Shawn Dunwoody MuralLOVE Submission

My name is Shawn Dunwoody and I believe in the power of art as a creative force for change. My 20 years of experience as a Director, Producer, Teaching Educator, Designer, Maker, Influencer, Developer, and first and foremost—Artist, has given me the opportunity to establish public art practices that focus on creative implementation and innovative planning.

I believe bringing people from different backgrounds together can create the most progressive movements for change. Community engagement is key to my public art process. I coordinate the process by which people become engaged in creating through their ideas, designs, and producing the final work of art. The hands-on approach to making art creates a sense of ownership, pride, and understanding.

From residencies, lectures, and mural making, I strive to create global art experiences. The Fruit Belt mural project focused on revitalizing a neighborhood and included taking local high school students from Rochester to Philadelphia—and to Salvador, Brazil. Our mission was to paint murals in underserved neighborhoods. We were the subjects in the Emmy nominated documentary film by Blue Sky Project Films: Confronting The Wall. The film highlighted the positive impact of community-driven art initiatives. I have been a resident lecturer on public engagement in art and muralist in Krakow, Poland, Fort Wayne, Indiana, and this spring I will be in Waterford, Ireland developing a community-based mural dedicated to the influence of Daniel O’Connell on Frederick Douglass’s life. My arts-focused community-building process has been documented in many publications nationwide including the Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal.

Artistic placemaking is about strengthening the relationship between public space, the people who live in the community, and their capacity to change where they are—physically, emotionally, and economically.