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Murals of Springfield, Massachusetts

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The American city of Springfield, Massachusetts has been home to many public murals since the mid-20th century. In the 1970s, African-American muralist Nelson Stevens led the creation of more than 30 murals in the city. Many of the city's 20th-century murals later fell into disrepair, but interest in murals has increased since the 2010, and local organizations have created dozens of new murals across the city.

20th century

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In 1910, American painter Robert Reid installed a mural at Central High School, entitled "The Light of Education". The mural depicted William Pynchon and the settling of Springfield.[1]

In 1937, Italian-born artist Umberto Romano and his students installed a six panel mural in the Springfield Main Post Office (now the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Office Building) depicting the history of Springfield from 1936 to 1936.[2]

In 1943, painter Sante Graziani won a content by the Springfield Museums to design a mural for the Fine Arts Museum. The mural was painted in 1947.[3]

The oldest public mural in the city is Heritage, painted in the early 1970s by local artists Don Blanton, Paul Blanton, and Josephine Edmonds. It was painted on the side of Robbins Beauty Supply on State Street. The three wanted to create a piece of public art celebrating Black heritage and pride.[4]

Beginning in 1973, artist Nelson Stevens led the creation of more than 30 murals in the city, many of which were created in collaboration with students and local artists.[5][6] Four of these murals were painted in the Winchester Square Historic District.[7]

21st century

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Between 2010 and 2023, the organization City Mosaic created between 40 and 50 murals in the city, with support from the Springfield government. They first began painting murals during the Springfield Jazz and Roots Festival.[8]

In 2019, the organization Fresh Paint Springfield also began painting murals,[8][9] many of them during their annual mural festival in June.[10][11] The 2022 iteration of the festival, which included collaborations with Commonwealth Murals, resulted in 38 new murals.[12]

In August 2022, the city government announced they would be offering grants to organizations looking to paint murals in the city.[13][14]

List of murals

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Year Name Subject Artist/s Location Notes Ref
1910 The Light of Education Springfield history Robert Reid Central High School since removed [1]
1937 Springfield history Umberto Romano Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Office Building [2]
1947 Arts in Springfield Sante Graziani D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts [3]
Heritage Don Blanton, Paul Blanton, and Josephine Edmonds State Street repainted 2021 [4][15]
1974 Tribute to Black Women Black women Nelson Stevens Catharine Street repainted 2022 [5][12]
Wall of Black Music Black musicians Nelson Stevens Montorse Street repainted 2022 [5][12]
The Old, the Young, the Beautiful Nelson Stevens African Diaspora Mental Health Association, State Street repainted 2024 by Jasmine Thomas (Commonwealth Murals) [16][17][18]
Dr. Seuss characters City Mosaic State Street underpass [8]
2015 There's No Place Like Springfield Wizard of Oz characters John Simpson State Street removed 2020[19] [20][21]
2017 Milton Bradley Kim Carlino AW Gifford building on Lyman Street [13][22]
2019 Ryan Murray Springfield Union Station [23]
Travis Best Damien Mitchell State Street [24]
2020 Say Their Names Victims of police brutality Wane One and Souls NYC Mason Square [25][26]
2021 Mason Square Library [15]
Wall of Fame State Street and Eastern Avenue [15]
Gardening the Community Ryan Murrary Mason Square [27]
2022 Wall of Advertising Vintage advertisements City Mosaic and John Simpson Worthington Street [8][28][29]
2023 Carmen Callender Park Cleaners, Orange and Allen Street [30]
Be the Bridge GoodSpace Murals Plainfield Street [31]
Climate justice Betsy Casanas [32]
Miguel 'Pico de Oro' González Vincent Ballentine Jefferson Avenue [33]
Ruth Carter Commonwealth Murals Rebecca Johnson School [34][35]
Springfield history City Mosaic Bridge Street [36]
2024 The Madonna of Springfield Italian-American and

Puerto Rican-American culture

Nico Cathcart Mount Carmel Society building, Winthrop Street [37][38]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Mr. Reid's 'Light of Education'". Boston Evening Transcript. 1910-11-12. Retrieved 2024-04-06.
  2. ^ a b "Mr. Pynchon and the Settling of Springfield". Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  3. ^ a b "Please Touch! A Tactile Exploration of Sante Graziani's Mural". Springfield Museums. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  4. ^ a b "Art inspired by racial injustice 'can make someone see something differently'". New England Public Media. 2022-05-31. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  5. ^ a b c Canton, Dave (2022-09-25). "Springfield rededicates artist Nelson Stevens' murals of Black life from 1970s". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  6. ^ Parnass, Larry (2023-03-25). "Nelson Stevens turned Springfield's Black neighborhoods into living art galleries; a new show takes us back in time". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  7. ^ Major, Gerri (1975-03-20). "Society World". Jet: 38.
  8. ^ a b c d DeForge, Jeanette (2023-07-08). "Murals in gateway cities eyed as a way to boost economic development". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  9. ^ "Mural Project Aims To Coat Walls And Change Perceptions In Springfield, Mass". New England Public Media. 2019-04-05. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  10. ^ Tuthill, Paul (2021-06-04). "Mural Festival To Be Held In Springfield's Downtown and Mason Square Areas". WAMC. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  11. ^ Canton, Dave (2021-06-12). "Fresh Paint Festival cuts ribbon on 10 murals celebrating Springfield". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  12. ^ a b c McCorkindale, Emma; Thomas, Kayleigh; Becker, Sy (2022-09-24). "Fresh Paint Springfield hosts two mural unveilings". WWLP. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  13. ^ a b "Funding for public art murals in Springfield". WWLP. 2022-08-16. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  14. ^ Snowden, Jonah (2022-08-25). "Springfield offers funds for public murals". masslive. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  15. ^ a b c "A Springfield mural block party and the dedication of the Heritage and Wall of Fame murals on Saturday". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  16. ^ Smith, Steve (2024-09-22). "Mural celebrates the legacy of Springfield's Nelson Stevens". masslive. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  17. ^ "Common Wealth Murals to Cut Ribbon on Recreated Nelson Stevens Mural — Sept. 21". MassNonprofit News LLc. 2024-09-17. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  18. ^ Berry, Patrick (2024-09-20). "Mass Appeal: Common Wealth Murals cuts ribbon on latest public art project". WWLP.
  19. ^ "Court Square murals to be removed for new housing in Springfield". WWLP. 2020-07-18. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  20. ^ Román, Elizabeth (2015-01-16). "'There's no place like Springfield,' artist John Simpson completes mural in downtown Springfield". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  21. ^ "The 2015 "There's No Place Like Springfield" panel of murals by UMass-Amherst professor John Simpson, in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  22. ^ "Artist Kim Carlino Finishes Mural on Outer Wall of A.W. Gifford". www.springfield-ma.gov. 2017-10-11. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  23. ^ "Springfield Union Station Features New Mural". Springfield Union Station. 2019-06-18. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  24. ^ Chimelis, Ron (2019-06-05). "Basketball's Travis Best honored by Springfield mural". masslive. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  25. ^ Kaufman, Jill (2020-06-06). "Artists Paint New Mural In Springfield 'So People Won't Lose Sight' Of Police Brutality". New England Public Media. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  26. ^ "SAY THEIR NAMES: A MURAL IN SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS". Isabella Dellolio Photography. 2020-06-12. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  27. ^ C, Mary (2024-09-06). "Mason Square". Eyes on the Streets. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  28. ^ Torres, Melissa (2022-07-11). "Mural in Springfield to immortalize iconic local photo ads". WWLP. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  29. ^ Plotkin, Evan. "Worthington Street Mural Project". Springfield City Mosaic. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  30. ^ "Local artist beautifying Springfield neighborhoods with murals". WWLP. 2023-05-11. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  31. ^ Budenas, John (2023-06-20). ""Be the Bridge" mural ribbon cutting celebrates community engagement in Springfield". WWLP. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  32. ^ "Mayor Sarno and Councilor Lederman attend Climate Justice Mural Ribbon Cutting Ceremony". www.springfield-ma.gov. 2023-07-13. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  33. ^ "Springfield mural honors Puerto Rican culture and troubadour Miguel 'Pico de Oro' González". New England Public Media. 2023-08-21. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  34. ^ "Mural unveiling in Springfield for Oscar Winner Ruth Carter". WWLP. 2023-08-27. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  35. ^ Santiago, Daniel (2023-08-28). "Ruth Carter mural unveiled at Rebecca Johnson Elementary School in Springfield". www.westernmassnews.com. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  36. ^ O'Brien, George (2023-07-21). "New Mural Captures Springfield's History, Firsts, Character". BusinessWest. Retrieved 2024-02-17.
  37. ^ Wilson, Maria (2024-08-13). "Community comes together for 'The Madonna of Springfield' mural unveiling". www.westernmassnews.com. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  38. ^ "Mayor Sarno joins Common Wealth Murals, Sons & Daughters of Italy, and South End Community for Neighborhood Mural Unveiling". www.springfield-ma.gov. 2024-08-13. Retrieved 2024-10-06.

Further reading

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