{"id":10108,"date":"2021-05-18T16:12:11","date_gmt":"2021-05-18T20:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=10108"},"modified":"2021-05-28T14:32:49","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T18:32:49","slug":"better-together-murals-celebrate-diversity-at-title-i-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/better-together-murals-celebrate-diversity-at-title-i-schools\/","title":{"rendered":"Better together: Murals celebrate diversity at Title I schools"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Artist David Freeman at Lynnhaven Elementary School<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Brilliant trumpet tones bellow from a classroom at Lynnhaven Elementary. Artist David Freeman likes to listen to jazz while brushing paint across his mural. The brassy notes match the bold statement he makes with his art.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter Together\u201d is the theme, and the mural shows grasping hands with a wide spectrum of skin tones, stretching over flags of many nations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to show people from all races and all countries,\u201d said Freeman. \u201cI just love diversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The murals will surprise and inspire students after the difficult year of the pandemic and racial discord, said Kate Pittman, executive director of the ViBe Creative District, which recently commissioned four murals at Title I schools in Virginia Beach.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen in-person educational outreach was not possible due to COVID, our board quickly voted to repurpose those funds into the Title I school murals,\u201d she said. \u201cOur goal is to remind children that their community cares for them and wants to encourage them to think positively and creatively in difficult times.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ViBe District published an open call for artist in January, and a lottery system selected four schools. Principals picked the artwork they felt best represented their school, and the artists received a $1,250 stipend. Under the theme \u201cBetter Together,\u201d the 8-by-12-foot murals embrace cultural individuality while encouraging inclusivity.<\/p>\n

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The four original mural concepts<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In Freeman\u2019s mural, an orange and yellow sun blazes over the planet Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we humans all got along,\u201d he said, \u201cwe\u2019d create a powerful energy source.\u201d<\/p>\n

Principal Teri Breaux picked Freeman\u2019s mural concept because it reflects the school\u2019s values of celebrating Lynnhaven Elementary\u2019s families and communities around the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo watch it from a blank slate to a sketch, to now a colorful masterpiece has been exciting for us to see,\u201d said Breaux, who is looking forward to the mural being in the school cafeteria for many years to come. \u201cWe want everyone in our school community to feel embraced and celebrated, and Mr. Freeman\u2019s mural embodies that same vision.\u201d<\/p>\n

The three other \u201cBetter Together\u201d artists are also VBCPS teachers:<\/p>\n