Art All Around Us: Murals of Harrison High

Mr. Eric Weber, an English teacher, has a large mural covering the entirety of the wall space in the back of his room. The painting was done by a former student by the name of Michael Re who graduated in 2000, the painting consists of references to different pieces of literature from all over the world, most notably featuring waves of a similar style to “The Great Wave” by Hokusai as well as multiple creatures from urban legends.

Room 133 is an art room covered with murals painted by former students and painted by the former art teacher Pam Kravetz. The hallway attached to this room features colorful pots and vases that have faces painted on a black background. Inside the art room are colorful paintings done by multiple different students over a plain light blue background as well as imitation pieces and references to famous classics such as “The Scream’’ by Edvard Munchand “The Persistence of Memory’’ by Salvador Dali.

The upstairs history hallway features a colorful world map painted by Mr. Kevin Curtis, this world map shows the continents in a small square on the wall surrounded by enlarged versions of those continents with each country separated by color. This hallway is home to other murals as well including portraits of presidents George Washington, Andrew Jackson, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson. Over the doorway into the history wing of the school, there is a large mural of a bald eagle over an American flag with the United States birth year, 1776, written in large yellow letters. By the elevator in the same hallway is a detailed painting of an indigenous man on a horse in the snow. The artists behind all of these paintings are unknown, but they still live on as an important piece in our school’s history.

Inside Mr. Curtis’s room is a wall of colorful bricks painted in bright and energetic colors. These bricks frame the whiteboard in his room and add a lively touch to the beige, concrete walls of the classroom. Some bricks are signed and do not reach all the way to the top in every space on the wall which adds a sort of playful touch to the colorful squares.

The hallway underneath the history wing features a painting of a bear with the world in its hands and a fox both above snowy mountains. The quote “Climb the mountains and feel their good tidings” is written on the mural in black letters, the painting was done by Nick Valentino, whose signature can be seen at the bottom right corner of the mural.

Mr. Ward’s classroom is covered wall to wall in yellow and Blue handprints left by his former DECA students who made to the state finals. These handprints serve as a permanent mark that these innovative students get to leave on the school

In the same hallway as the Mountain mural, is a mural of birds with the quote “In nature a flock will attack any bird more colorful than the others because being different is seen as a threat– Celebrate our Differences– Stand Out” – Wrabel. This mural was painted by Estrella Soriano, Tanner Gill, and Kaylee Johnston, it spreads a positive message to anyone who reads it.

Inspiration quotes are painted all over the school including but not limited to the “If you can dream it you can do it” Mural signed with the initials E.F., E. S., and B.H. and the “Sometimes the right path is not the easiest one” Mural signed with the initials E.H. All of these quotes affect different people in different ways, but no matter what, they are all important.

All of the murals that call Harrison High School their home are unique and different and have their own special meaning behind them. These murals add color and life to our learning environment and make our school feel like a welcoming place. There is plenty of space to add new murals in the future and give Harrison even more character. Next time you walk by one of these murals, take a moment to really look at it, and think about what meaning this mural has to you.