<\/a>Spirit Sister by Nelson Stevens 18 x 18″ Serigraph limited edition of 75, available at shopbaia.com<\/p><\/div>\n
In addition to murals memorializing the lives of those passed on or sparking social consciousness, murals have become a way for the city to beautify itself. \u00a0Nonprofit organizations across the country have formed to counteract random graffiti and decorate neighborhoods with art that is affirming. Murals Philadelphia touts, \u201cWe believe that art ignites change\u201d \u00a0MuralsDC\u2019s mission is \u201cto beautify the city one wall at a time,\u201d and Living Walls Atlanta\u2019s mission is \u201cto create intentional, thought-provoking public art to inspire social change and activate public spaces.\u201d In any one of these cities the organizations are seeking out help from building owners to acquire their canvasses, they are establishing collectives of artists who periodically change the murals they have acquired, and they are actively working to combat negativity. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nBut all of this positivity does not come without a bit of controversy. Occasionally when some murals are erected, they are then defaced by vandals. Such was the case with the \u201cSeeds of Resistance\u201d mural in Gainesville, Florida. In less than 24 hours, a mural that espoused Black Lives Matter, fair wage, protect choice, protect voting, and welcome immigrants was vandalized with the changing of words to spell out blue lives matter and seeds of autism, as well as other lewd comments. Although the muralists were able to restore some aspects of the mural to its original state, the mural was ruined. <\/span><\/p>\nAt times, there are also disagreements between building owners and artists. Artist Ashley Montague of Portland, Oregon created a Black Lives Matter mural on the wall of a pizza shop. But the mural was being threatened by the owner of the pizza shop who does not appreciate the a strikingly unnerving mural of a haloed Mike Brown with two police officers in riot gear depicted behind him. The owner of the shop was thinking of changing the mural to ads for pizza or a gym, but Montague has rights according to the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990. The VARA allows artists rights to the murals they place on walls. <\/span><\/p>\nLike the muralists of the Renaissance who painted biblical scenes for the illiterate who could not read the Bible, murals not only beautify the city, but allow for messages of social change to proliferate communities who are typically not addressed as change agents in this kind of discourse. The Black Lives Matter murals that are painted on inner city walls throughout the world offer the residents of those communities empowerment to make up their minds for themselves instead of being told what to think by force and circumstance. As cities across the country establish nonprofit organizations to erect murals for beautification purposes, it\u2019s important to remember the history of murals and their purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Shantay Robinson participated in <\/span>Burnaway<\/span><\/i>\u2019s<\/span> Art Writers Mentorship Program, Duke University\u2019s <\/span>The New New South <\/span><\/i>Editorial Fellowship, and CUE Art Foundation\u2019s Art Critic Mentoring Program. She has written for <\/span>Burnaway, ArtsATL, ARTS.BLACK, AFROPUNK, Number, Inc. <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Washington City Paper<\/span><\/i>. While \u00a0receiving an MFA in Writing from Savannah College of Art and Design, she served as a docent at the High Museum of Art. She is currently working on a PhD in Writing and Rhetoric at George Mason University.<\/span><\/p>\nWould you buy stock in BAIA if you could? Well we invite you to join us in becoming a monthly supporter, starting at just $3 a month\u00a0YOU<\/b>\u00a0become a stakeholder and begin to help us transform lives through art. We are growing the BAIA team and will use your contributions to hire more team members for the purpose of creating more educational and marketing resources for schools and universities about african american artists both past and present.
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\nReview our list of rewards for becoming a BAIA\u00a0Patreon<\/a>\u00a0\/ patron supporter. Your monthly contribution has lasting benefits. \u2014 \u201cWhat will your legacy be\u201d \u2013 Dr. Margaret Burroughs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n