Powderhorn Park Mural Project

By Artist Mentor Emma Mollendor

Hope is contagious. This is a statement adopted and quite vigorously applied by our newest partner, Ace in the City. About four months ago, we began the process of partnering with Ace in the City to paint a mural on the side of Clyde’s Service in the Powderhorn Park area of S. Minneapolis.

Let me start by saying, none of us knew what we were doing. I am no mural artist. I am a college student who loves art and believes that God can use art in my adult life. Neither Inverted Arts or Ace in the City had ever attempted to paint a mural on a wall equaling roughly 1,500 square feet in size. And the largest piece I have ever solely produced was 3 feet by 3 feet. By anyone’s standards we were not qualified to accomplish what we were pursuing.

On Monday July 11th, a ragtag group comprised of two college aged women for supervision, nine middle schoolers and myself met outside of Clydes to begin painting a wall. The original plan was to produce a mural that would feature the sense of community that Clyde’s owner, Brian had experienced in that area since he was a small child.

As the piece grew and expanded, so did the purpose behind the painting. We all felt it. Community wasn’t a strong enough word to explain what we felt throughout the project. By Wednesday, we were throwing around ideas on a different theme. One of the sweet girls that was working on the mural named Valeria spontaneously suggested our focus be Hope! All of us stopped what we were doing. Absolutely! Hope had to be the theme! Hope for the community. Hope for the kids coming from challenging circumstances and being given an opportunity to create. Hope for Clyde’s Service. Hope for me, a college student who 10 months ago believed I could not pursue art and missionary work at the same time. Hope for two small non-profits seeking to bring healing and light to this world. Hope for any and all that are able to lay eyes on this mural.

If you have a minute and are in the Powderhorn Park community stop by Clyde’s Service at the address below and revel in the contagious message of such a simple word – Hope.

Clyde’s Service Inc.
1400 East 38th Street
Minneapolis, MN 55407

(click address for map link)