"Education is the Key to Success" mural - Billy Taylor Park - Providence, Rhode Island
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Billy Taylor Park in the Mount Hope neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, is home to community-centric murals. Its "Education is the Key 2 Success" piece runs the entire length of the water park's west retaining wall, perpendicular to Cypress St.
Waymark Code: WM11BQZ
Location: Rhode Island, United States
Date Posted: 09/23/2019
Views: 2
Billy Taylor Park in the Mount Hope neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, is home to community-centric murals. Its "Education is the Key 2 Success" piece runs the entire length of the retaining wall west of the water park and perpendicular to Cypress Street. The project was among several murals funded by The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) that were realized throughout the city that Summer.
The long and low piece offers messages of positivity and features an assortment of education- and family-related images. Viewed from left to right:
- A graduation cap sits on a stack of two books
- "EDUCATION IS THE___2 SUCCESS"
- A gold house key
- Silhouettes of graduates in caps and gowns
- An iPhone, a yellow pencil, a pad of ruled paper, a computer monitor, a light bulb, and an Erlenmyer flask
- A music staff with clef symbols, accidental sharp and flat signatures, and notes
- A double line of silhouettes topped by the phrase "OUR FAMILY AND OUR COMMUNITY"
- A pictogram student at a desk below a slate of basic mathematical symbols
Local artist and educator Munir Mohammed led this particular project and said:
"As I worked with them, I started to see how much they’ve learned. Those who could not even draw a straight line are drawing lines. And those who didn’t even know how to paint are painting today. You can see the testimony on the wall to what they did with me.
"If we can engage the youth, Providence needs these types of programs to help educate people; for people to come to Providence to see how artistic we are, how creative we are, and how our history is involved with art. I believe that every kid, every student, everyone has an inborn quality. It could be artistic in painting, it could be artistic in music, it could also be even in cooking! All these are all arts."
You can see him and the youth at work in a short documentary video that was also produced in conjunction with the ARRA program. Watch it here.