Mason Square

Posted on September 6, 2024 by Mary C

Springfield MA is home to many murals. This blog post looks at some of them that were seen in the Mason Square neighborhood of that city.

A celebration of Black music that was originally painted in 1974 by Nelson Stevens. Stevens painted many murals in the Springfield area during his lifetime. He died last year at the age of 86. This mural was rededicated earlier in 2022.

below: Martin Luther King in “The Beloved Community” by Nero and Souls.

below: Say Their Names – A tribute mural to the more than 60 black and brown people killed in the USA in the year up to 1 June 2020 by the police – a project that was came about in response to the murder of George Floyd. Also included are the names of Springfield MA residents who have been killed in interactions with the police. This project was organized by Common Wealth Murals and Art for the Soul Gallery, and hosted by the Martin Luther King Jr. Family Services of Springfield. The mural was designed and painted by artist Wane One from New York City, with assistance from two other artists, Nero and Souls.

below: A healing mural – “You heal the soil, You heal yourself, You heal our neighborhood”. Another Community Mural Institute mural. The actual title is “Gardening the Community” and was painted by Ryan Murray, 2021.

below: RIP “Preacher Man”, Randolph Lester (1940-2017) The mural was designed by GoodSpace Murals for the Community Mural Institute. Three Springfield artists were involved: Frankie Borrero, Emma Mesa-Melendez, and Martin Johnson

below: On the walls of Rebecca M. Johnson School there is a series of paintings featuring Ruth E. Carter, costume designer, author and Springfield native. The images also show some of the many costumes she designed for films including Black Panther, Coming to America, Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, and Selma.

below: “Tribute to Black Women”, painted in 1974 by Nelson Stevens and repainted in 2022 by the Community Mural Institute.

I am a black woman, tall as a cypress, strong beyond all definition, defying time and circumstance, assailed, impervious, indestructable. Look on me and be renewed.

below: Wall of Fame

Photos taken July 2024

Planet Harlem

Posted on July 16, 2024 by Mary C

From across the street it looks rather chaotic, colourful but a bit of a mess.

a red car is parked in front of a street art mural beside corner social store, planet harlem mural by paul deo

On closer inspection, it is an amazing collection of figures (mostly famous ones) and stories. This is Planet Harlem. It was started in 2012 by artist Paul Deo. At that time he won a competition to paint a mural by Corner Social (still there!) at 126th St and Malcolm X Blvd. Rucker on the basketball player’s shirt is a nod to Rucker Park, a Harlem park with a basketball court where a number of “stars” honed their skills.

I wish that I could name all the people that this mural celebrates. There is Barak Obama as well as Micheal Jackson, the Jackson Five, and Aretha Franklin but there are other politicians and entertainers too.

A Harlem landmark, the Apollo Theatre features prominently in the mural.

A black panther lurks here too.

Planet Harlem Story is a website to visit if you are interested in more of the story behind the mural.

Another source for more information about the mural and Harlem’s history can be found at ‘City Lore’ (a site about NYC) where this quote is from: “As the growth in the Black Harlem population continued in the 1920s from places like lower Manhattan, the southern US states, and parts of the Caribbean, an artistic and cultural movement grew to highlight the connections between self-expression, creativity, and Black heritage. Harlem specifically became a place for educators, scholars, writers, jazz musicians, singers, dancers, poets, and activists like Alain Locke, W.E.B. Du Bois, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Marcus Garvey, Duke Ellington, Alberta Hunter, and so many more….”

part of planet harlem mural by Paul Deo, Dapper Dan

The word ‘Infinity’ is written on the man’s gold sleeve. His other sleeve says ‘Faith’.

railways both underground and overhead

Posted on May 24, 2023 by Mary C

Just north of the falls, there is a railway bridge that crosses the Niagara River. On the American side of the river is the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center. It is housed in the 1863 Customs House adjacent to the Amtrak station. Niagara Falls was the last stop of one the routes of the Underground Railway, a network of routes and safe houses used by enslaved Black Americans to escape to freedom. It was an established border crossing that was readily accessible via numerous transportation routes, including the Erie Canal. There was a well-established network of abolitionists and anti-slavery activists in western New York. It is estimated that between 30,000 and 40,000 freedom seekers settled in Canada.

below: “Enjoy this day that God has given us”, John Lewis (1940-2020) at the corner of Main and Depot in Niagara Falls NY. Lewis was a politician and civil rights activist. This mural was painted by Princessa Williams

mural with portrait of John Lewis next to a large American flag

below: “We rise by lifting others” by Ashley Kay. This mural honours Doris Jones who was the head of the Niagara Falls Housing Authority for 25 years. Painted in 2019.

mural on an underpass, portrait of a black woman

below: Harriet Tubman and “A Light of Hope” by Madonna Pannell, 2019. This image references a crossing across the Niagara Suspension Bridge that Tubman made in 1856 with four freedom seekers. The bridge no longer exists but its remains can be seen from the Heritage Center.

mural tribute to Harriet Tubman and the underground railway

close up of part of mural, Harriet Tubman holding a lantern with a few shadowy figures in the background

below: “Historic Cataract House” by Imani Williamson. the Cataract Hotel was built on the banks of the Niagara River in 1825. It had a wait staff that was entirely African American and these Black waiters often led double lives as secret Underground Railroad agents.

below: “The time is always right to do what is right” by Muhammad Zaman. This is a quote from Martin Luther King Jr’s final sermon on 31st March 1968 at the National Cathedral in Washington DC. The calligraphy is in Bengali, Arabic, and English.

below: Saxophone player with words and music a mural by Edreys Wajed; a portrait of tenor saxophonist and jazz musician John “Spider” Martin.

mural on side of underpass, yellow background, close up portrait of a man holding a saxophone

below: Black Lives Matter, a mural by Ashley Kay and Tyshaun Tyson, 2020

below: Holding signs with slogans and phrases that became synonymous with Black Lives Matter, “Say their names” and “No Justice, No Peace”.

below: “The New Spirit of Niagara Falls” by Jonathan Rogers, 2019

two murals at the end of an underpass, one has yellow people on a blue background and the other is a portrait of a boxer mostly in reds

below: Portrait of Calvin “Pop” Porter, a professional boxer, gym owner, and community leader by Jalen Law.

mural by Jalen Law of a boxer, in abstract colours, bright reds and blues

below: This long mural featuring portraits of a number of kids is the work of Sarah Zak.

mural with kids doing different things, playing, reading, standing by Niagara Falls

below: Support All Women, a mural celebrating the empowerment of women, painted by Amira Moore.

below: Uhuru Love, aka Dr. Gloria Daniels Butler, was an artist, educator, and civil rights activist. She adopted the name Uhuru Love in 1965 – Swahili and English words meaning “freedom (is) love”. The mural was painted by Lashonda Davis.

below: “A Niagara Falls Love Story” by Tyshaun Tyson, 2019. Alice Hayes was an active member of the community (her biography is online) and her husband Charles B. Hayes was Niagara Falls first black physician when the couple arrived in the city in 1935.

below: Freedom seekers map, the routes to Niagara Falls. Painted by Natalia Suska, 2019

below: Channeling the energy from the falls to be put toward the pursuit of freedom. “The Niagara Movement” mural by Thomas Asklar and Matthew Conroy. The Niagara Movement was a black civil rights group founded in 1905 by W.E.B. Du Bois (pictured here) and William Monroe Trotter. It was named for the “mighty current” of change the group wanted to effect and took Niagara Falls as its symbol.