Mesa Arts Center recently unveiled the results from its large-scale community engagement project, “One Street Over,” a six-month public art project conducted in the Whitman Neighborhood in Mesa.

With support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the city of Mesa, Mesa Public Schools, Rail CDC and more, the project’s objective was to connect and engage neighborhoods through the arts, according to a release.

Over six months — from November 2023 to April 2024 — the project engaged neighbors through arts and civic residencies in elementary schools, “MABEL” Pop up Events (Mobile Art Based Engagement Lab), community gatherings, paint days and celebrations. Through conversations, collaborative and personal art projects, and inspiration from the neighborhood participants, One Street Over culminated in the creation of a 2,000-foot mural and five artistically designed pole banners installed at 1700 N. Grand in Whitman Park.

The mural, led by artist Miguel Angel Godoy, was shaped and informed by the activities and conversations held during the project, resulting in a piece reflective of the community.

Created in partnership with the residents at every step of the way, the project created a special bond amongst participants, to reflect the heritage and pride of the neighborhood, the release states.

Beginning with collaboration with Mesa Public Schools, One Street Over teaching artists and Mesa Arts Center arts educators conducted in-school arts and civic residencies, held at Whitman Elementary (K-6) and Kerr Center for Agriscience (K-7). The residencies resulted in more than 1,000 art and civics projects created by students, including the creation of “personal identity boxes,” which were organized into a neighborhood layout. Focusing on the importance of diverse perspectives and creating consensus building amidst differing viewpoints, the resulting mini-neighborhood was used as inspiration and reference as Miguel Godoy began creating the mural design, the release states.

The One Street Over Project also held several MABEL pop-up events in the neighborhood. Pop-ups featured community projects and installations including a community Kaleidoscope, comprised of individuals’ sketches and symbols of their personal identity, heritage and culture. The projects were also comprised of a “community cupboard,” with contributions from residents who responded to the question: “What is an ingredient you keep in your kitchen cupboard because of someone who raised you that also kept it in theirs?”

The many projects created through MABEL reflected the identity and history of the neighborhood and was a further contribution to Godoy as reference and inspiration for the creation of the mural, the release states.

Rail CDC, the primary community partners on the project, led bilingual door-to-door visits through the neighborhood to share information, build relationships and draw residents to the project. The resulting community gatherings — “Platicas” — sparked conversations with residents and Rail representatives about resources, the future of the neighborhood, and improvements and solutions for their local park.

With guidance and inspiration from all the engagement activities, artist Miguel Angel Godoy developed the concept for the One Street Over mural, a colorful convergence of words running the length of the wall, selected from the languages spoken in the community: English, Spanish and Piipaash.

“My process for including community on such public art projects is first to listen,” Godoy said in the release. “And with this project, fortunately, we had a series of events where we were there to learn and listen to what the community wanted to see in this mural.”

Four central themes emerged from these collaborative efforts: Dream, Aspire, Learn and Love. In response to community feedback, the mural incorporates significant representation from Native American and Latino cultures, honoring our community’s rich diversity. Key thematic words have been thoughtfully translated into relevant languages, such as “shmaak” in Piipaash for “dream,” “aspirar” in Spanish for “aspire,” “uuxayk” (Piipaash) for “learn” and “amor” (Spanish) for “love.”

Cultural and iconic images important to the community are interspersed among the words, creating a vibrant centerpiece that truly reflects the neighborhood.

In April 2024, the One Street Over Project began its Community Paint Days to paint the 2000 foot mural on a wall surrounding Whitman park. Residents participated through a “paint-by-number” approach, coloring the mural according to Godoy’s outlines and directions.

“I love the sense of bringing the community together,” Whitman resident Gregorio Ramos said in the release. “You get to know your neighbors and some of the people who live around here, and you all come together for the common goal of taking care of the place you live.”

For information about Mesa Arts Center’s engagement programs, go to mesaartscenter.com/engagement.