Local Artists Inspiring Conversation and Dialogue
On Friday, July 3rd, artists Makayla Binter, Matthew Clayburn, LordPhly, and Adelle Patten repainted mural panels on our front steps (200 E. 7th Street). These murals are part of The Mural Panel Project and in direct response to the development of the BLM movement in Charlotte.
The Mural Panel Project is an interactive mural project dedicated to fostering conversation and dialogue among different communities through art. At the start of its inception, the project looked at Racism, Colorism, Homophobia, and Classism in relation to the experiences of students, faculty, and staff on the campus of Davidson College.
After a difficult year at Davidson College where two students were removed from campus for racist tweets, Makayla Binter sought to create a mural project that would serve as an interactive space for the community to engage with difficult topics like racism, colorism, classism, and homophobia, and to ultimately facilitate reconciliation.
“Public art and murals are meant to create change,” Makayla writes. “The mural project contributes to peace because it provides a safe entry point for people with different opinions and from different backgrounds to connect through art.”
Makayla hopes that the murals will facilitate more open and productive dialogue on topics that affects all of us, as she experienced within the dialogues at Davidson College.
“Something magical happens when people have the opportunity to create with one another,” she writes. “Being a part of that kind of creative process and being a catalyst for change was breathtaking!”
As this project continues to evolve, the goal is to move these panels to different locations and address new topics. For now find them on our front steps and see the artists responses to the developing Black Lives Matter movement in Charlotte.
Check out these videos of the artists at work here and their message here.
To support the mural project, click here.
Follow the artists and their work: @mkay_15, @lordphly, @grateful.artist and @matthewclayburn