Then, I started to ask myself..
“How do I help these conversations? What can I do as an artist? What can I say?” - Sir James Thornhill
2020 MURALS
2021 MURALS
TRANSCENDING WALLS
Mending Walls and Richmond Hill spent the spring and summer of 2022 planning, engaging, and executing a vision for the approximately 500 ft wall that surrounds the southside side of the property. The land adjacent to the wall is a Richmond City Public Park known as Taylor’s Hill Park. This work involved collaboration with community members, organizations, and Richmond Parks and Recreation.
The project focused on a central theme of “Transcending Walls.” This central theme will served as a north star in the process, as we worked together to build empathy and connection to transcend walls both physical and metaphorical throughout the entire collaboration process.
There were three key areas we identified as important parameters: history, community, and art.
History
The history of the site was significant to informing the community about what sits adjacent to them, and at the same time will be used to inform the concept of the artwork.
Community
We worked with the Richmond Hill community and partners that have historical attachment and/or knowledge of the space, and even those that may not, but who want to understand more, to come to a place of shared understanding and agreement around how the institution can meet the needs of the surrounding community.
Art
Mending Walls will use the artistic process and community process to support Richmond Hill's goal of telling their story to the community and including the community's story, to achieve an outcome that tells the shared history and goals of Richmond Hill and the community.
TRUST BUILDING/S
The Trust Building murals are a continuation of the Mending Walls mission—bringing people together through art and conversation. These murals were created as part of a collaborative effort to encourage trust, empathy, and connection across lines of difference. Each piece was co-created by Alfonso Perez and Noah Scalin in partnership with One Small Step, connecting people with different lived experiences, who came together to reflect on difficult conversations and translate them into powerful public art. Through these works, we invite our community to pause, reflect, and engage in the ongoing work of building trust—one wall, one story, one relationship at a time.
