Vandalism or art? Seniors at Episcopal Homes learn about the art of graffiti with new mural
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The art of graffiti is open to people of all ages, although when thinking about graffiti artists, images of teenagers and young people with spray paint cans might come to mind.
Residents of a senior housing facility in St. Paul took an interest in the art of graffiti after classes were offered by Twin Cities graffiti artist Peyton Scott Russell. He is known for his 12-foot mural of George Floyd he created for George Floyd Square in 2020. Now his nonprofit, SPRAYFiNGER, teaches the graffiti as a creative artform.
Classes at Episcopal Homes started in the fall of 2020 during the social unrest in the Twin Cities area. The first class offered lectures about the history of protest music, which featured topics of hip-hop, breakdancing and graffiti. Interests in these topics eventually led to bringing in Russell to teach at Episcopal Homes.
Over the past two years, he has taught several different classes to residents of the senior living facility, which were grant funded by the Minnesota State Arts Board.
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Together, 10 resident artists and Russell began to brainstorm a mural to place on the empty space of wall at the entrance of the community’s underground parking garage. It was an effort that began in the fall of last year and was unveiled recently.
The mural’s imagery and meaning were a collective decision made by the residents involved. Russell says, “Anytime that I do a community mural or collaboration, I always listen to the voice of the participants,” he said. “What do they want to say to the public?”
After narrowing over 100 ideas down, residents decided that they wanted to have a theme of history and community.
The mural features an acknowledgement to the first nations that lived on the lands before settler colonization. “We are on Dakota land,” is written in the Dakota language as the start to the mural.
The mural flows down to a stencil portrait of Episcopal Homes founder, Sister Annette Relf, along with an ode to Porky’s, an iconic drive-in that was located on University Avenue where a part of the campus now sits.
Other notable features are imagery of the residents who were involved in the planning stage, and generational bridging with a final message of, “We are better together” in bright pink. Diversity is a consistent theme throughout.
“We just tried to include everyone and let the community know that this is sort of a safe space here,” says Episcopal Homes director of creative ventures Kristin Aitchison. “That we are accepting of all people and all situations.”
Not every resident took to graffiti at first. Many of them come from a generation where graffiti was viewed as vandalism. Aitchison says their minds have now changed thanks to Russell and his passion for the artform. Residents expressed that they see the beauty in it and try to find the deeper meanings now.
Lyn Lawyer is one of the 10 resident artists who helped finalize the mural design. On the day of the unveiling, she was more than happy to point out portraits of her fellow residents on the wall.
“I loved it. I’m not very good — my arthritic fingers couldn’t control the spray can very well, but we managed, and I just feel fabulous about being part of this wall. This was just a tremendous thing to do,” Lawyer says.
Residents enjoyed the experience and seeing the result of their efforts. They wonder if, and when, they will be able to fill another empty space on the walls of Episcopal Homes.
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