' and voila I had giant evergreens filling the wall.  I love the challenge of working with our school walls!  The drab corner by the kindergarten yard came to life with animals and wildflowers.  The third graders did a great job of painting all the details under 6 feet.

Lesson Learned: If rolling on paint is fast, spraying is even faster!  Some walls would benefit by just being sprayed with a base coat first, especially when they are very high.

Brighten the corner where you are!

Sherman Oaks Elementary wanted to brighten their school play yard and brighten it we did!  Over 100 fourth and fifth graders worked on 175 feet of beige walls during six weeks and were amazed at what they achieved.

It was fun to listen to the kids chatting as they painted and get a peek into the world of modern youth.  It seemed like there was no end to mid morning and lunch recess which brought lots of words of encouragement and appreciation from little kids.  They especially liked the rainbow.

Besides, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" the next most frequent comment was, "Why did we wait this long?"  I'm hoping leading them in this project will inspire the staff and parents to continue to brighten the corner where they are.  They have the talent!

Every project has it's ups and downs.  While I waited for permission slips to be signed allowing students to paint I began painting the background alone.  That stucco was mean!  After two days and 6 hours of hard work I realized what I had once known:  there are different kinds of rollers and the skinny, cheap one is not the one for stucco!  Meanwhile I was talking myself into a depression.  "Why am I here?  Where are the kids?....blah, blah, blah."  Finally I woke up and remembered why I do this and suddenly I started hearing a song in my head that wouldn't go away:  "Baby, you're a firework!  Come on let your colors burst!"and my whole outlook changed.  Thank you, Katy Perry for that song!

Sticking to the schedule

You can make all kinds of schedules but somehow you never remember to take into account rainy days and holidays. When I got the call from Sherman Oaks Elementary I thought I would just polish this project off in two weeks. This last part of the 175 foot playground mural is almost done if winter will stop pouring rain on us!

Lesson Learned: When painting a background on stucco walls go for the expensive thick roller and an extra gallon of paint.  Time is money and filling in all those bumps with an ordinary roller is time consuming and hard on the shoulder!

America the Beautiful

       Halleluyah!  We did it!  The last 3 murals form a modern "triptych" of "America the Beautiful" on the playground.  They are near the Superstars outdoor assembly area and give us an excuse to sing a patriotic song and, for English language learners, to illustrate and give meaning to the words. 

 The excitement every time we finished 
one part  was so much fun to see.  Each mural became the new favorite.  It is interesting to hear the children talk about the details they enjoy the most, the questions they ask and the pondering about the significance of each mural. 

Lesson Learned: Sometimes SIMPLE is better!  These murals were done so quickly, required no projecting or super careful detail work and they were amazing...use the KISS method sometimes, Keep it simple, Silly.