Last week, I was looking through my Instagram feed and saw a post from the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) announcing the unveiling of a new Detroit mural in the Osborn neighborhood, located on the east side of the city. The mural, painted by local artists Phillip Simpson and Tony Rave, is part of the “Welcome to Osborn” project.
“Welcome to Osborn” is an art project presented by the DIA and the Osborn Neighborhood Alliance (ONA) to transform Detroit’s Osborn neighborhood “into an art destination with a mural created by local artists” (DIA “Welcome to Osborn”). The mural was funded by the Knight Arts Challenge.
If you know me, you know how much I love community events and supporting community projects. So I told my teens we were going to the unveiling event.
They were actually pretty excited about going and seeing the Detroit mural. It was surprising to me because usually when I want to go to an event, there’s at least one “Oh, do we have to go?” grunt from one of the teens. But this time, both teens were eager to go! A win for mom!
Aside from my great love for mural art, I also love teaching my children about community and the importance of supporting the community. I felt like the “For the Love of Osborn Neighborhood Parade” was a great way to show my children the strength and value of the community.
I love mural art. If I could have the walls in our home painted with murals, I probably would. That’s how much I love murals. But we’re renting and I don’t think the owners would like that too much.
My husband calls me a “mural chaser” because whenever we are out and about I most always ask him to stop the van if I see a mural.
I find it absolutely amazing that artists can create paintings and sketches on buildings and walls. I’ve always wondered how they do it. I have yet to watch an artist paint a mural live, but I am hoping to make my dream come true at this year’s Murals in the Market in Downtown Detroit.
There is a great assortment of beautiful murals in Detroit. I decided to take on a little photography project and try to photograph as many murals as I can find. Finding mural art in Detroit is like going on a great scavenger hunt, where the discovery of a mural is the treasured prize.
Years from now, I know some of the murals will no longer be up. I think having photographs of the murals from our time in Detroit will be a great way to document part of Detroit’s history.
If you go to see Detroit’s Osborn Neighborhood Mural…
The mural was unveiled on Friday, August 5, 2016, and it is located at 13560 East McNichols Road on the north wall of the Matrix Human Services building.
For more information about the Detroit Institute of Arts, please visit their official website here.
Also, check out: Mack is Alive! and How to Give Back on Giving Tuesday.
All photographs are courtesy of Jennifer Hamra for Good Life Detroit.
