LOST IN TRANSLATION

Krieger Schecter Day School was my third major mural project of four done with Rebuilding thru Art Project to date. As with the Healthcare for the Homeless mural, a lift was needed to reach the top of the piece, along with scaffolding on the main wall. The mural was interesting look at Jewish culture. It was a product of the many intricacies added by volunteers from the Day School and synogauge. Jay had created the storyline of the mural in a way that stories from the Torah were told in pastel colors- a decision made in part because lighting was a precious commodity along the kindergarten hallway. As always, the way Jay pulled the final outline of the mural together was amazing. It was an intensive course on the customs and beliefs of his faith, which shared the same roots as what I had been taught in the Pentacostal faith I was more familiar with. For three months I was given the opportunity to execute the piece with Jay and a handful of other student artists. For three days a week, both while classes were in session, and afterwards, we worked from top the top level down to the bottom. Little feet would patter by as we listened to four and five years olds try to make sense of the world transforming outside their classroom doorway. Relationships were crafted from the conversations that naturally arise when working so closely with someone for months. But as with all the major projects, there was also time to lose yourself in the work and the mural taking place bit by bit by the brush tips. By the end of it all- there were four main spaces of the school completed, and while I started not knowing a word- I had assisted with a whole mural written for the most part in Yiddish.