In collaboration with the NYC DOT and Bogopa Service Corporation, Groundswell youth artists served as ambassadors for safer streets by creating a 2,000-square foot collaborative mural that seeks to stop Driving While Intoxicated (DWI). "The Crossroads / La Encrucijada", located on a Food Bazaar Supermarket, reminds New Yorkers that their choices matter when it comes to reducing DWI crashes.
 
The design for "The Crossroads / La Encrucijada" explores the consequences of driving while intoxicated. At the center, a man driving is at a crossroads of a decision. To the left, the mural depicts a bright red, hazy cityscape that signifies the effects of drinking while intoxicated. To the right, the mural has harmonious, cool colors with a scene of peace. The design gives its viewers the opportunity to observe the two options they have when facing the decision of driving while intoxicated. The phrase "Maneja Sobrio / Drive Sober” captions the mural in a bold declaration.
 
"It has been a joy working with the youth to better educate them on Vision Zero and develop this mural that will remind New Yorkers of the dangers of driving while under the influence," said NYC DOT Assistant Commissioner for Education and Outreach Kim Wiley-Schwartz. "Thanks to Commissioner Polly Trottenberg and Groundswell, residents in the South Bronx will have a daily reminder of the potential tragedies of DWI."

 
 
 
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“I Just Want To Come Home” declares a new mural in Bushwick on a Food Bazaar Supermarket, painted by a team of young men considering the complex relationship between police and young men of color.
 
As proven by recently publicized deaths and the #BlackLivesMatter activist movement, police-civilian relations do not always come with the promise of youth coming home after an alteration. The artist team researched this topic through interviews with activists, Brooklyn council members and legislators, lifelong residents and newcomers to the Bushwick community, and police officers from the 90th Precinct. They read articles, watched videos, listened to podcasts, and discussed issues around police aggression, the war on drugs, mass incarceration, protests in Ferguson and Baltimore, the militarization of police in contemporary America, and discussed with police officers how they view this conversation.  
 
The mural utilizes the phrase “I Just Want To Come Home” as its rallying call to action, inspired by their interview with police from the 90th Precinct. The youth asked “What do you think about when getting ready for work?” to which one officer responded, “I just want to come home at the end of the day.” Resonating beyond its origin from the officers’ reply, this sentiment echoes a larger call from everyday civilians to prevent the recurrence of such cases as Sandra Bland, Eric Garner, and Kalief Browder, who spent three years on Rikers Island without being convicted of a crime before committing suicide. The mural brings together these various narratives on common ground to address the tense conflict. Within the words are faces of the artists and local community members, which bring a focus to Bushwick as an important site for reflection, debate, and activism.
 
 
 
 
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⇒ Watch video series and panel discussion on the mural by WNET Thirteen (website)

Learning has been proven fun through a “Carnival” of color, vibrancy, and community engagement with youth artists. With three monumental murals already installed on the exterior of the school, Groundswell returned to East Brooklyn Community High School (EBCHS) to engage students in the completion of a fourth mural to bring a positive vision of education to EBCHS students.
 
This mural depicts East Brooklyn Community High School as a beacon of hope for students in the community, providing students with opportunities and support they might not find elsewhere. Through an overarching theme of a vintage amusement park or carnival, the design illustrates how the school stands apart from traditional avenues of education. The design invites students in and providing them with all of the support they need through thoughtful activities and programming, making school exciting and fun. Each symbol on the mural represents an aspect of the school's functions and core values.
 
Through this multi-project mural collaboration, Groundswell and EBCHS transformed the exterior of the school to mirror the positive transformations taking place within. The murals articulate a vision of joyful exploration, discovery and change that every student deserves to experience in school and carry with them throughout their lives
 
This project is a product of the Community School partnership between East Brooklyn Community High School and SCO Family of Services in collaboration with the DOE Office of Community Schools and the United Way of NYC.

The artist team behind this project, consisting of only women, explored the hidden treasures of Brownsville’s industrious women leaders through “The Women of Brownsville: Telling Our Story.” This mural was created as part of “Transform/Restore: Brownsville,” an initiative launched with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) through its national Our Town. To create this message, the youth women participated in an intensive artistic training, presented with the support of the New York City Council through its STARS Citywide Girls Initiative.
 
Purples, violets, pinks, and a calm sunset yellow combine for the color palette of this inspiring mural. “The Women of Brownsville: Telling Our Story” centers on a large book opening to reveal three portraits of Brownsville women, haloed by a light of inspiration. To their left, Brownsville buildings stand strong and tall. Two hands create the shape of a cracked heart with a bandage over the wound, illustrating the need to end then heal violence against women. The words “We are…” hang to the right of the women. From this prompt comes empowering answers, such as “entrepreneurs,” “artists,” “protectors,” and “fighters.”
 
“Since we began envisioning the ‘Transform/Restore: Brownsville’ mural series, Groundswell took care to understand the valuable contributions of every member of the Brownsville community,” said Groundswell Executive Director Amy Sananman about the mural. “With the inclusion of the STARS Citywide Girls Initiative, this project can continue that vision by addressing experiences that can often be overlooked even in the most progressive of movements: the experiences of women of color. This mural celebrates the agency of Brownsville’s powerful women through using art as a tool of social change.”
 
 
 
 
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Groundswell and Row New York, the only program of its kind dedicated to teaching young people in under-resourced communities the sport of competitive rowing, unveil a mural banner series celebrating watershed stewardship. Entitled “House of Knowledge,” “Boat of Success,” and “The Flow of Knowledge” (shown above), the series was created by teen artists with guidance from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and will be installed for public display at Row New York’s three New York City facilities, including its World’s Fair Boathouse on Meadow Lake in Queens, Long Island City headquarters, and Peter Jay Sharp boathouse in Upper Manhattan, to be seen by thousands of participants and visitors each year.
 
As part of the Teen Empowerment Mural Apprenticeship (TEMA), the group began working on the mural series in October. They met with New York City Department of Environmental Protection educators, taking field trips to relevant sites such as the Croton Reservoir and Catskill Watershed, and conducting intensive research into New York City’s reservoir system.
 
In “House of Knowledge,” installed at Row New York’s Long Island City headquarters, the water cycle, from the Catskill Mountains to the water treatment plant, is captured within a single glass. Row New York’s commitment to academic success is illustrated through a cityscape made of books and several figures reading. In the image, a large figure in a graduation cap turns a faucet, representing a Row New York alumni returning home to support their community. (1027 46th Avenue #101, Long Island City, NY 11101)
 
In “Boat of Success,” installed at the World’s Fair Boathouse in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, the mountains, gears, a faucet, and a dam combine to evoke the complexity of the New York City water system. Three figures hold up a boat containing important Queens landmarks. A lightbulb shines onto a small figure reading in the background, illuminating the path to academic and personal achievement. (30 Meadow Lake Road West, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, NY 11366)
 
In “The Flow of Knowledge,” installed in Harlem at the Peter Jay Sharp boathouse, a figure representative of the NYC DEP holds a wrench and maintains a dam. Above the dam arise the Catskill mountain watershed as it is replenished by rain while beneath it four figures row toward success. In the end, a graduate of Row New York fills a champion’s #1 trophy. Winding ivy is used in all three banners, to unite them even if they are not hung together once installed. (3579 Harlem River Drive, Harlem, NY 10034)
 
 
 
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“My Sister’s Keeper” illustrates the unique challenges faced by women on their road to self-sufficiency and recovery from addiction. The artist team was comprised of women in recovery, and together they created a mindful celebration of sisterhood and transformation for an audience of women who need to see reflections of themselves they can identify with and celebrate. The mural depicts several scenes important to a woman’s recovery from addiction. In one scene, two women sit together in sisterhood. One sister in the back weaves the light of possibility and positive change into the other’s hair. In another scene, there is a powerful image of transformation. A figure of a woman hunches over as she unplugs herself from addiction. A beautiful lotus—symbolizing triumph after struggle—blossoms out of her back. From the lotus rises a butterfly and the metamorphosis it represents.
 
This project is made possible with public funds from the New York City Council through its STARS Citywide Girls Initiative. 
 
 
 
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This memorial mural was painted to honor the lives of three members of the East Elmhurst community who died in the World Trade Center attacks: Marcello Matricciano, Edward Joseph Lehman, and James Marcel Cartier. The mural focuses on representing existing imagery and monuments made to acknowledge the historical event. In addition to the imagery representing the event itself, we chose to use portraits of each of the three remembered and accompany those portraits with symbols related to something unique to each individual. These images where recommended by the family members themselves and included a cyclist, Curious George (based on the Cartier’s love of the cartoon character), and images relating to a local baseball team.
 
The East Elmhurst community wanted the mural to not only remember their friends and family, but all the events of 9/11. To capture this spirit, the mural design includes the shape of the Pentagon, four stars to symbolize the four planes involved in the attack, the original World Trade Center towers. Jutting out from between these images is the Freedom Tower, signaling a hopeful future. 

“The Wonderful Journey of Learning” mural transforms a graffiti-ridden bridge in Sunset Park and enlivens the pedestrian walkway with a celebration of teamwork and lifelong learning. Through a series of hands-on design workshops, the students created imagery to illustrate P.S. 310’s core values of teamwork and lifelong learning. During visual literacy exercises, youth artists explored symbolic imagery and its ability to be both representational and abstract. The students gravitated toward a motif of plants (people) growing throughout life, reaching for the sun (learning). The students also discussed environments in which learning can happen, concluding that the potential for learning is everywhere, not just in the classroom.
 
The mural design is composed of three symbolic spaces: home, community, and school. A ray of light travels through each space. This ray also functions as a jump rope that abstracted human figures collaboratively jump together. Together with the ray, a plant grows through the horizontal design and reaches for the sun, suggesting lifelong growth and learning. The corrugated wall surface challenged students to rely on color, shape, and pattern to communicate their message. The fifth graders hope to inspire their fellow students, parents, community members, and passersby who may not be aware of the presence of an elementary school to keep the area around their school clean and graffiti free.
 
 
 
 
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