Art in Percival Hall

Project Leader(s): Caroline Chaves Arantes and Kay Zipp, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design; 

The Division of Forestry and Natural Resources has been taking steps to make a more diverse and inclusive community, acknowledging that it historically lacks the involvement of underrepresented groups. Space is powerful and the atmosphere created by the aesthetic of a space sets the tone of a community. Our proposal is to transform the environment and reinvent the hallways of Percival Hall by creating a mural that generates an atmosphere of inclusion, inspires students to envision a future that embodies diversity and fosters meaningful conversations and spaces where community can be built. This mural would artistically reflect on West Virginia’s environmental past, celebrate the accomplishments of our alumni, highlight the work we are presently doing and look towards a more diverse inclusive future. We envision murals being installed at the four-way junction on the third floor – a bustling hub that students and faculty members traverse every day. Each hallway branching from the junction will take on one of the aforementioned aspects and meet in the center with a culminating image. To create the community we desire, the mural will be participative/collaborative in nature: Division’s students, faculty, the NAACP, WVU Indian Student Association, Organization for Native American Interests, Chinese Students and Scholars Association, LGBTQ+ as well as the Fine Arts College will be actively involved in every step from envisioning the piece to its completion. Following the footsteps of the Great Wall of Los Angeles created by Judith F. Baca, who interviewed hundreds of people to ensure that the history depicted reflected that of all people, we aim to use representations from a wide variety of individuals with complex identities. When completed, a web page will be created that can be accessed by a QR code. This page will acknowledge the individuals who worked on the mural, their backgrounds, and the testimonies of the people interviewed.