UPTOWN — For more than a year, students at North Side middle schools and local artists worked on murals with one question in mind: What elements make Uptown unique?
Their colorful murals, depicting everything from the iconic Uptown Theatre sign to the neighborhood's diversity, are now affixed to window panels on a residential building at the corner of Hazel Street and Sunnyside Avenue for residents to admire.
Murals painted by local artist Jeffrey Littleton (l.) and students at Walt Disney Magnet School (r.). [DNAinfo/Mina Bloom]
"It's something that's going to be a staple in our community for years to come. It brings a lot of color and life. It brings Uptown to people who might not know who Uptown is about, who don't know the history and the struggles," said Angela Clay, president of Voice of the People, the organization that owns the affordable housing building.
The project was made possible through a partnership between Voice of the People, arts-based community development organization archi-treasures and the Chicago Community Development Corporation.
Painting the murals was a collaborative effort.
Kids from youth development agency, Alternatives Inc., 4730 N. Sheridan Ave., painted one piece. Fifth-grade students at William C. Goudy Technology Magnet Cluster Elementary School, 5120 N. Winthrop Ave., Ravenswood Elementary School, 4332 N. Paulina St., and Walt Disney Magnet School, 4140 N. Marine Drive, spent months crafting their pieces in art class.
Some of the other artists include Jeffrey Littleton, who helped paint two of them, affordable housing residents and representatives from Asian Human Services, 4753 N. Broadway.
There are 19 panels in total, Clay said.
"It's all about bringing together the community," said resident Mary Drane, who has lived in a building across the street for more than 15 years.
She added that she wished her building was getting public art, too.
Drane and other residents attended a block party Thursday to celebrate the new murals — complete with a DJ, games and snacks. Clay said the party was paid for using a grant from PlayStreets, a city program designed to transform city streets into an urban oasis for a few hours.
Residents enjoying Thursday's block party. [DNAinfo/Mina Bloom]
In addition to the murals, Voice of the People blew up vintage photographs and affixed them to the front of the building.
The photos depict "affordable housing in Uptown, how it started, who was instrumental in making it happen and how to keep it going," according to Ralph Hoffman, associate director at archi-treasures.
The vintage photographs were found in Voice of the People's archives and former alderman Helen Shiller's basement, Hoffman said. [DNAinfo/Mina Bloom]
With the new murals, vintage photos and an existing mural by artist Damon Lamar Reed and residents, the Uptown building tells a story of the past, present and the future of the neighborhood through visual art, Hoffman said.
"What makes this unique is that it's on a residential building. If you go throughout Uptown, we've got a large number of public art but a lot of it's on commercial buildings ... not so much on residential buildings on a residential block."
Hoffman called the intersection at Hazel Street and Sunnyside Avenue a "major pedestrian corner," with tons of families and students coming and going.
"Even though it's a residential street, it's a highly visible street," he said.
He and Clay believe the colorful artwork will brighten the community.
"Public art does act like a street lamp," Hoffman said.
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