“A people without murals are a demuralized people.” That’s the powerful message behind the spirit of The Flow of History Mural.
Hello everyone. Welcome to this stop on our tour. Here we are in front of The Flow of History Mural, a vibrant testament to the power of public art. Murals are deeply important in Washington D.C.
Murals define the communities they are in. When they are destroyed or spaces are redeveloped that identity is also wiped out. Murals celebrate public spaces. They represent the community. Even in graffiti, the work should tie into the local community.
Today, we’ll explore why murals matter and delve into the story behind this particular artwork. Public art has a rich history here. About 20 years ago, Perry Frank began documenting D.C.’s murals. She compiled background on the artists’ intent and the history surrounding murals in D.C.
One of the first contemporary murals in D.C. was at Howard University. It was modeled after the Wall of Respect in Chicago in 1968. Depicting people seen as African American heroes during the Civil Rights Movement, the artwork began the tradition of artists expressing their community values through murals.
“It says something about the need people have to express themselves.” This is according to Frank, the founding director of DC Murals: Spectacle and Story. “To document the places where they are, to make the neighborhoods their own.”
Latino art continues to be an important subgenre in the Washington mural cycle. The city’s oldest street mural helped to brighten up beleaguered and downtrodden city neighborhoods. Dramatic changes have taken place in the ensuing decades. Unfortunately, those changes have spurred the destruction of many of the murals.
One mural, “El Pueblo…”, endured but not without brushes with mortality. Most recently in 2011, its Adams Morgan building suffered earthquake damage. The mural was finally restored by local artist Juan Pineda. This was thanks to a community effort to raise nearly $7,500 from a variety of sources.
According to Carlos Arrien, a local artist who worked on the mural as a youth, the ghost-like figure with the center eye in the upper left represents the omniscient, oppressive presence of the government. The upper right contains monstrous figures gathered around a table playing monopoly under an unshaded light reminiscent of Guernica. The image symbolizes the real estate speculation that decimated affordable housing in the area.
Latino art has continued to be an important subgenre in the Washington mural cycle. The Latin American Youth Center in Columbia Heights provides sponsorship and direction. Temporary murals and street art appeared in the city in reaction to three momentous events during the summer of 2020. These were the death of George Floyd, the flaring of Covid-19 infections and a historic vote in the House of Representatives to make D.C the 51st U.S. state.
MuralsDC commissioned a diverse group of six local artists to create 51 murals around themes of black history, social justice and DC statehood in advance of the historic Congressional vote. As non-essential businesses closed in response to the pandemic, the surfaces of their boarded store fronts were sometimes used as canvases. Owners commissioned artists to express solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and to counter negative stereotypes of people of color through art.
Adams Morgan is covered in street art. These include vibrant murals, colorful building faces and painted jersey barriers. Murals depict life, culture, and values. Because of this, our neighborhood has its own unique style. Some of the murals are here to stay. Others may be replaced in the near future.
The mural “Un Pueblo Sin Murales” is the oldest and only mural remaining in Adams Morgan created by a group of Latino immigrant artists. It was brought back to life in 2005 by Sol & Soul, A D.C. Artists-activist organization, with the collaboration of artist Juan Pineda. It was then renovated again after the earthquake in 2011 also by artist Juan Pineda with a grant from the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities and the assistance of DC Arts Center and the Adams Morgan Partnership BID who secured the funding.
Murals connect us to our past. They reflect our present and inspire our future. As we conclude this stop, take a moment to appreciate the stories these walls tell. Consider what stories you want to see represented in your own community.