Visual Art | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh City Paper: Public art, specifically murals, has become increasingly important in the Pittsburgh arts community. Back in 2003, "Lend Me Your Ears," a mural by Jordan Monahan, executed with assistance from Alison Zapata, was one of the many art projects that welcomed visitors to and honored the residents of East Liberty.
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I’ve always wondered how public murals like these were put up. I always thought they were like graffiti, because back home there are some incredible murals and graffiti around the city, so it was interesting to read that there is so much red tape and managing involved into the project. In hindsight, it seems like that makes sense, however, I feel like things like these are better when they are more spontaneous and less controlled. I think bringing those things in kind of detracts from the creativity and the liberty the artist has. On the other hand, I understand that there must be some level of planning involved. Things like where the funding goes, when the deadlines are, what the laws are for public art, and other paperwork things like I understand there needs to be some from of regulation. Like I didnt know that there are permits for things lie this, but I suppose that makes sense. When they said that "It took well over a year to complete the red tape portion of the project, such as contracts and other paperwork, sourcing materials and supplies, securing permits, etc.," I was really surprised.
I always love murals. I think that it was a really good idea for Duolingo to take on a mural painting project once given the criticism of their first mural being painted over. Bringing in BIPOC artist to create art for the neighborhood is a great way to make sure that the addition of the big Duolingo business is not adding to the rampant gentrification. It would be better of course if they were turning to local Pittsburgh BIPOC artists. I know there are so many who create such beautiful art, as seen by the tons of amazing murals already in and around Pittsburgh. But any effort is a step in the right direction and the art created by the artists brought into town is no less beautiful and powerful. I hope that they continue to fund more of these murals so that Pittsburgh can be covered in the beautiful art.
I'm glad that Duolingo put money forward to fund more murals, but this process seems to be unique to what I've heard of before. A couple of years ago, I interviewed a tattoo artist and muralist because I was doing research on tattoo artists. When I asked her about her work on murals, she said that she would go directly to the site to paint on the exterior wall. She also said she did it one layer at a time rather than in panels. It's interesting to me to see the two differences in artistic process, and I think I have a good guess as to why this mural is different. The artist that I interviewed lives in San Diego, and her murals are located there as well. Southern California has a lot of dry, warm weather, which would make it easy to paint outdoors during most times of the year. For "The Legacy of Butterflies," though, since it took over a year to complete, it makes sense that they couldn't paint the building directly. Given how much our weather varies (and how unreliable it is), I can understand why this mural was painted in an indoor studio via panels rather than onto the building's side. I am curious now, though, because I've seen a lot of murals that seem painted into the bricks on old Pittsburgh buildings. I'm not sure how they did them, but I wonder if those were Summer projects, or if they had some other paintnig strategy.
I remember learning about the 2003 mural titled “Lend Me Your Ears” that was painted over in 2015 in time for these big corporations, such as Duolingo, to move into and claim East Liberty. The action of removing such a prominent piece of artwork in a community truly does symbolize the gentrification that was and still is taking place in the community. I’m glad that I’m now coming back to this more than a year later to see how the company is trying to remedy the backlash that they received. I think this $150,000 is a good start and I’m a strong believer that public art is necessary to fostering a better community, but there is still more that can be done. I hope that they are aware of their massive footprint in Pittsburgh and will focus on what they can do to help and build a relationship with the people who have been here a lot longer.
Pittsburgh has an amazing collection of murals around town–while I was working a gallery assistant shift downtown, a lady came up to me and started talking about the mural of Roberto Clemente by Jeremy Raymer. There's so many more murals of this sort–celebratory ones, empowering ones, and ultimately they all build a sense of community. On the flip side, gentrification is a very real problem in Pittsburgh as well, and when the article pointed out the link between murals being painted over as a form of gentrification, I really resonated with that. Duolingo putting money towards community revitalization is a good start towards tangible reparations. I also appreciate that the mural is done of community member Cecilia Price-Knight, owner of the East Liberty Jamaican restaurant Impressionz, which closed in 2016. Overall, this is a start in the right direction for the Pittsburgh community.
It is disappointing to hear that “Lend Me Your Ears”, an iconic mural for the city, was painted over for, what seems, no real reason. Duolingo could have simply left the mural up, indicating their support/connection to the city. It is good that the company is making up for painting over the original piece, but there is a societal pattern of actions reactive rather than preventative. I am excited to see what other local art projects Duolingo funds. For some reason, the way gentrification is mentioned in this piece reminds me of the Saturday Night Live skit “Mister Robinson’s Neighborhood 2019” with Eddie Murphy. Mister Robinson teaches his neighbors, the audience, about gentrification and the impact on persons already living in the neighborhood and stereotypes that persist. From now on whenever I see Duolingo’s building here in Pittsburgh, all I am going to hear is Murphy saying “Can you say gentrification boys and girls?”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whfQf3Pd5bU
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