Urban Arts Project leads Campbell Avenue Mural Effort
JULY 12, 2020

END RACISM NOW

Roanoke leaders speak out through art

The 200 block of Campbell Avenue, SW, is the canvas for a community organized street mural project being implemented on Sunday, July 12.  Deploying a dozen artists, the community is expressing its stance that racism has no place in Roanoke. The message: END RACISM NOW.

The Campbell Avenue mural will center on the City’s 1915 classical revival Municipal Building. The design, primarily comprised of 12-foot high letters, spans 140 feet. It is framed by a partial listing of Black victims of police violence across the country. 

“Our city is not just painting the words on the street,” says Urban Arts Project volunteer. Alyasa “Aly” Jones. “We’re committed to the message. This is a step in the right direction as Roanoke shows support for their community to effect change. We are the Urban Arts Project and we believe in change. Be the change you wish to see in the world. Isn’t that what they say? We hope this sparks a much-needed conversation and the unification our city needs to END RACISM NOW!”

The street mural is a temporary project, as Campbell Avenue is slated for repaving in the 2022 Fiscal Year.

“We’ll have the message up for less than two years. But that’s two years in which we can work together with, and as part of, our local government. We do this work together, and right now, we feel it’s important that the City hear our voices. We’ll continue to make this community work for ALL of us.” 

Roanoke Arts Commission Chair Cari C. Gates sees the importance of this. “Some of the best work we can do as the Roanoke Arts Commission is to help neighborhood and community leaders effect change through art,” she says, “and this is a great example. We commend these young leaders and their dedicated efforts.”

More than 37 volunteers have committed the day to making the mural possible. The leadership team of the Roanoke Urban Art Project include:

• Jordan Bell
• Xavier Duckett
• Eboni Harrington
• Aly Jones
• Sherman Lea, Jr.
• Kameron Melton

A diverse group of artists were each assigned a letter to design and paint. 
E -           Jordan Fitzgerald
N -           Ella and Ann Trinkle
D -           Maggie Perrin-Key
R -           Bryce Cobbs
A -           Toobz Muir
C -           Kate and Nadya Kahilian
I  -           Dyke Wood
S -           Katrina “Trees” Legan
M-           Katherine Devine
N -           Jonathan Jones
O -           Monica Jones
W-           Katrina “Trees” Legan

The following organizations have provided financial support for the project: 

• City of Roanoke 
• Magic City Ford
• New Hope Support Services, LLC
• Roanoke Arts and Cultural Endowment
• Roanoke Arts Commission

Physically distanced observation of the painting can occur from 12 -6 PM. The organizers are very concerned about the spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus and request that viewers do not clump in groups and spread out their viewing throughout the day.
About the artists.

E -           Jordan Fitzgerald
Jordan Fitzgerald is a 31-year old Roanoke native (currently residing in Charlotte, NC.) whose art evolved around the time Michael Brown Jr. was murdered in 2014. Art became a therapeutic tool use to heal and empower herself and others while battling media’s habit of portrayal of black people in a negative, stereotypical light. For Jordan, painting was the opportunity to display the beauty of blackness.  

N -           Ella Trinkle
Ella Trinkle was born and raised in Roanoke, Virginia, and has always loved the Valley. After spending three years in Richmond working in education, she will start her first teaching position this year—in Roanoke City Public Schools! Ella, inspired by her mother at a young age, has always loved the arts and spends free time printmaking and drawing. 

               Ann Trinkle
A proud native Roanoker, Ann Trinkle attended Randolph Macon Woman’s College and VCU where she received an MFA in sculpture. She has shown work mostly in Virginia, but also in NC, Chicago and New York. She moved back to Roanoke from Chicago in 1992 with husband Dave. They’ve raised three children in Roanoke, run small businesses, including two restaurants, and are heavily into arts advocacy. She’s excited to work alongside her daughter Ella in this project.

D -           Maggie Perrin-Key
Maggie Perrin-Key is a Roanoke-based artist and muralist. She has a BA in studio art from Hollins University and has an upcoming show at Alexander/Heath Contemporary.

R -           Bryce Cobbs
Bryce Cobbs is an aspiring artist and avid creator. Having just taken his first art class during his junior year of high school, he now finds himself attending Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, majoring in Communication Arts. While focusing heavily on portraiture and anatomy, Bryce attempts to keep a common narrative with all of his work. “Celebrating the beauty and the life of being black.”

A -           Toobz Muir
Prolific Roanoke-based artist and muralist Toobz Muir has a paint brush at the ready. Find his distinctive, colorful, and thought-provoking murals in most corners of the city. 

C -           Nadya Kahilian 
Nadya Khalilian, who grew up in Roanoke, previously studied Art Education at Emory & Henry College. She is currently pursuing a degree in Early Childhood Education and works as an Instructional Aid at Hurt Park Elementary. 

                Kate Kahilian 
Kate Khalilian lives in Richmond Va and was a decorative painter in the Roanoke area for 15 years. Some of her work can be seen at the Grandin Theater, The Patrick Henry Hotel, and the Ponce De Leon building. 

I  -           Dyke Wood
Abstract expressionist and native Roanoker Dyke Wood, graduated from Patrick Henry High School, and attended Hampton University prior to being employed with Norfolk and Western/Norfolk Southern Railroad for 38 years.

S & W-    Katrina “Trees” Legan
To say that art and creative expression runs in Katrina "Trees" Legans veins would be an understatement. She is a native of NW Roanoke, Virginia and a graduate of William Fleming High School currently residing in Denver, CO. Introduced to the arts at an early age, her artistry can best be described as both eclectic and eccentric–fusing together painting, graffiti/calligraphy, and mixed media.

M-           Katherine Devine
Katherine Devine received her undergraduate degree in art from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, and her Master's degree from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia.  She has over 25 years experience teaching art and exhibiting original artwork throughout the Roanoke Valley. She works in a small studio, but she dreams big.

N -           Jonathan Jones
Jonathan Jones is a 40-year-old father born in Bedford Virginia currently living in Roanoke Virginia Working in the maintenance industry. Jonathan has been building his reputation as a local painter for the past 10 years.

O -           Monica Jones
Monica is a 44-year-old mother of four. Born in Bedford Virginia currently working at optical cable and has been a resident artist in Roanoke Virginia since high school. Monica is assisted by Jasmine Haskins, a 39-year-old mother of four, born in Bedford Virginia living in Roanoke Virginia. Jasmine currently works in the healthcare profession and has only been painting for about three years. 

Find this full release with links at www.artinroanoke.org.