A treasured memory. A sense of community. Hope.
 
Eight months after Superstorm Sandy, many in our community are still suffering the aftereffects of this devastating storm.
 
This summer, Groundswell youth will work with renowned street artist Swoon to create four permanent murals for Red Hook, Coney Island, Staten Island, and the Rockaways, among the neighborhoods most affected by the storm.
 
Through this project, teen artists will draw from stories of healing and recovery from impacted neighborhoods to create a visual narrative that captures the concerns, hopes, and overall spirits of these communities.
 
These murals will be tied together by a temporary mural on the Bowery Mural wall. Scheduled to coincide with the anniversary of the storm, it will be a testament to both resilience and vulnerability, and by engaging the public in its design, it will serve to highlight the importance of continued relief efforts for Sandy’s victims.
 
This series is just part of the eight exciting murals New York City teens will create this summer through our flagship program, the Summer Leadership Institute (SLI).
 
Summer Leadership Institute 2013 projects include:
 
 
LIVABLE STREETS: ATLANTIC AVENUE UNDERPASS
 
Groundswell teen artists will use art as a tool to transform an uninspiring underpass into an inviting gateway between the vibrant shopping district on Atlantic Avenue and the beautifully restored Brooklyn Bridge Park, to be safely shared by pedestrians, cyclists, and vehicles alike.
 
The mural will be developed as part of a larger effort to revitalize this underpass, led by the Atlantic Avenue BID together with Interboro Partners and funded by Deputy Mayor Steel and the NYC Department of Small Business Services through the BID Challenge grant. 
 
Lead scholarship sponsorship support is provided by Barclays / Brooklyn Nets.
 
Community Partners: NYC DOT and Atlantic Avenue BID
Location: Atlantic Avenue underpass between Hicks and Columbia streets, Brooklyn, NY 11201
 
Lead Artist: Esteban del Valle
Assistant Artist: Marc Evans
 
 
LIVABLE STREETS: PITKIN AVENUE

Groundswell youth muralists, some with a history of court-involvement, will create a mural designed to highlight community assets in Brownsville, promote a vision of shared streets, and support the economic revitalization of historic Pitkin Avenue.
 
Community Partners: NYC DOT, Pitkin Avenue BID, and the Brownsville Community Justice Center
Location: Lane Bryant, 1550 Pitkin Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11212
 
Lead Artist: Chris Soria
Assistant Artist: Don Christian Jones
 
 
RECOVERY DIASPORA
 
In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, Groundswell’s Voices Her’d Visionaries and Making His’tory teams of emerging youth leaders will work with Master Artist Swoon to create a series of murals addressing disaster recovery in four New York City communities deeply impacted by the devastating storm, including Red Hook, Staten Island, Coney Island, and the Rockaways. These four projects will be tied together by a temporary mural on the famed Bowery Wall by Swoon herself.
 
Project activities in Red Hook, Staten Island, Coney Island, and the Rockaways are made possible through the generous support of LISC New York City.
 
Community Partners: LISC New York City, Astella Development Corporation, Fifth Avenue Committee, Northfield Community LDC, and Ocean Bay Community Development Corporation
Location:
Coney Island: MCU Park, 1904 Surve Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11224
Red Hook: Home/Made, 293 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232
Staten Island: New Dorp High School, 465 New Dorp Lane, Staten Island, NY10306
The Rockaways: Challenge Prepatory Charter School, 710 Hartman Lane, Far Rockaway, NY 11691
Bowery Mural Wall, 272 Bowery, New York, NY 10012
 
Lead Artists: Yana Dimitrova and Misha Tyutyunik
Assistant Artists: Jazmine Hayes and Angel Garcia
 
 
RIVERBANK STATE PARK
 
As Riverbank State Park celebrates its 20th anniversary, Groundswell youth will partner with the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and NYC Department of Environmental Protection to create a mural which engages the park’s diverse visitors in a celebration of our local water cycle, from the Catskill Mountains to New York City.
 
This project is made possible with funds from the Catskill Watershed Corporation in partnership with NYC Department of Environmental Protection, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and Winifred Johnson Clive Foundation.
 
Community Partners: NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and NYC Department of Environmental Protection
Location: Riverbank State Park Water Splashing Area, 679 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10031
 
Lead Artist: Paul Deo
Assistant Artist: Olivia Fu
 
 
STREETWISE: HUNTS POINT
 
Through a unique partnership between Groundswell and the NYC DOT, a team of young artists from the South Bronx will create a mural that illustrates and finds solutions for local residents’ transportation and related environmental concerns.
 
This project is made possible thanks to a significant investment by the Rockefeller Foundation and its Cultural Innovation Fund and is the final in a series of five Hunts Point projects.
 
Community Partner: NYC DOT
Location: 854 Hunts Point Avenue, Bronx, NY 10474
 
Lead Artist: Crystal Bruno
Assistant Artist: Adam Kidder