Franklin College will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony open to the public later this month to celebrate the completion of the “Spirit of Community” mural. The ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27.
The “Spirit of Community” mural is a collaborative art project led by Clowes Visiting Artist in Residence Tiffany Black Behzad. During the 2024 Immersive Term, she led a course titled “Public and Community Art: Mural Creation,” in which she guided 23 students, step-by-step, through the stages of creating a community mural. The mural was divided into four wood panels, each measuring 8-by-10 feet, and each emphasizing different aspects of Franklin College’s history: traditions, athletics, education/innovation and DEIA (diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility). The design weaves in the present and also hints at the students’ imagined future for the college.
The ceremony, led by President Kerry N. Prather, will be held in the Johnson Atrium of the Napolitan Student Center on the Franklin College campus. The event is part of Homecoming 2024 festivities, and will celebrate Franklin College’s alumni, many of whom are depicted on the mural.
Following the ribbon-cutting ceremony, guests are invited to view the mural and enjoy refreshments on the second floor of the Napolitan Student Center. The mural is located in the glass-enclosed corridor connecting the student center and B.F. Hamilton Library.
Black Behzad and the students collaborated with several departments and groups on campus to determine the content for the mural, researching key historical and significant college events and people. Key insights were gained from research previously conducted by Franklin College history students, with support from the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) Humanities for the Public Good Initiative and the Community-Engaged Alliance (CEA) Faculty Fellows Grant. Professor of History, Hon. Roger D. Branigin Endowed Chair in History and Director of Women’s Studies Meredith Clark-Wiltz, along with Director of Library Services & Assessment Jessica M. Mahoney (’96, MLS), were instrumental in guiding the students’ historical research.
A highlight of the course involved inviting Johnson County community members to join in painting the panels, which were coded by number. Work on the mural extended into the spring semester as Black Bezhad and students added finishing touches to the panels, while members of the Franklin College Art Department, under the guidance of Randi Frye, assistant professor of art and chair of the department, incorporated augmented reality components into the mural.
“This project embodies the values of Franklin College in a multitude of ways. We believe strongly in the power of experiential learning, collaboration, and community, and this mural is a physical manifestation of how learning in community works. Giving our students agency in the research component of the project, the design of the mural, and the inclusion of digital fluency attributes through augmented reality has resulted in a beautiful and meaningful display of public art,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College Kristin C. Flora.
Black is the sixth visiting artist to visit Franklin College’s campus during Immersive Term, thanks to a $50,000 grant from the Allen W. Clowes Foundation to establish the Clowes Visiting Artist Endowment Fund. The visiting artist program is a biennial program. Past artists to visit Franklin College include: Chris Sickels, a 3-D illustrator and stop-motion animator in 2022; Kimberly McNeelan, a woodworking expert in 2020; Stephen Cefalo, an American artist in 2018; Sayaka Ganz, a Japanese sculptor in 2016; and Artur Silva, a Brazil native in 2014.
Black Behzad is an award-winning artist based in Indianapolis, specializing in collaborative and community-based projects. She has been creating murals and other large-scale public works since 2003, and was one of 24 Indianapolis artists selected for the NBA All-Star 2024’s “Hoosier Historia” arts program. Black Behzad earned her masters of fine arts in community art from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in 2013. She serves as an adjunct professor of art at Ivy Tech Community College and a visiting lecturer of art at Arkansas Tech University, as well as a lecturer of art at Franklin College. She is a founding member of TLC Art Collective, a group of artists concerned with environmental and social justice.
In 2021, Black Behzad began working with evacuees from Afghanistan at Camp Atterbury, shortly after they were forced to flee their home country. She provided arts programming as Afghans awaited resettlement, and together, they created a painted 20-foot-by-8-foot mural titled “August 15”, in reference to the day the Taliban took control of Kabul. The mural tells the story of how so many lives were forever changed that day. This mural was displayed at Franklin College and is currently on a traveling exhibition throughout North America.
To learn more about Black Behzad, visit www.tblack.co/about.
