A Ripple of Change
CAW Youth Apprentice Joshua Grant addresses the attendees at the unveiling of the new mural for PS/MS 4 in Crotona Park West, a high-needs Title 1 school.
“We want the students to know that this school is a nurturing and safe environment, and that, no matter where they come from or where they go to in their daily lives, when they come through these doors they will find a support system and people who care about them and want them to grow.”
CAW Youth Apprentices and their Teaching Artists
A Message of Hope and Unity
Teachers and administrators at PS/MS 4 Crotona Park West, a high-needs Title 1 School in The Bronx, want every student to feel welcomed from the moment the moment they arrive at the front door; so they asked a team of Creative Art Works Youth Apprentices (YAs) to paint a mural that offers a message of hope and unity. We think our YAs rose to the occasion. “A Ripple of Change,” CAW’s fourth mural on the PS/MS 4 campus, includes repeating motifs of growth, evolution, diversity and belonging.
At a joyful unveiling ceremony, Principal Vincent Resto commended our young artists both for their dedication and for bringing the vision and ideals of the PS/MS 4 community to life.
“This mural represents another step towards our vision of creating an environment focused on collective responsibility, positivity, engagement, compassion, and love. Seeing these wonderful images today affirms how these ideals are becoming the core of our community. We are indebted to these brilliant young artists and the team at Creative Art Works for bringing life to our vision and capturing the essence of social justice.”
Images evolve as they move from left to right along the length of this vibrant mural: The mural starts with an outline of the New York City Skyline represented as a heartbeat. Next, a single seedling blossoms into flowers from around the world, children of different races and ethnicities grow into young adults, a caterpillar becomes a chrysalis and then a butterfly. Nurturing hands on one end of the mural become hands that give back to the community on the other end. The front doors are flanked by the wings of a phoenix, the mythical bird that rises from its own ashes. The far end of the mural is anchored by an image of a hand holding a globe, symbolizing both the gift of education the school wishes to give to its students as well as a reminder that the future belongs to our children.
Growth, Evolution, Diversity, Belonging — Take a Tour of the Mural
The New York City Skyline represented as a heartbeat
Hands holding a seedling and a caterpillar spinning a cocoon represent growth and evolution. The wings of a phoenix around the front entrance symbolize rebirth.
Butterflies, birds, and a hand tossing seeds on the wind represent growth and migration. Faces of young people from around the world symbolize unity. The young man on the right holds an olive branch, a symbol of peace.
The face on the far left represents the power of the voice of the individual while flowers from around the world and dancing children represent the power of a diverse community. The hand holding the world symbolizes both the gift of education as well as a reminder that the future belongs to our children.
Read bios by all the CAW Youth Apprentices in the commemorative brochure on ISSUU.
A Little Bird Told Us to Mention the Audubon Mural Project
As part of the Audubon Mural Project, which commissions artists to paint murals of the hundreds of bird species threatened by climate change, “Ripples of Change” features a saltmarsh sparrow, which nests in coastal areas between Maine and Virginia that are vulnerable to rising sea levels. Read more about the Audubon Mural Project HERE.
CAW’s Public Art Youth Employment programs are made possible by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, and, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and by these generous supporters:
