Windows on Allston, 2002


This project was commissioned by the Jack Young Company and Allston Village Main Streets Association (City of Boston). The twenty-one panels, created to cover bricked-in windows in the facades of two adjacent buildings in Allston, are designed to restore a sense of liveliness and stature to these buildings (one of which is a prominent local landmark), as well as to depict and celebrate the diversity of the local population. Painted in a loose “trompe l’oeil” (illusionistic) manner, in order to preserve the architectural integrity of the buildings, the panels are meant to imitate the windows that might actually be there while including portraits of citizens and a few historical figures – among them the namesake for this neighborhood, the painter, Washington Allston.

“We are very excited about this project”, notes AVMS executive director, Jennifer Rose. “Not only has it generated a substantial private investment to match public funds, but it has made this intersection – Franklin Street/Harvard Avenue and Cambridge Street – a much more welcoming gateway to the Allston Village business district. Allston Village Main Streets is a community-based public-private partnership working to revitalize the Allston commercial district through design, promotion, economic restructuring and organization.”
 



Newton North High School Millennial Mural, 2000

This ten- by twenty-foot painting is a permanently visible “time capsule” that reflects both the diversity and community of the current student body and is an affirmation of the many ways students are engaged in learning at the high school. From the high school’s achievement in science (indicated by the red banner and the students working beneath it with test tube in hand) to the vitality of its vocational training program (boy with electric drill), the range of educational opportunities is represented. Also referenced are the variety of sports, arts, and recreational activities in which Newton North students are involved, as well as the regional deaf education program and Metco. Newton’s relationship to Boston is represented in the skyline. Local civic structures are depicted (City Hall and the Public Library) as well as housing and the architectural framework of the high school itself.

Students and faculty were actively involved in the conceptualization of the piece and it represents the culmination of a long effort initiated by former principal James Marini and implemented by a committee of faculty, administration, and parents. Private money was raised for the project and this mural is also supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.


















   
 
Copyright © 2003 Elli Crocker