Butterfly Wall Mural
Mariposa Upper Elementary had a large, blank wall and a vision. They wanted to brighten up their lunch space, inspire creativity and celebrate diversity. The principal also wanted to include the students in the creative process, so they came up with sketches and word maps. The students inspired the design.
The Painting Process
Local students and families helped sand and prime the wall with the background color. I then sketched the butterflies and hands on the wall and started to paint.
Students were present while I painted — eating snacks and lunch, asking questions and commenting.
They were excited to see the progress!
Concept Sketches
Student sketches and word maps got the project ideas rolling. I started by measuring the wall and creating an outline of the space in Adobe Illustrator. I then printed the wall outline and began sketching ideas.
Mariposa means butterfly in Spanish, and the Monarch Butterly is their mascot, so butterflies were essential. And the school's motto is SOAR, which stands for Safety, Ownership, Acceptance & Rearing. SOAR was a common student theme along with butterflies, diversity, fun and kind.
Ultimately, we decided to add a variety of colorful butterflies and hands in various skin tones.
