The long saga of making the Black Lives Matter mural between 10th and 11th on Pine permanent is finally over (hopefully). This weekend, Vivid Matter Collective, the group of 16 artists behind the original mural, put the finishing touches on the new version of the piece using paints that can better withstand the weather and wear and tear of the pavement. Stop signs are installed at 10th and Pine to encourage cars to move around the art more slowly. The city also erected yellow traffic barriers to protect the mural further.
In early July, the BLM mural got an unauthorized coat of sealant by rogue artist and Central Area Chamber of Commerce President Lawrence Pitre and his associate Tanya, causing the paint to erode from the street's surface. After months of negotiating, VMC worked with the city to remove the original mural, created in the early days of the Capitol Hill Organized Protest, and re-do the piece. Barring any other rogue sealers, it looks like the mural is here to stay for a good long while.
I went down there this afternoon to get a closer look. Here are some close-up pictures of the freshly re-done mural:
Kimisha Turner did the "B" and Perry Porter did the "L." JK
2019 Neddy Award Winner Aramis Hamer did the gold-chained "V," one of my favorite letters in the piece. JK
Barry Johnson's "E" and Sneke's "S." JK
The final letter of the mural, "R" by AfroSPK JK
Check out this video for a some in-process shots and an interview with Takiyah Ward of Vivid Matter Collective:
