Students at Bangor’s Downeast School Collaborate with Local Artist & Volunteers on Garden and Mural Project
Bangor Beautiful, a non-profit that creates and cultivates projects to beautify Bangor, Maine, is completing a mural and garden project at Downeast School in Bangor. The goal of the project is to educate the community about our interconnectedness with the natural world, specifically the role that insects and pollinators play in growing the food we eat.
Local artist Peter Walls was commissioned to create a mural at the Downeast School using images created by the students this past spring after they spent time learning about how pollinators sustain our food webs and ecosystems. Walls took those images and designed a cohesive mural, painting the outlines so that the students will be able to color in the mural this week with the help of Bangor Beautiful volunteers and Bangor High School students. The approximately 12 feet by 24 feet mural is being painted on panels that will be installed this month on a large blank wall in front of the school near the student drop-off area.
Principal Sarah Vickers expressed her enthusiasm for the project, stating, "We are absolutely thrilled to collaborate with Bangor Beautiful and local artist Peter Walls on this transformative mural and garden project. It’s a wonderful opportunity for our students to engage with nature and art in a hands-on way. This partnership not only beautifies our school but also deepens our understanding of the vital role pollinators play in our ecosystem. This experience will inspire our students for years to come!"
As part of this project, the students worked with a long-time volunteer at the school and master gardener to plant the school’s garden this spring with vegetables and native plants, and to harvest the produce and flowers this fall. Bangor Beautiful helped to fund the purchase of plants and seeds as well as the cost of watering and weeding this summer.
Bangor Beautiful is excited to provide an opportunity for students to literally get their hands dirty by gardening and creating art. They hope that students feel excited and empowered by the chance to grow and harvest native flowers and food, and to paint a mural alongside a professional artist and older students who are passionate about art. Their goal is to plant the seeds that help grow the next generation of artists and gardeners in our community.
This project is a collaboration between Bangor Beautiful volunteers, Peter Walls, and students, teachers, and administrators at Downeast School and Bangor High School. It is the second in a series of school murals, which began in 2024 at Abraham Lincoln School. This project has been funded by donations and grants from The City of Bangor Commission on Cultural Development and Bangor Greendrinks.