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Illinois Wesleyan UniversityDigital Commons @ IWUNews and Events University Communications2016Student-Designed Mural Tells Story of Joy andStruggleUniversity CommunicationsIllinois Wesleyan UniversityThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Ames Library, the Andrew W. Mellon Center for Curricular and FacultyDevelopment, the Office of the Provost and the Office of the President. It has been accepted for inclusion in Digital Commons @ IWU bythe faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University. For more information, please contact digitalcommons@iwu.edu.©Copyright is owned by the author of this document.Recommended CitationUniversity Communications, "Student-Designed Mural Tells Story of Joy and Struggle" (2016). News and Events. 2943.http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/news/2943Student-Designed Mural Tells Story of Joy and Struggle Oct. 21, 2016 BLOOMINGTON, 111.- Lucy Sanchez thinks big, whether about her art or the world around her. An m major at illinois Wesleyan University, Sanchez has designed and painted a mural entit led ~ Lucha de Colores" (-rhe Struggle of Colors") for the Multicultural Center on campus. The lS-feet·long and a -feet-high work depicts the journey of a student of color as he or she progresses through the Ill inois Wesleyan experience, while also acknowledging the current atmosphere of racial re lations in society. Sanchez has long admired street art, and as a Chicago nat ive, was well acquainted with the city's Pi lsen neighborhood and its many murals. She was deeply influenced by her study of Mexican muralism, which typically conveys social and political messages. -I've always felt mura ls were art that belonged to a community: she said. -It's more accessible in comparison to a Artist Lucy Sanchez '17 believes murals belong to the community. -Street art is reality,- she said. lot of art that is very fine art, making fine art a privilege because it's expensive. Street art te lls you what's going on in that community, even if it's angry. Street art is reality." The idea for the mural sprang from a serendipitous conversation. After returning from a study abroad experience in Ireland where she began to see her work -as saying something: Sanchez was venting her frustration about her desire to create something 'big' with Brandon Common, then the director of the Office of Diversity and Indusion (ODI). Conversations involving a reimagining of the space in the Multicultural Center were already underway, so Common suggested Sanchez brainstorm some ideas for a mural to adorn the foca l wa ll of the center, which is a gathering place for a ll students to study and socia lize. -As an administrator, I believe it is our responsibili ty to support students in their aspirations, so I saw the creation of the mural as a way to showcase lucy's ta lents because she is a phenomenal student and woman of co lo r," said Common, who is now assistant dean of students for campus life. "r also thought the mural would enliven the Multicultural Center and capture what is happening at th is moment in time, and I wanted future students to see what one of 'their own' did while a student at IWU: Using a Kente stole as a unifying element, Sanchez designed the mural with pathways beginning at The Ames library and the sesquicentennial gates. These locations are included in campus tours, and quickly become cultural icons for new Ill inois Wesleyan students. "The stole works as a pathway leading your experience around Illinois Wesleyan," Sanchez sa id, noting the stole indudes elements of nationa l flags representing the cultural backgrounds of il linois Wesleyan students. Activism is portrayed, both on campus and in the world. She also included depictions of dancers to illustrate the importance of joy and celebration in the face of oppression. "We try to celebrate our cultures in multiple ways, and I wanted to indude that" she explained. The pathway ends with a graduation cap. the symbolic end of the journey. A panel near the end of the stole celebrates the Class of 2017; Sanchez used chalkboard paint for th is panel so that it can be changed each year to celebrate a new graduating class. Sanchez said she wanted the mural to ill ustrate Illinois Wesleyan's sense of community, but a lso the frustration students of color can feel on a predominantly white campus. -When I started the proJect I th ink one of my goals was to empower people,- said Sanchez. who is double majoring in business adminjstratlon. On one of the panels of the Kente stole, she utilized a quote from activist Yareliz Elena Mendez-Zamora. Sanchez said she wanted to make a statement that Jasmine White '20 (left) and Sanchez watch a video in the Multicultural Center, a gathering place for all students to study and socialize. people of color are not alone and they're not going anywhere. "We're here because we earned it- she said, referring to students of color on college campuses, and people of color as leaders in industry, the private sector and public office. Common said Sanchez has left an inde li ble mark with the mural's completion. "I hope the mural speaks to marginalized students and lets them know they matter and that they are valued at IWU,- he said. "I also hope that it te lls a story of perseverance and determinat ion, and also challenges those who look at it to reflect on where we are as a community and where we can be if we continue to support each other.-"I hope this mural will continue to promote the Multicultural Center as a space where all students matter, while also challenging future students to leave their mark somewhere else. in some way, on campus," Common added. 

Student-Designed Mural Tells Story of Joy and Struggle

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Student-Designed Mural Tells Story of Joy and Struggle

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