“”First-graders from Hamilton Elementary School spent time contributing to the newest large-scale mural in downtown La Crosse.
Local artist Annie Morris is currently working on the mural which is being painted on the north side of the Midwest Family Broadcasting building located at 201 State Street in downtown La Crosse. The mural is a graphic white on black drawing of a face with a hand behind the ear. A large wave sweeps from one side of the wall into the ear. Inside the wave is an abstract, action painting of many different bold colors. The wall is 24 feet high by 77 feet long, and around 1,800 square feet in total. The first-graders will be creating action splatter painting on the wave portion of the mural.
Morris says the inspiration for the project came from a few different sources: the shape of the wall and its placement in the surrounding environment, the purpose of the building, and her desire to create something that was bold and bright when viewed from a distance.
“Kids are greatly enriched by the opportunity to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and it shows them that anyone can create art,” said artist Annie Morris. “I can’t think of anything more beautiful than that. I hope our schools will continue to be open to allowing me and other willing artists to help groups of students create large-scale artwork in the near future.”
The project helps the students express themselves through art but also ties into the lessons being taught in the classroom about what it means to be a part of a community.
“We have been learning about neighborhoods and community this year, and we are currently talking about what it means to be a community helper,” said Hamilton first-grade teacher Barb Wettstein. “The mural project ties in beautifully with these units and gives the kids a chance to work on something that will help beautify their city in a way that is very memorable.”
Morris hopes to have the mural completed by the end of this week.””””[vc_gallery type=”flexslider_slide” interval=”0″ images=”14629,14628,14631,14639,14637,14634,14636,14630,14635,14633,14632,14640,14638,14642″ img_size=”625×417″]””
