The abundance of public art created on plywood boards that covered storefronts amid the unrest in Ferguson has found a permanent home.
More than 60 of these large murals will be displayed at Delmar Divine, a $100 million mixed-use development and hub for ºüÀêÊÓƵ nonprofits.
Artists, activists and community members created about 300 murals depicting themes of hope, change, equality, love, justice and peace in the aftermath of the police killing of Michael Brown in August 2014. The movement gathered momentum in late November of that year when more than 500 people gathered along the boarded-up streets of Ferguson, Dellwood and South Grand Boulevard.
People needed a way to process the pain and used art as a way to express their raw emotions.
Carol Swartout Klein, who grew up in Ferguson, eventually wrote a children’s book about the phenomenon called “Painting for Peace in Ferguson.†In the spring 2015, she was asked by the I Love Ferguson Committee if she wanted to preserve some of the remaining murals. She agreed to take them.
“I had nowhere to put them, but I thought I would figure something out,†she says.
Klein did not want the artistic record of that historical moment to be lost. She wrapped the plywood boards in blankets and loaded them into her minivan. Artists had used spray paint, house paint, acrylic markers and stencils to create images ranging from graffiti and stylized art to more elaborate murals.
Exposure to the elements had begun to weather the decorated plywood.
Klein reached out to friends, businesses, nonprofits and civic institutions to see if they would help preserve the pieces. A temporary exhibition of 15 of the murals traveled among local organizations, including COCA and the Sheldon. During the pandemic, the paintings ended up in a temperature-controlled warehouse offered by McGuire Moving and Storage.
Klein had no idea how long the boards might linger in storage. She knew she didn’t want them auctioned off or sold to private collectors.
“These were never mine,†she says. “This was a gift from the community to the community, and they need to be accessible to the community.â€
The messages embedded in the murals — of resilience, of healing, of struggle — still resonated with her. She saw the paintings as part of a transformative moment that continues to offer opportunities for discussion and education.
So she sent an email to Maxine Clark, founder of ºüÀêÊÓƵ-based Build-A-Bear and the force behind Delmar Divine. Klein asked Clark if she might be interested in displaying the plywood paintings.
Clark said she would take all of them.
“It was like a dream come true,†Klein says.
She describes Delmar Divine’s mission as serving as an ongoing catalyst for collaboration that leads to positive change. The location was the perfect fit for the art she had sought to protect for years.
Clark agrees.
“Each brushstroke tells a story of resilience, compassion and the unwavering determination to stand up for one another,†she said in a statement. “These events also inspired the creation of the Delmar Divine. This 100-plus-year-old building has walls large enough and strong enough to properly host and honor this collection.â€
ºüÀêÊÓƵ University also collected many of the boards that covered windows along South Grand Boulevard and has donated several dozen to “Painting for Peace.â€
After an opening event Sept. 22-23, plans for ongoing tours of the exhibition are in the works.
What “Painting for Peace” • When Opening 7-9 p.m. Sept. 22 (with artists), 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Sept. 23 (with family-friendly activities) • Where Delmar Divine, 5501 Delmar Boulevard • How much Free; registration required • More info
Photos: Plywood art protects, transforms in Ferguson and ºüÀêÊÓƵ
If passed, the bill would direct the placement of “Michael O. D. Brown Way†street signs on the portion of Tucker Boulevard between Clark Aven…
Lenard Blair was among a group of volunteers who helped cover plywood-covered windows of West Florissant Avenue businesses with photographs by ºüÀêÊÓƵ artist Damon Davis at the Ferguson Market on Nov. 19, 2014. The market is where Michael Brown was accused of stealing a box of cigarillos before being shot to death by a Ferguson police officer on August 9.
Ferguson Market and Liquor owner Andy Patel paces outside his reopened store on West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014. Following a third round of looting at the store on Nov. 24, after a grand jury failed to indict a Ferguson police officer in the shooting death of Michael Brown, plywood boards were painted by area artists and residents.