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Alphabet Mural Project Aims to Teach Kids Their ABCs in Brooklyn

 Artist Pierre Francillon stands next to the first mural in the
Artist Pierre Francillon stands next to the first mural in the "PLG ABC" project, an "A" painted by artist Damien Mitchell on Parkside Avenue.
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DNAinfo/Rachel Holliday Smith

PROSPECT-LEFFERTS GARDENS — A neighborhood artist is on a mission to help local kids learn their letters, one wall at a time.

With the help of a bevy of muralists, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens artist Pierre Francillon started this month on “PLG ABC,” a project that aims to paint the alphabet one letter at a time all over the neighborhood.

The idea, he said, is to engage kids in reading, get them to notice their surroundings and “elevate their comprehension,” Francillion said.

“They might find reading fun! That’s the point,” he said.

The project began, naturally, with a huge “A” painted on a Parkside Avenue roll-down gate in bright pink by artist Damien Mitchell.

“We tried to make it as noticeable as possible,” said Mitchell, who is originally from Australia but moved to the area when he came to New York five years ago. “We want it to stand out on the street, kind of catch kids’ attention, maybe start a conversation.”

An “H” by artist Lofty305 is already in place on the door of Hawthorne Hardware on Flatbush Avenue and Francillon is planning to put up an “R” near an existing mural of roses on Rogers Avenue and an “E” near a hair salon on Winthrop Street this week.

Eventually, all 26 letters will be represented and then some, with repeat letters “all over everything,” Francillon said — on businesses, blank walls and even on flashcard-type mini-murals on private homes, if they want to participate.

“It’s sort of like a treasure hunt,” he said.

Francillon expects to finish the bulk of the project by June and is busy lining up artists and businesses willing to lend him some wall space. So far, not a single store or building owner has told him no, he said.

READ MORE: Meet Shmotchsky, Friendly Neighborhood Street Artist of Prospect-Lefferts