The paint had barely dried on the new “Rivers” parking lot mural at Yale Corner at Springfield Avenue in Maplewood when artist Barbara Bickart realized that it was all that she had dreamed it could be — and perhaps more.
Bickart recalled seeing people pulling up in cars to take selfies, lying and rolling on the ground and posing for photos. “It was like choreography,” she told community members on July 26 at the mural’s official “unveiling.”
Springfield Avenue Partnership Executive Director Nicole Wallace said it was all due to Bickart, who defied expectations about art and artists, making the experience truly a community collaboration through an organic process that did NOT entail a “paint by numbers” approach.
Adding to the fun: Photographer Chad Hunt took a drone photo from above of community members — including Mayor Dean Dafis and elected officials from the Township Committee — lying on the ground surrounding, enhancing, interacting and extending the mural.
Photo by Chad Hunt, July 26, 2022, Yale Corner at Springfield Avenue, Maplewood, NJ
Read more about the mural here.
Enjoy a photo gallery of the July 26 mural celebration here:
