Boston: Urban Canvas

A program in Boston encourages young people to use collaborative outreach techniques to design and paint murals -- and foster community pride in many of Boston's neighborhoods.

1 minute read

July 31, 2004, 7:00 AM PDT

By Connie Chung

Many of the participants of the 'Mural Crew,' a program that encourages young people to design and paint murals in Boston, say that murals are a part of the City's 'common culture.' "Look all around the city, from Roxbury's Dudley Square and Uphams Corner in Dorchester to Jamaica Plain's Centre Street and the South End's Tremont Street, and you see them -- portraits, montages, and landscapes -- on grocery stores, salons, and health centers."

The program has been so popular that community groups, residents and businesses regularly ask the Mural Crew to paint their walls. "Boston's crew has taken a cue from San Francisco, home to 600 murals, and Philadelphia, which has more than 2,400." Program organizers hope one of these days to see the City of Boston organize a mural tour similar to the one in Philadelphia.

Thanks to Connie Chung

FULL STORY: The urban gallery

Sunday, July 25, 2004 in The Boston Globe

Social / Demographics Massachusetts

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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