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Minneapolis’ Boom Island Park is getting ready to host a new temporary art exhibit: a massive mural of linked hands, painted directly onto the grass. 

Mural artist Saype is bringing his “Beyond Walls” project to Minneapolis. The Franco-Swiss artist, known for his giant outdoor frescoes, has painted the murals in 22 places since he started the project in 2019. Each one depicts detailed black-and-white hands clasping across a natural landscape — usually sand or grass. 

Saype picked Minneapolis for this project a few months ago during the federal immigration enforcement surge, after seeing stories of neighbors helping each other. 

“Beyond Walls speaks to the invisible connections that unite people beyond borders, cultures, and differences,” Saype said in a statement. “Minneapolis is a city where questions of community, resilience, and living together carry a particular meaning and strength.”

Minneapolis is the mural’s first home in the U.S. Saype has picked several past host sites for their historical and cultural significance: he painted one in Berlin to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, one in Benin at a former slave trade hub and one in the rubble of an earthquake-stricken city in Turkey.

Saype will start painting the Minneapolis mural Monday. He uses a biodegradable paint mix he designed for the project, meant to fade naturally over time with wind and rain. 

Kristin Anderson is the recreation supervisor for downtown parks with Minneapolis Parks and Recreation. She said the parks team spent months coordinating the project and vetting the materials to make sure they were safe to use on the banks of the Mississippi river.

“It's all natural materials, so anything from ash and bone meal and natural lime materials,” Anderson said. “It’s ephemeral art, so it will absorb back into the grass, and we expect maybe a couple of weeks, maybe a month at most, that it'll last.”

The city will host a community celebration on June 6 for the opening of the mural, with a food truck, music and drone photography capturing the art. 

Anderson said she’s looking forward to seeing people get together to view the art.

“This art is all about community, and it's really significant because Saype chose Minneapolis specifically,” Anderson said. 

People can also come watch Saype paint it during the week. The area around the mural will be roped off, but viewers can walk the perimeter. Anderson said visitors can also get a good view from the park’s pavilion area, where staff will have an information tent.

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Estelle Timar-Wilcox

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Mural artist Saype is bringing his “Beyond Walls” project to Minneapolis. It’s the mural’s first home in the U.S. 

Courtesy of City of Minneapolis

A view of Boom Island Park from an areal view.

Renowned mural artist brings public art project to Minneapolis

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