Climate Solutions Project
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Creating Communication Communally: Art Miles
Throughout the Climate Solutions Road Tour, IYCN members and youth across India participated in Lydia Ringwald's Art Miles mural project, creating our visions for the future together, in a collaborative and communal creative process. Each of us shared a vision for the future, and each of us shared with each other our specific skills - whether Kartikeya's tigers and elephants, Alexis' snakes and dancers, my flowers, and our own vision for leaves. The process of painting - of creating - together is incredibly powerful, and our mutual vision of solutions, of climate change's impacts, and of our own journey, was solidified and explored together through art.
Lydia Ringwald has taken our visions and paintings to other parts of the world and in 2010 will be displaying them on the Great Pyramids in Egypt. She recently sent some of our photographs of the murals and words to recommend and encourage other future Master Muralists to continue this work. She says, "The project is a great way to engage in a solution in an hands-on process of painting, the way the world is, the way the world could be if we don’t take action and allow the deterioration process to continue and the way the world should be if we do take action and initiate climate solutions that are available to us now. Painting the solution is a consciousness-raising project that motivates artists of all ages to Become the Change – and ultimately ‘ Be the Change We Want to See.’
Read more from Lydia on how you can create your own transformative murals.
Mural Co-coordinator – Master Muralist
As a Master Muralist, you can envision the overall strategy for the painting project. For our Road Tour mural painted in Ahmedabad, I sketched out a winding road that would encircle the 9 ft canvas. I painted in a sketch of the 3 solar electric cars in 3 locations on the canvas. Various cities and villages that we visited were painted on the canvas ‘road’ and the artists painted in a representation of these places. For Mumbai, they painted the famous Gates of India as n emblem of the city in the harbor of the Arabian Sea. In other locations on the road, other emblematic motifs identified the places on the imaginary map. Another artist painted a floral trim around the road and another very talented artist painted an elephant, monkey and other indigenous animals of India amongst emblematic leaf and tree patterns. The title – India Road Tour – was painted in the middle with the Himalaya Mountains in the background. This strategy was successful for advanced painters where there was time to design and carry out a motif for the entire painting picture.
When there was less time and more artists that had to be engaged in painting, I would separate the canvas into small segments and let each individual painter paint an individual picture in his/her space. This was the most efficient way to handle the project in Beawar with many young children. Six children per row, two rows per canvas could be completed and when those first rows dried, another set of children could work on the second and fourth rows to complete the remaining areas of the entire canvas space. Fortunately, acrylic paint dries quickly so you can move forward with the second set of painters to complete the canvas in one morning or afternoon session.
As Master Muralist, Mural Co-coordinator you must make decisions on how to organize your artists, with the time you have to complete the project.
Here are a few organizational tips:
Supplies –
Rolls of canvas are available at art stores in 5’width. You can find a 40 ft x5; roll for under $200 that can be cut into smaller segments, depending on the size of your group, the space you have to work in and the time you have for completing the mural.
Paint – I brought several containers of condensed non-toxic acrylic paint in the basic primary colors, Red, Yellow, Blue and Green. I also brought a large container of white paint to soften the intensity of the primary colors. I recommend acrylic paint because it is water-based making it easy to clean brushes and wash up afterwards and with water.
Brushes – You can find inexpensive brushes of all sizes for the project. Usually a 1” or 1/2” brush is perfect for each individual
painter. You may want to have a 2”brush available for painting in background color on large canvases.
Rolls of canvas are available at art stores in 5’width. You can find a 40 ft x5; roll for under $200 that can be cut into smaller segments, depending on the size of your group, the space you have to work in and the time you have for completing the mural.
Paint – I brought several containers of condensed non-toxic acrylic paint in the basic primary colors, Red, Yellow, Blue and Green. I also brought a large container of white paint to soften the intensity of the primary colors. I recommend acrylic paint because it is water-based making it easy to clean brushes and wash up afterwards and with water.
Brushes – You can find inexpensive brushes of all sizes for the project. Usually a 1” or 1/2” brush is perfect for each individual
painter. You may want to have a 2”brush available for painting in background color on large canvases.
Mixing Paint - Recycled Plastic Containers Recycled plastic containers were used for the mixed paints. I suggest one container with Red paint diluted with water. Another container with Rose (combination of red and white), Blue and Lighter sky blue (mixed with white),
Yellow and Orange (yellow mixed with red) Again, you can add white to any of these hues to mitigate the intensity of the color and create a more pastel effect.
Brown is a popular color. Everyone wants to paint a tree…and of course, tree trunks are brown. However, please do not buy ‘brown’ paint. I recommended mixing brown with a combination of Red and Green, or Purple and Green. Then you create various shades of brown that reflect the nuances of shadow and light. In the evening a tree trunk can look purplish while in bright sunlight, it may have a reddish undertone. Brown from the paint tube does not capture these variations that make the image more interesting.
Mixing red and blue makes purple and green can be created by mixing yellow and blue. Glance at a color chart if you need guidance. You can also buy shades of Green – from dark Forest Green, to bright Lime Green and you can mix these varieties, shades and tones of each color.
Best to keep it simple; use about 5 containers with the basics: Red, Yellow, Blue, Green, Brown.
For large groups you may have to duplicate the amount of containers.
Little kids are full of energy…and you need to have supplies ready and available for them to use immediately so that they do not become bored, irritated and unruly. If you are not prepared with appropriate materials, children will scatter and the painting atmosphere will get out of control. If you are organized and give them brushes and paint to work with, they will move forward to create amazingly imaginative images… flowers, trees, dinosaurs, animals of all shapes and varieties, landscapes, cityscapes, life as we know it, life the way we want it to be. Have supplies organized – Have adequate amounts of paint for the size of the group and keep your artists moving…active.
For large groups you may have to duplicate the amount of containers.
Little kids are full of energy…and you need to have supplies ready and available for them to use immediately so that they do not become bored, irritated and unruly. If you are not prepared with appropriate materials, children will scatter and the painting atmosphere will get out of control. If you are organized and give them brushes and paint to work with, they will move forward to create amazingly imaginative images… flowers, trees, dinosaurs, animals of all shapes and varieties, landscapes, cityscapes, life as we know it, life the way we want it to be. Have supplies organized – Have adequate amounts of paint for the size of the group and keep your artists moving…active.
Discussion of subject
Discuss painting ideas briefly before they start on the canvas:
What do you see in nature?
What is a climate solution?
What are you going to paint? Trees – Flowers – Birds – Tigers – Elephants
Rare species? Should we protect these special animals?
How do we protect the flowers?
Why are trees important?
How to we protect them?
How do we keep the air clean?
What are windmills? What are solar panels? How do windmills or solar
panels keep the environment clean?
What about our oceans? What about our water supplies?
What can we do to recycle? How can we prevent waste?
What do you see in nature?
What is a climate solution?
What are you going to paint? Trees – Flowers – Birds – Tigers – Elephants
Rare species? Should we protect these special animals?
How do we protect the flowers?
Why are trees important?
How to we protect them?
How do we keep the air clean?
What are windmills? What are solar panels? How do windmills or solar
panels keep the environment clean?
What about our oceans? What about our water supplies?
What can we do to recycle? How can we prevent waste?
I recommend keep a collection of photos from magazines of all kinds of varieties of flowers – roses, birds of paradise, daisies, lilies; Varieties of trees – palm trees, elm trees, oak trees, apple trees; And a varieties of animals – lions, tigers, elephants, monkeys, in various poses, frontal, side, in groups, lying down, running…to inspire your artists and give them a model to work from when they paint the mural project. In this way, you avoid the simple daisy shape that people will often fall into painting, simply because they do not know how to paint a rose from the side view or an bird of paradise or other exotic and unusual flower.
Have a collection of a 50-100 photos available for your artists to reference so that they are inspire and motivated to create powerful
and thought-provoking visual results.
Fun-Raising – Fund-Raising
The mural project raises ‘fun’ and can also be used to raise ‘funds’ for other worthwhile projects. You can set up a large mural project in a nightclub, for instance, and offer the painting opportunities to nightclub attendees as an ‘ice-breaker’ – a way to meet new people – make new friends – meet a mate.
Many people will not go out to buy paint, brushes and canvas, but when paints are readily available and the canvas is set up, they will paint and enjoy the experience. If they know that the painting is designed for a Cause, they may be more inspired to participate and may be willing to make a donation.
Many people will not go out to buy paint, brushes and canvas, but when paints are readily available and the canvas is set up, they will paint and enjoy the experience. If they know that the painting is designed for a Cause, they may be more inspired to participate and may be willing to make a donation.
You can set up the painting project to raise funds for your Cause, your charitable or consciousness raising project or in behalf of the India Climate Solutions Road Tour.
Go for it – Enjoy the Journey – Be the Change
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