Martin Luther King, Jr. Mural Competition: Final Post!

This post will wrap up an ongoing blog series that showcases the murals that have been on display in our hostel this February in celebration of the life and work of Martin Luther King, Jr. Student artists were selected to create individual murals on the 2nd floor windows of Hostelling International Chicago. The artists intalled their work throughout the first two weeks of January. Here are the final two!

April Son, Zebadiah Arrington & Suhyung Go
School of the Art Institute of Chicago

"We've been kept inside of walls from fears that came when communication failed. Looking through the windows, we've missed a lot of chances. We've made enough mistakes every time we've tried to reach out further.

However, the time to go out always comes back just like the hands on clocks circle around. It's time to step back from the window and walk toward the doors again. We believe this is the message through the history of struggling for humanity, which Martin Luther King, Jr. also believed in.

Three individuals stand together in front of Window to put this together spontaneously for dreaming a perfection of communication. This piece is inviting and welcoming the viewers not only to appreciate it, but also to step back and look outside of the window. Black and White means a fairness of the difference. Every individual is as important as the next one. And everything has existed by sharing things, not dividing in mathematics. The unify and connectivity of biological geometry that is within all of us is a key symbol of understanding the equality for all."

James Teague & Cheryl Thomas
Hostelling International Chicago staff

"At some point in life we decide what's next for us! For some, it's not always a conscious choice. For others, it's not a choice that we make as much as it is made for us. Yet still, for some it is written in the stars for us and we simply do our best to live up to that.

For Dr. King, his path was, we believe, both focused and incidental. You see the picture of him during what I feel is in contemplation early in his life. Possibly a moment when fate intervened and his destiny was revealed to him? The yellow foot prints represent his fear of this dark path, and that of those who knew and supported him. The process of not knowing what is ahead of him, but knowing he must journey onward.

The red foot prints represent his commitment and resolve to make this world a better place for all and the price of his pursuit - his life. With many threats to his life and that of his family and his friends being murdered around him - he did not stop. Even in death.

Finally, his journey culminates at his final and lasting resting place - hoping that in death he can still impact life. And he has!

Many people that we know can attest to the ideology of the title of the window...the poor kid who makes it out of "the 'hood" to play pro-ball; the driven student who makes it to Harvard to receive his new law degree; the lost child who finds her fame and focus in front of an audience that she connects with. Life is about our commitment to being more, doing more, having more - it is about the journey. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s journey was to follow the path on which he believed that GOD had placed him.

What is your journey? Where will it lead you? Will it end at your death? Focus, drive, commitment is what gets that one foot in front of the other. Will it lead you to your destiny?"

We hope you've enjoyed this series of posts about the murals, and that you got a chance to come check out the murals in person for yourselves! For more information about this competition, and if you'd be interested in participating next year, please check out our website.

MLK Mural Series, Part 5

This is the fifth part in a series in which we are highlighting entries from our 6th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Mural Competition. Student artists in the Chicago area were selected for the Competition based on their current portfolios. Congratulations to all our 2012 Competition participants! Come take a look and maybe even get inspired to enter the competition yourself next year!

Elcin Marasli

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, '13 

"My project consists of multiple hand drawings in various expressive states, symbolizing the sufferings, hope and victory of a "handful of society" or "hands of the people" coming together for the progress and maintenance of justice. The overall mural is a symbolic, decorative and abstract form revealing a homogenous single drop of water at large, overlaid with drawings of hands in black, uniform stroke. When the morning sun directly hits the window, the animated brush strokes allow for a playful reflection of changing tones of the color blue. The labor-intensive layering of brush strokes also indicates the historical progression in the fight for justice as a timely endeavor.

The composition is divided into three sections, as is the actual phyical window surface. The bottom part includes a large-scale drawing of Martin Luther King's hands connected in wishful position (note King's ring to identify). King's person endeavor in fighting for justice and equality is depicted in the expressivity of his hand gesture as a symbolic outreach from the personal to the public, where he lays ground for the fight for justice with his own hands, and opens it up for people to enliven his dream. The second (middle) section of the mural includes smaller-scale hands in giving and taking positions, representing society at large opening up to King's ideas and taking them in. Finally, the third and top part of the mural consists of small-scale hands in positions of victory and strength, in this case closed fists, portraying justice at it's victorious state.

In changing scale from small at the top to larger at the bottom, the image imitates a flowing motion of water, or a big drop / splash of water from the source to the basin. There are no power relations involved in the flow of justice. King is not only a giver but also a receiver, and the public at large is equally a source of opinions constantly flowing, in and out of King's foundational basis, enlivening and transforming it. This is also to suggest that that "justice case roll like water" only in an environment of mutual exchange of ideas and understanding between King and sociey at large, with an equal strive for equal rights to each member of the society, a homogenous and uniform coexistence."

Ji Ha Park
School of the Art Institute of Chicago

"We are basically different. We have different skin color, gender, ethnicity, age and so on. We also live in different situations in this world. However, we are all the same human beings. There is no question. However, in reality we still discriminate against the visible differences. Nevertheless, I believe that it can be changed little by little. My message of this painting is "hope." We should not forget the message by Dr. King, all beings are equal, the same."

*The murals are on display through March at Hostelling International Chicago, 24 East Congress Parkway. The exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing between 9am and 9pm, seven days a week. Check out our website for more information and the complete gallery! Don't forget to check out part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4 of the series, and have a lovely Leap Day!

Martin Luther King, Jr. Mural Series, Part 4!

This is the fourth part in a series in which we are highlighting entries from our 6th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Mural Competition. Student artists in the Chicago area were selected for the Competition based on their current portfolios. Congratulations to all our 2012 Competition participants! Come take a look and maybe even get inspired to enter the competition yourself next year!

Jacqueline Renee Friedberg

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, '12

"We all have dreams. When we work together, we can make these dreams reality. This statement has been proven through the leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his followers. His words can still be heard and the actions we take today can still result in civil justice."

Ahyun Kim

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, '12 

"Water gives life to every living being. It spreads to all directions and reaches to every life form without any discrimination. This relationship between water and life resembles the strong will of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his influence on human rights. Martin Luther King, Jr. constantly worked for civil rights and never stopped. His incredibly hard work reaches to individuals all over the world today and even to the future. I wanted to emphasize these great influences of Martin Luther King, Jr. by painting him making a big stream. Finally, the mighty stream bonds everyone together as a whole."

*The murals are on display through March at Hostelling International Chicago, 24 East Congress Parkway. The exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing between 9am and 9pm, seven days a week. Check out our website for more information and the complete gallery! Don't forget to check out part 1, part 2, and part 3 of the series, and have a lovely Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday!

Martin Luther King Murals, Continued!

This is the third part in a series in which we are highlighting entries from our 6th annual Martin Luther King Mural Competition. Student artists in the Chicago area were selected for the Competition based on their current portfolios. Congratulation to all our 2012 Competition participants! Come take a look and maybe even get inspired to enter the competition yourself next year!

Skech 185 / Willie MacIntyre & Louder Than A Bomb Poets
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.s well-known phrase - "until justice rolls down like waters" - has the same rhetorical power as it did August 28, 1963, but the words themselves sound different after more than 50 years, especially when spoken from the mouths of Chicago's young people. Today, Chicago is known as the most racially segregated city in the United States. Chicago Speaks presents the sounds of a segregated city in conversation. We are asking, "what does integration sound like?"

This mural project is a fusion of Chicago-based histories in poetry and imagery from Louder Than A Bomb poets to explore the conflation of integration and diversity. As a text based mural, coupled with images of Chicago's youth, the work is similar to a 21st Century Greek Chourus resounding in multi-voice narratives. This is what Chicago sounds like!

Seonjoo Cho, nighttime photo of artwork

Seonjoo Cho, daytime photo of artwork

Seonjoo Cho

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, '13
"We need both white and black keys to make music. That is the reason for coexistence."

*The murals are on display through March at Hostelling International Chicago, 24 East Congress Parkway. The exhibition is free and open to the public for viewing between 9am and 9pm, seven days a week. Check out our website for more information and the complete gallery! Don't forget to check out part 1 and part 2 of the series, and have a lovely Valentine's Day!